Sunday, November 25, 2012

"C'mon, Chillun. Let's Dance!": A Forgotten Star, Kay Kyser

From the December Our State (NC) Magazine by Josh Shaffer.

I have heard a little about the man and his band, but not much, but Kay Kyser was one of the top Big Bands back in that day, scoring 35 top-ten hits and being called The Old Professor and led his big band in a mortarboard and tassel and knee-length academic robe with his drawl-soaked catchphrase "C'mon chillun.  Let's dance!"

Through the Depression and World War II, he offered up his zaniness through the hard times.

He wa born to pharmacist parents in Rocky Mount, NC and attended UNC at Chapel Hill.  He found his niche on "The Kollege of Musical Knowledge" radio show.  During the war, he performed before thousands of U.S. GIs.

As popular as he was, he vanished from the scene in the early 1950s, retiring to his alma mater and died 27 years ago.

I Would Have Liked to Have Seen Him.  --Cooter

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