William James "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and their first recording. He led the group for almost 50 years, creating innovations like the use of two "split" tenor saxophones, emphasizing the rhythm section, riffing with a big band, using arrangers to broaden their sound, his minimalist piano style, and others.
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1943.
Susan Hayward was an American actress best known for her film portrayals of women that were based on true stories.
Smash-Up, the Story of a Woman, also called A Woman Destroyed, is a 1947 American drama film with elements of film noir that tells the story of a rising nightclub singer who marries another singer and becomes an alcoholic after sacrificing her career for him.
Dorothy Jean Dandridge was an American actress and singer. She was the first African-American film star to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for Carmen Jones (1954). Dandridge had also performed as a vocalist in venues such as the Cotton Club and the Apollo Theater. During her early career, she performed as a part of the Wonder Children, later the Dandridge Sisters, and appeared in a succession of films, usually in uncredited roles.
AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars is the American Film Institute's list ranking the top 25 male and 25 female greatest screen legends of American film history and is the second list of the AFI 100 Years... series.
Reveille with Beverly is a 1943 American musical film starring Ann Miller, Franklin Pangborn, and Larry Parks directed by Charles Barton, released by Columbia Pictures, based on the Reveille with Beverly radio show hosted by Jean Ruth. It is also the name of the subsequent soundtrack album.
"That Old Feeling" is a popular song about nostalgia written by Sammy Fain, with lyrics by Lew Brown. It was published in 1937.
Walter Leland Catlett was an American actor and comedian. He made a career of playing excitable, meddlesome, temperamental, and officious blowhards.
"Oh, Lady Be Good!" is a 1924 song by George and Ira Gershwin. It was introduced by Walter Catlett in the Broadway musical Lady, Be Good! written by Guy Bolton, Fred Thompson, and the Gershwin brothers and starring Fred and Adele Astaire. The song was also performed by the chorus in the film Lady Be Good (1941), although the film is unrelated to the musical.
Orchestra Wives is a 1942 American musical film by 20th Century Fox starring Ann Rutherford, George Montgomery, and Glenn Miller. Lynn Bari, Carole Landis, and Cesar Romero appear in support.
Star Spangled Rhythm is a 1942 American all-star cast musical film made by Paramount Pictures during World War II as a morale booster. Many of the Hollywood studios produced such films during the war, with the intent of entertaining the troops overseas and civilians back home and to encourage fundraising – as well as to show the studios' patriotism. This film was also the first released by Paramount to be shown for 8 weeks.
Ziegfeld Girl is a 1941 American musical film directed by Robert Z. Leonard and starring James Stewart, Judy Garland, Hedy Lamarr, Lana Turner, Tony Martin, Jackie Cooper, Eve Arden, and Philip Dorn. The film, which features musical numbers by Busby Berkeley, was produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Carmen Jones is a 1954 American musical film featuring an African American cast starring Harry Belafonte, Dorothy Dandridge, and Pearl Bailey and produced and directed by Otto Preminger. The screenplay by Harry Kleiner is based on the lyrics and book by Oscar Hammerstein II, from the 1943 stage musical of the same name, set to the music of Georges Bizet's 1875 opera Carmen. The opera was an adaptation of the 1845 Prosper Mérimée novella Carmen by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy.
George Melville Cooper was an English actor. His many notable screen roles include the High Sheriff of Nottingham in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Mr. Collins in Pride and Prejudice (1940) and the wedding-rehearsal supervisor Mr. Tringle in Father of the Bride (1950).
Eileen Wilson was an American big band singer, and one of the original stars of the 1950s television show Your Hit Parade on NBC. She also starred on the Hit Parade radio show.
Phil Moore was an American jazz pianist, arranger, and bandleader.
The Stage Door Canteen was an entertainment venue for American and Allied servicemen that operated in the Broadway theatre district of New York City throughout World War II. Founded by the American Theatre Wing (ATW) in 1942, the entertainers were largely unpaid; volunteering their talents as a way of supporting the morale of American troops during the war. Several women in leadership with the ATW played a critical role in establishing the Stage Door Canteen, including actress Nedda Harrigan and ATW co-founders Louise Heims Beck and Antoinette Perry. The canteen opened March 2, 1942 and operated seven nights a week in the previously unoccupied Little Club under the 44th Street Theatre at 216 West 44th Street in Manhattan.
Cowboy in Manhattan is a 1943 American comedy film directed by Frank Woodruff and written by Warren Wilson. The film stars Robert Paige, Frances Langford, Leon Errol, Walter Catlett, Joe Sawyer and Jennifer Holt. The film was released on May 21, 1943, by Universal Pictures.
Melody Parade is a 1943 American musical film directed by Arthur Dreifuss and written by Tim Ryan and Charles R. Marion. The film stars Mary Beth Hughes, Eddie Quillan, Tim Ryan, Irene Ryan, Mantan Moreland, Jerry Cooper and Armida. The film was released on August 27, 1943, by Monogram Pictures.
