Lester Lanin

Lester Lanin
Birth name Nathaniel Lester Lanin
Born (1907-08-26)August 26, 1907
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died October 27, 2004(2004-10-27) (aged 97)
Manhattan, New York, U.S.
Genres Dance music
Occupation(s) Bandleader
Website www.lesterlanin.com

Nathaniel Lester Lanin (August 26, 1907 – October 27, 2004) was an American jazz and pop music bandleader.

Biography

Lanin's brothers, Sam and Howard, were also both bandleaders; they came from a family of ten (of which Lester was the youngest) born to a family of Russian Jewish immigrants. He originally attended South Philadelphia High School but quit at the age of 15 to play music with his brothers abandoning his plans to be an attorney.[1] Beginning in 1927, he led ensembles that were paid to play at the houses of wealthy socialites in Philadelphia and New York, continuing after the 1929 stock market crash.

In 1930, Lanin was hired to play at a gala for Barbara Hutton, and the event garnered so much press in New York newspapers that it made Lanin a star as well as the young heiress. Lanin became a major star of the dance music world, and was hired worldwide to play for kings and queens, in addition to a recurring invitation to play at White House inaugural balls from the Eisenhower administration to the Carter administration.[2] Lanin was managed for much of his career by New York socialite music promoter Al Madison.

Famous for long, smooth medleys, Lanin's popularity increased upon the advent of the LP era. Starting with Epic Records in the middle of the 1950s, he recorded a string of albums for several labels, many of which hit the US Billboard 200. He continued performing well into the 1990s. In 1999 Lester Lanin played himself in the black-and-white film comedy Man of the Century, where he was the favorite musician of lead character Johnny Twennies.

Lester Lanin died at age 97 in 2004.[3]

Selected discography

References

  1. ↑ "Lester Lanin, 97; Favorite Bandleader for Socialites and the White House". Los Angeles Times. 30 October 2004.
  2. ↑ Eder, Bruce. "Lester Lanin Biography". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  3. ↑ Martin, Douglas (29 October 2004). "Lester Lanin, Bandleader of High Society, Dies at 97". The New York Times.

External links

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