“What the hell was that?”
By Mahnuel Muñoz
Bob Weitman, the director of the Paramount Theatre, saw Sinatra perform at the Mosque Theater in Newark in 1942 and was fascinated. He ipso facto proposed to Benny Goodman that the young singer appear in the famous conductor’s show scheduled for December 30 of that same year. At the time, Goodman didn’t even know Frank, but he agreed.
The program included a screening of the film “Star Spangled Banner,” starring Bing Crosby, and performances by Peggy Lee, pianist Jess Stacy, the comedy trio Radio Rogues and the Benny Goodman Orchestra.
Jack Benny was in charge of introducing the artist to a fervent audience of five thousand teenagers who went crazy when they saw him step on stage.
Benny Goodman was wondering what the hell had happened and both Jack Benny and Frank himself thought the building was going to collapse.
In the photo, we see Benny Goodman with an expression that could well be an example of what he felt that cold December night when that skinny young man came out on the Paramount stage to take center stage forever.
If you want to visit more articles about the life of Frank Sinatra enter the following Sinatra Radio 24h link: https://sinatraradio24h.com/category/articles/
We remind you that you can also listen to Sinatra Radio 24 hours on your mobile phone by downloading our free applications for Android in the Play Store https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=sinatra.radio24h
