National Orchestra Service
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The National Orchestra Service (NOS) was the most important booking and management agency for territory bands across the Great Plains and other regions from the early 1930s through 1960.[1][2] NOS had offices in Omaha and Minneapolis.
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[edit] About
NOS specialized in booking ballroom dance groups known as territory bands. The company's reputation as the premier booking agent helped them dominate their industry for almost 20 years. Bands that NOS represented were typically smaller than the Glenn Miller-type orchestras, usually featuring about 12 pieces, sometimes 15; though ensemble sizes tended to wax and wane with the economy.
The NOS headquarters on the eleventh floor of Omaha National Bank Building in Downtown Omaha. Serl Frank Hutton was its founder and sole proprietor until 1952, when he sold it to Lee Williams. In 1954 the Royce Stoenner agency merged with NOS. In September 1959 Royce Stoenner left the NOS agency with no notice or explanation given by agency executives. In February 1960, the NOS folded.[3]
[edit] Bands under management
| Bands managed by the NOS | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Period | Territory | Notes | ||
| Verne Byers | Herbert Daly Phillips played with this band in the early 1950s | ||||
| Jerry Mosher | [4] | ||||
| Preston H. Love | |||||
| Red Perkins & His Dixie Ramblers | |||||
| Mickey Bride | |||||
| Oklahoma City Blue Devils | NOS launched the Blue Devils[5] on a tour of the Northern Territories in 1930.[6] | ||||
| Nat Towles and his Quintet | |||||
| Sammy Stevens | |||||
| Little John Beecher | 1950s | Beecher, a trumpeter and valve trombonist, and a singer of novelty songs, led his own band called "Little John Beecher and his Orchestra" throughout the 1950s. The band finished 1959 using NOS as its booking agent. When Royce Stoenner left NOS and moved to Georgia, Beecher followed and started working there through his agency. Beecher donated his music library to Auburn University before his death. | |||
| Jimmy Thomas | |||||
| * Tommy Allan | |||||
| Leo Pieper | |||||
| Jack Russell and His Sweet Rhythmic Orchestra | |||||
| Billy Thompson and His Melody Cowboys | |||||
| Tillie Newell and His Orchestra | |||||
| Walter Martie | |||||
[edit] Principals, employees
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- Serl F. Hutton's father, Frank Hutton, was born March 8, 1872 in Iowa and his mother, Adelaide Searles, was born in Iowa too. Serl married to Fern Marguerite Butler (maiden) on November 29, 1924, in Gregory County, South Dakota.[7] Fern was born December 1898, in Omaha. Fern died February 1985. Fern's father, George W. Butler, was born in Ohio and her mother, Amy Ann Davis (maiden), was born June 15, 1876 in Horton, Nova Scotia.
- Lee Williams — purchased NOS from Hutton in 1952
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- Laura Beth Barr, Lee's widow, resides in Omaha
- Claude Orr — the company's only traveling salesman
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- Claude Orr's son lives in Omaha
- Royce Stoenner — partner by way of merger in 1954; left the firm in 1959
- Robert L. Dahlstrom — employee
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Behrens, J. (2006) Big Bands and Great Ballrooms: America Is Dancing ... Again. AuthorHouse. p 80.
- ^ Love, Preston H. (1997) A Thousand Honey Creeks Later: My Life in Music from Basie to Motown and Beyond. Wesleyan University Press. p 151.
- ^ Sanders, J. (2005) "Preston H. Love: Internationally Renowned Band Leader, Musical Manager and Author." Nebraska State Education Association. Retrieved 10/26/07.
- ^ "Jerry Mosher: Accordion stylist." Retrieved 10/26/07.
- ^ Daniels, D.H. (2006) One O'Clock Jump: The Unforgettable History of the Oklahoma City Blue Devils. Beacon Press. p 131.
- ^ Frank Driggs & Chuck Haddix, Kansas City Jazz: From Ragtime to Bebop — A History, Oxford University Press (2005).
- ^ Gregory County, SD, Marriage Certificate # 102622.
