8 minute read
Sing-a-long king
His
Mitch Miller died a couple of weeks ago. Didn’t know him? You’re not alone.
Even if you’ve been following the music scene for the past 40 years, you may not remember the guy best known for a single accomplishment: a television show called “Sing Along With Mitch” that was popular from 1961-1964.
According to a New York Times obituary, Miller was a talented musician (he played the oboe for major orchestras in the 1940s and ’50s) and a big-time producer (he resurrected the careers of Rosemary Clooney and Tony Bennett). For awhile, he seemed to have the golden touch, culminating with a TV show based on a simple premise: Viewers sang along with his men’s chorus while a ball bounced atop lyrics scrolling along the screen.
For several years, “Sing Along With Mitch” was all the rage on TV, as people watched the crisply dressed, goateed Miller cruise through renditions of then-favorites such as “It’s A Long Way To Tipperary” and “Home On The Range”.
Highbrow critics disliked the show — one said it was best viewed with the sound off — but for a few years, audiences loved the downhome shtick and atmosphere.
If stardom was his dream, he achieved it. And then the rest of his life happened.
Just as suddenly as Miller stumbled into the limelight, he faded into the shadows. The TV show was canceled. He failed to sign Elvis Presley for his record label. He passed on signing Buddy Holly. He trashed the then-budding rock ‘n’ roll movement, memorably saying: “It’s not music. It’s a disease.” He effectively shoveled dirt on his own musical grave.
The years passed, and his legacy gathered dust. Then things became even worse. Shopping malls began playing “Sing Along With Mitch” to drive away loitering teens, and ATF agents used “Sing Along” Christmas carols in an attempt to flush Waco’s David Koresh out of his Branch Davidian compound.
Seeing his greatest accomplishment turned into a r unning joke had to hurt. But Miller hung around showbiz, producing a few Broadway musicals (mostly failures) and periodically serving as a guest symphony conductor. Maybe it wasn’t the life he dreamed of — it definitely wasn’t the life he lived earlier — but it appears he made the best of it.
René isn’t your average agent. He has many years of experience in your neighborhood, and he’s an expert remodeler as well. So whether you’re
It turns out I was in Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan at the same time Miller was there dying. But I didn’t know it, because there was no celebrity buzz in the halls and no paparazzi encamped in the lobby.
When Miller died at 99, he had lived long enough to see himself go from celebrity to afterthought. At the end of his obituary, this caught my eye:
“What pleased me the most,” Miller told an interviewer asking about his life, “was a fellow who came up to me after a concert in Chicago and said, ‘You know, there’s nobody in the whole country who hasn’t been touched by your music in some way.’
“That really made me feel good.”
It appears that what mattered most to Miller when his road ended was the journey.
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WHO’S GOT IT BETTER, CITY DWELLERS OR SUBURBANITES? Search : city dwellers
What does the book [“The Next Hundred Million: America in 2050” by Joel Kotkin] say about crime in the suburbs? My suburban friends have fewer purse snatchings, panhandlers, car windows broken, and house break-ins. Replacing stolen articles, dealing with the time requirements of contacting insurance companies, canceling credit cards, and getting a new driver’s license surely is included in the “added expense of living in an urban area.” Many people reduce their commute by living in Frisco, Prosper, Flower Mound because of the major businesses out there. I love living in LH, and it works for my family because my husband does work near downtown, and the neighborhood is over-the top-friendly. We have good schools, but many of the suburbs have much better ranked schools. The book appears to dis the suburbs without taking into account many of the advantages of living outside the loop.
—LH
Mom Via
I am a believer inlivingin“close-in neighborhoods” like Lake Highlands, but I do think one common misconception of suburbs is this requirement of having to drive a long way to a job. That’s only true if you live in a far-flung bedroom suburb. There are employment centers outside of Dallas’ central business district in DFW, so I don’t see cities like Frisco, Plano and Richardson becoming ghost towns. Many of these articles are written by people who believe in sustainable living in dense, urban areas and are promoting their beliefs. With that said, I’ve lived in Plano and Allen. They treated me well, but then having moved to Lake Highlands about four years ago, I will never move back to suburbia. In fact, if I ever moved, it would be to get closer to either Lakewood or Knox/Henderson. Brand-new buildings everywhere, to me, is just too vanilla. I love the areas that have character and more established longterm businesses. So suburbia is definitely out of my future.
—LH_NEWBIE VIA
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“2009 Legislative Action Award”
—Texas PTA
“Law and Order Award”
—Texas District and County Attorneys’ Association
“Legislative Award”
—Texas Police Chiefs Association
“Legislator of the Year”
—Association of Texas Professional Educators, Region 10
“2009 Child Advocacy Award”
—Texas Pediatric Society
“2009 Legislatives Initiatives
Nurturing Children (LINC) Award”
—Children’s Medical Center of Dallas
“Outstanding Supporter”
—The Wind Coalition
“The Friend of Veterans Award”
—Texas Criminal Justice Coalition
“Citizen of the Year”
—Dallas Elks Lodge
Providing Real Solutions to Real Problems
Since entering the Legislature in 2007 Allen has brought common sense to the table. Recognized by bi-partisan organizations in Austin and Dallas for his accomplishments, Allen serves as ViceChair of the Defense and Veterans’ Affairs Committee, is a second term member of the Criminal Jurisprudence Committee, and was recently appointed Chair of the Subcommittee on Border Security, Health, and School Centered Emergencies for the Select Committee on Emergency Preparedness.
Allen served as U.S. Army Captain in Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003-2004. In addition to being a Legislator, he is an attorney primarily focusing on environmental law. The Vaughts live in Lakewood Heights.
faceBook fan profile // L Streets neighbor Laura aN dre WS Matura , 39, works as project manager at Brown Books Publishing Group and is principal and owner of marketing and design firm Moxie Studio. She and her husband, Matt, were married June 12 at Lakewood Theater. They have a toddler named Andrew and three dogs.
What’s a little known fact about you?
I’m a fairly open book. Kind of bummed I’m not that mysterious. What’s the one thing you wish you could do but are reasonably sure you never will?
Sing well in front of people. What makes you laugh out loud?
I laugh easily, but I don’t laugh at “mean” things, like when people fall (except myself). My mom said, “Never make fun of people’s laughing, singing or dancing, because they are laughing, singing or dancing.” parts could have used some zoning 20 or so years ago. Fifty years ago, it was basically a suburb, built-up near a lake. Now it’s full of lots of old trees and streets filled with modest homes and nice people. your own noggin, whose would it be?
What’s your most treasured possession?
A card that I received from my parents when I graduated from high school.
What’s your strangest or most random Facebook friend connection?
The photographer Hal Samples. I thought I had found a friend from college. When I went on his page to send him a message, I realized it was the wrong person. But now I get to see all of the amazing photography he does.
What’s one question you think other Facebook fans could help you answer?
What item in your closet is most humiliating?
My maternity bras (yes, they’re still there).
What celebrity would you most like to meet for coffee and why?
Chef Anthony Bourdain. I like food, but I wouldn’t classify myself as a “foodie.” I just really enjoy the zeal and true excitement he has for all of his adventures.
What’s your favorite guiltypleasure website?
A handful of mommy blogs (ugh, I hate that term), like dooce.com, amalah.com and shelikespurple. com. A girlfriend and I are working on a new blog, swissarmywives. com. Hopefully we can replicate the appeal that many of these women have created with their own blogs.
It’s a tie that I can’t break: Dorothy Parker for wit and undeniable brilliance; Mother Teresa for empathy and compassion. Would you skydive in the most beautiful place in the world?
Why or why not?
NO! I’m really scared of heights. When did you realize you were no longer a child?
When I was 19. I was having dinner with my parents and I looked at them and said, “Okay, you guys really do know everything.” single tickets ON SALE september 7th FOR TICKETS
Not a question, a statement: I don’t get Farmville.
How would you explain your neighborhood to someone living in, say, Newfoundland?
I live in a “transitional” neighborhood north of downtown Dallas. Some parts are nice; some tickets start at $25
You said it
214.443.1000 dallasopera.org
What are you afraid of, rationally or irrationally?
Overpasses. I know every end-around in Dallas to keep from driving over them.
If you could import the brain of any person, living or dead, into
“To parphrase Bill Clinton, ‘It’s the high school, stupid!’ Perhaps one day the center will shift a bit south to the Town Center development, but the high school has been the real ‘town center’ for my 15-plus years here.” —Jim Jones on “The cenTer of Lh” Search: center of L h
Most popular lake HigHlands
Blog posts:
1. AiLinG former Lh soccer coAch
WAnTs To heAr from former sTUDenTs Search: mark Adams // 2. one more Lhhs PrinciPAL Gone
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ALDrich AnD fiAnce Are finALisTs for foUr seAsons ULTimATe
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To K2 Search: K2 // 5. ProJecT reconnecT: KePT oUT of LAKe hiGhLAnDs, BUT sTiLL reLeVAnT
Search: reconnect //
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