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Friday, June 10, 2016

Ducks In A Row

Several years ago, in a desperate effort to escape the suffocating summer heat of New York City and my non air-conditioned 4th floor walk up apartment in Hell's Kitchen, I rented a cheap car and blasted out of the city for a day trip to the Hamptons on Long Island. Without an agenda or schedule, I simply wanted to get as far away from New York as possible. I hadn't driven a car in years, so managing the expressways, exits, bridges, and tunnels out of New York was a stretch, to say the least. Once I made it safely out of the tangled mess and onto Highway 27 (Montauk Highway), a calm blew over me like a gentle cool breeze.Artie Shaw: The Reluctant Jazz Star

Enlarge this image toggle caption John Pratt/Keystone Features/Getty Images John Pratt/Keystone Features/Getty Images

Artie Shaw was a virtuoso clarinetist whose good looks and eight wives (including Lana Turner and Eva Gardner) made him a darling of the gossip page. He was also a bandleader extraordinaire and a modern instrumentalist who grew restless with the repetitive nature of popular dance music and uncomfortable with the spotlight. Just when his bands were at their most successful, he'd break them up. At the age of 44, Shaw left the music business to become a writer.

Artie Shaw was born Arthur Jacob Arshawsky on May 23, 1910, to poor Jewish immigrant parents. He grew up in New Haven, Conn. His father left and Shaw turned to music, taking up