Rudy Vallee was one of the pioneer of
popular music in the 1930s as the original
crooners. His popularity came before the
most famous in that genre, Bing Crosby,
while also setting the stage for such a host of
popular singers such as Frank Sinatra, Perry
Como and many others.
Eleanor Vallee, his widow and author of My
Vagabond Love: An Intimate Biogrpraphy
of Rudy Vallee, is now putting together the
formal application for submission to the
Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee of the
U.S. Post Office in March 2008, this in
anticipation of a July 28, 2011 issuance to
coincide with Vallee's 110th birthday.
Vallee, famous for singing through his
megaphone, his distinctive singing voice and
the saxophone, became popular in the late
1920s after honing his skills with the Savoy
Havana Band at London's famous Savoy
Hotel.
popular music in the 1930s as the original
crooners. His popularity came before the
most famous in that genre, Bing Crosby,
while also setting the stage for such a host of
popular singers such as Frank Sinatra, Perry
Como and many others.
Eleanor Vallee, his widow and author of My
Vagabond Love: An Intimate Biogrpraphy
of Rudy Vallee, is now putting together the
formal application for submission to the
Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee of the
U.S. Post Office in March 2008, this in
anticipation of a July 28, 2011 issuance to
coincide with Vallee's 110th birthday.
Vallee, famous for singing through his
megaphone, his distinctive singing voice and
the saxophone, became popular in the late
1920s after honing his skills with the Savoy
Havana Band at London's famous Savoy
Hotel.
| Enjoy this Video Rudy Vallee, Ozzie Nelson and Ensemble from Singing Alouette in the movie People Are Funny (1946), movie poster below right. Join the Rudy Vallee Commemorative Stamp Campaign by Signing the Online Petition, Click on the Buttons or Stamp Image and Leave a Nice Message for the Citzens' Stamp Advisory Committee, City and State. |
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| The Life and Times of the Original Crooner and Show Biz Legend, Rudy Vallee |
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| Edgar Bergen and his famous sidekick Charlie McCarthy pay a visit to Rudy Vallee and his Fleischmann Yeast Hour, 1939. |
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| The Rudy Vallee Celebrity Gallery |
| Click Any Image to Enlarge |
| Click Any Image to Enlarge |
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Born Hubert Prior Vallee in 1901, he changed his name to Rudy after
the famous saxophonist Rudy Wiedoft. During his college days, Vallee
played Wiedoft's records over and over, earning the 'Rudy' nickname
from his fellow students at the University of Maine. Vallee later met his
idol and the two Rudys developed a friendship that lasted until Wiedoft
died. One of Rudy's saxophones, which once belonged to Wiedoft,
was later sold to a Little Rock Attorney as a gift for then governor of
Arkansas, Bill Clinton.
When Rudy transferred to Yale, he formed a band called the Yale
Collegians, and made his singing debut at the Heigh Ho Club in New
York City, after hastily volunteering to handle the vocals himself
because he was fearful of losing the engagement. This launched the
crooning--a natural, soft, untrained style amplified by use of a
megaphone--that he made famous before Bing Crosby and Frank
Sinatra. When WABC Radio in New York broadcast Rudy's shows from
the Heigh Ho Club, he began using the "new" microphone, engaging
in a sensuous dance and sliding his fingers up an down the column.
the famous saxophonist Rudy Wiedoft. During his college days, Vallee
played Wiedoft's records over and over, earning the 'Rudy' nickname
from his fellow students at the University of Maine. Vallee later met his
idol and the two Rudys developed a friendship that lasted until Wiedoft
died. One of Rudy's saxophones, which once belonged to Wiedoft,
was later sold to a Little Rock Attorney as a gift for then governor of
Arkansas, Bill Clinton.
When Rudy transferred to Yale, he formed a band called the Yale
Collegians, and made his singing debut at the Heigh Ho Club in New
York City, after hastily volunteering to handle the vocals himself
because he was fearful of losing the engagement. This launched the
crooning--a natural, soft, untrained style amplified by use of a
megaphone--that he made famous before Bing Crosby and Frank
Sinatra. When WABC Radio in New York broadcast Rudy's shows from
the Heigh Ho Club, he began using the "new" microphone, engaging
in a sensuous dance and sliding his fingers up an down the column.
Rudy Vallee's first two records were A Dream and Nola, recorded in
1921, and his final recordings were in 1973 narrating Grimm's Fairy
Fales. He was first to record the classic song As Time Goes By, 13
years before Casablanca was made. The Fleischmann Hour,
nationally known as the Rudy Vallee Hour--the first-ever radio talk
show and the idea of radio pioneer Bertha Brainard--debuted in 1928
with millions of listeners, made Vallee a superstar and was a staple of
radio listerners in the 1930s. It was a live variety revue and Rudy's
guests were a mixture of the famous and the unknown.
He was the first to invite black musicians to be on his show, and in
appreciation, artists such as Louis Armstrong and Josephine Baker
invited Rudy to their clubs in Harlem. Among his blunders: turning down
The Andrew Sisters and believing that Barbra Streisand had no talent.
During his first nine months in New York, he became a legend. At 28 he
wrote his autobiography, Vagabond Dreams Come True. He saved
the life of the sheet music industry during the Great Depression when
sales of everything but Rudy's music virtually stopped. Vallee's starred
in the film The Vagabond Lover in 1929, the first of 33 he would make.
In 1961 Rudy stared in the smash Broadway hit, How To Succeed In
Business Without Even Trying, making a huge comeback. The show
ran for four years, and Rudy later starred in the movie version.
1921, and his final recordings were in 1973 narrating Grimm's Fairy
Fales. He was first to record the classic song As Time Goes By, 13
years before Casablanca was made. The Fleischmann Hour,
nationally known as the Rudy Vallee Hour--the first-ever radio talk
show and the idea of radio pioneer Bertha Brainard--debuted in 1928
with millions of listeners, made Vallee a superstar and was a staple of
radio listerners in the 1930s. It was a live variety revue and Rudy's
guests were a mixture of the famous and the unknown.
He was the first to invite black musicians to be on his show, and in
appreciation, artists such as Louis Armstrong and Josephine Baker
invited Rudy to their clubs in Harlem. Among his blunders: turning down
The Andrew Sisters and believing that Barbra Streisand had no talent.
During his first nine months in New York, he became a legend. At 28 he
wrote his autobiography, Vagabond Dreams Come True. He saved
the life of the sheet music industry during the Great Depression when
sales of everything but Rudy's music virtually stopped. Vallee's starred
in the film The Vagabond Lover in 1929, the first of 33 he would make.
In 1961 Rudy stared in the smash Broadway hit, How To Succeed In
Business Without Even Trying, making a huge comeback. The show
ran for four years, and Rudy later starred in the movie version.
| Queen Elizabeth II meeting Rudy Vallee at Film Festival Command Performance, 1954. Elizabeth II was crowned only the year before. |
| Then California Governor Ronald Reagan and Rudy Vallee. |
| Jane Russell, second from left, with Eleanor and Rudy Vallee, 1960s. |
| Eleanor Vallee, Jack Lemmon and dapper Rudy Vallee sporting a straw hat, 1964. |
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| The Palm Beach Story with Claudette Colbert, Joel McCrea and Rudy Vallee. Paramount Pictures, 1942) |
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| The Rudy Vallee Portrait Gallery |
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| Click Any Image to Enlarge |
| Click Any Image to Enlarge |
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| Send personal letters of support of the Rudy Vallee Commemorative Stamp Campaign, which will be submitted with the formal application in March 2008 address it to the: Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee c/o Stamp Development U.S. Postal Service 1735 North Lynn St., Suite 5013 Arlington, VA 22209-6432. Then send it to Promotion in Motion 6464 Sunset Blvd., Suite 755 Hollywood, CA 90028 Or you can send a note through email to info@rudyvalleestamp.com |
| Rudy Vallee directing an orchestra in a scene from Second Fiddle with Sonja Henie and Tyrone Power (20th Century Fox, 1939). |
| An autographed picture of a young Rudy Vallee with his saxophone. |
John Bush of the All Music Guide wrote this of Rudy
Vallee's career. "A stint at the exclusive Heigh-Ho
Club in New York gave him his first widespread
exposure (and an introductory catchphrase, Heigh-Ho
Everybody). During the following year, he gained a
large audience through radio, vaudeville appearances,
and a feature film, The Vagabond Lover.
"He'd begun recording that year, and burst out of the
gate with the immensely popular singles Marie,
Honey and Weary River. Also in 1929, he began
hosting the radio show The Fleischmann Hour, a
top-rated program for over a decade that introduced
into the radio world stars including George Burns,
Gracie Allen, Edgar Bergen and Frances Langford.
"One year later, he paid tribute to his alma mater and
gained the biggest hit of his career. Stein Song (The
University of Maine) spent more than two months as
the most popular song in America, and later became
the official theme song for the school. He continued to
appear in films during the 1930s, including the major
successes George White's Scandals and Gold
Diggers in Paris. By the time of 1942's The Palm
Beach Story though, Vallée had moved from romantic
lead to a talented eccentric character actor."
"He led a Coast Guard orchestra during World War II,
and found his last big hit, thanks to the film
Casablanca, with 1946's As Time Goes By, a song
recorded more than fifteen years earlier.
"After the war, Vallée returned to Hollywood for work
in film, radio, performance and later television. The
biggest acting part of his career came in 1961, when
he portrayed a bombastic company president in the
Broadway hit How to Succeed in Business Without
Really Trying.
"Without Really Trying (he reprised his role for the
1967 film as well). Vallée continued to appear in films
until the mid-'70s, and performed around the country
up to his death ten years later."
Vallee's career. "A stint at the exclusive Heigh-Ho
Club in New York gave him his first widespread
exposure (and an introductory catchphrase, Heigh-Ho
Everybody). During the following year, he gained a
large audience through radio, vaudeville appearances,
and a feature film, The Vagabond Lover.
"He'd begun recording that year, and burst out of the
gate with the immensely popular singles Marie,
Honey and Weary River. Also in 1929, he began
hosting the radio show The Fleischmann Hour, a
top-rated program for over a decade that introduced
into the radio world stars including George Burns,
Gracie Allen, Edgar Bergen and Frances Langford.
"One year later, he paid tribute to his alma mater and
gained the biggest hit of his career. Stein Song (The
University of Maine) spent more than two months as
the most popular song in America, and later became
the official theme song for the school. He continued to
appear in films during the 1930s, including the major
successes George White's Scandals and Gold
Diggers in Paris. By the time of 1942's The Palm
Beach Story though, Vallée had moved from romantic
lead to a talented eccentric character actor."
"He led a Coast Guard orchestra during World War II,
and found his last big hit, thanks to the film
Casablanca, with 1946's As Time Goes By, a song
recorded more than fifteen years earlier.
"After the war, Vallée returned to Hollywood for work
in film, radio, performance and later television. The
biggest acting part of his career came in 1961, when
he portrayed a bombastic company president in the
Broadway hit How to Succeed in Business Without
Really Trying.
"Without Really Trying (he reprised his role for the
1967 film as well). Vallée continued to appear in films
until the mid-'70s, and performed around the country
up to his death ten years later."
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| Coast Guard Lt. Rudy Vallee doing radio show for NBC Radio Show during World War II. |
| Vintage Rudy Vallee Piano Sheet Music from movie Sweet Music, (Warner Bros. 1935). |
| Unfaithfully Yours with Rex Harrison, Linda Darnell and Rudy Vallee , (20th Century Fox, 1948). |
| Rudy Vallee's first big movie, My Vagabond Lover (RKO Radio Pictures, 1929). |
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| December, 1929: Rudy Vallee, in between performances at the Paramount Theatre in Brooklyn, found time to visit with Postmaster Albert Firmin and veteran letter carrier William F. Kenny at the Brooklyn Post Office as part of a holiday send mail early campaign.* |
| Rudy Vallee Assists the Post Office Brooklyn, 1929 |
| Click to Enlarge News Stories & Letters from the Post Office Top Left: 12/29 Brooklyn Newspaper Accounts of Rudy Vallee Assisting Post Office; Top Right: 12/4/29 Post Office Press Release; Bot Left: 12/9/29 Letter from Postmaster Albert Firmin; Bot Right: 12/28/29 Letter from Nat. Fed of Post Office Clerks |
| *Post Office Materials Courtesy of Thousand Oaks Public Library Special Collections |
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| The biography of Rudy Vallee written by his wife, Eleanor. |
| Eleanor and Rudy Vallee. This was Rudy's favorite picture of them and one he always carried in his wallet. |
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| Click to Enlarge: L-R: Rudy Vallee, Ellie Vallee and Gary Cooper, Boca Raton Beach Club, Florida, 1965. |
| Hear Two Classics Sung by Rudy Vallee Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries and There's A Tavern in the Town is a light hearted yet serious song that represents an era and the style and grace of this American Icon. |
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| Left control panel for Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries, Right There's A Tavern in the Town |
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1983 Reunion,
Paramount Pictures:
Los Angeles PR Executive
Edward Lozzi, middle,
heard that Cary Grant was
visiting the Paramount
Pictures lot when Rudy
Vallee, his client from
1982 to '85, was filming a
commercial for the movie,
Airplane. He went and
invited Grant to visit the
set, it was the first time
they had seen each since
working on The Bachelor
and the Bobby Soxer,
also starting Myrna Loy
and Shirley Temple, 35
years earlier.
Paramount Pictures:
Los Angeles PR Executive
Edward Lozzi, middle,
heard that Cary Grant was
visiting the Paramount
Pictures lot when Rudy
Vallee, his client from
1982 to '85, was filming a
commercial for the movie,
Airplane. He went and
invited Grant to visit the
set, it was the first time
they had seen each since
working on The Bachelor
and the Bobby Soxer,
also starting Myrna Loy
and Shirley Temple, 35
years earlier.