Biography
Vaughn Wilton Monroe was an American baritone singer, trumpeter, big band leader, actor, and businessman, who was most popular in the 1940s and 1950s. He has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for recording and another for radio performance. Monroe formed his first orchestra in Boston in 1940 and became its principal vocalist. He began recording for RCA Victor's subsidiary Bluebird label. That same year, Monroe built The Meadows, a restaurant and nightclub to the west of Boston on Massachusetts Route 9 in Framingham, Massachusetts. After he ceased performing, he continued running the club until his death in 1973.
The summer of 1942 brought a 13-week engagement on radio, as Monroe and his orchestra had a summer replacement program for Blondie on CBS. Monroe hosted the Camel Caravan radio program from The Meadows, starting in 1946 and, during this time, was featured in a Camel cigarettes commercial. In 1952, Monroe and his orchestra had a weekly program on Saturday nights on NBC radio. Monroe was tall and handsome, which helped him as a band leader and singer, as well as in Hollywood. He was sometimes called "the Baritone with Muscles", "the Voice with Hair on its Chest", "Ol' Leather Tonsils", or "Leather Lungs".
Monroe recorded extensively for RCA Victor until 1956, and his signature tune was "Racing With the Moon". It sold more than one million copies by 1952, becoming Monroe's first million-seller, and was awarded a gold disc by the RIAA. Among his other hits were "In the Still of the Night", "There I Go", "There I've Said It Again", "Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow", "Ballerina", "Melody Time", "Riders in the Sky", "Someday (You'll Want Me To Want You)", "Sound Off", and "In the Middle of the House". He also turned down the chance to record "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer".
Monroe's orchestra had a number of excellent musicians including future jazz guitar great Bucky Pizzarelli. While their musical focus was largely romantic ballads, in person, the band had a fiercely swinging side only occasionally captured on record. In ballrooms, Monroe often reserved the final set of the evening for unrestrained, swinging music.
Movies also beckoned, although he did not pursue it with vigor. Monroe appeared in Meet the People, Carnegie Hall, Singing Guns, and Toughest Man in Arizona. He co-authored The Adventures of Mr. Putt Putt, a children's book about airplanes and flying, a personal interest of his. He hosted The Vaughn Monroe Show on CBS Television and appeared on Bonanza, The Mike Douglas Show, The Ed Sullivan Show, Texaco Star Theatre, The Jackie Gleason Show, The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, and American Bandstand. He was a major stockholder in RCA and appeared in print ads and television commercials for the company's television and audio products.
After leaving the performing end of show business, he remained with RCA for many years as a television spokesperson, executive, and talent scout. In the latter capacity, he helped give Neil Sedaka, among others, his first major exposure. He was awarded two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for recording and one for radio in Hollywood, California.
