Milton DeLugg (born December 2, 1918 in
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
,
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
) is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
composerA composer is a person who creates music, usually by musical notation, for interpretation and performance. The level of distinction between composers and other musicians varies, which affects issues such as copyright and the deference given to individual interpretations of a particular piece of...
and
arrangerIn investment banking, an arranger is a provider of funds in the syndication of a debt. They are entitled to syndicate the loan or bond issue, and may be referred to as the "lead underwriter". This is because this entity bears the risk of being able to sell the underlying securities/debt or the...
.
A talented accordionist, he appeared in short
SoundiesSoundies were an early version of the music video: three-minute musical films, produced in New York, Chicago, and Hollywood between 1940 and 1946, often including short dance sequences...
musicals and occasional movies (like 1949's
Jolson Sings AgainJolson Sings Again is the 1949 film sequel to The Jolson Story, both of which cover the life of singer Al Jolson.-Brief synopsis:In this follow-up to The Jolson Story, we pick up the singer's career just as he has returned to the stage after a premature retirement. But his wife has left him and the...
). He quickly became a successful arranger and composer. His clients ranged from the American Junior Miss Pageant to
Jackie WilsonJack Leroy "Jackie" Wilson Jr. was an American singer, and performer, and a 1987 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee. Known as "Mr. Excitement", Wilson was important in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. He was known as a master showman, and as one of the most dynamic singer and...
, and he was a musician on such radio programs as
The Abe BurrowsAbe Burrows was an American humorist, author, and director for radio and the stage.-Early years:Born Abram Solman Borowitz in New York City, Burrows graduated New Utrecht High School in Brooklyn and later attended both City College and New York University...
Show. One of his best-known tunes is an arrangement of the song "
The Happy Wanderer"The Happy Wanderer" is a popular song by Friedrich-Wilhelm Möller written shortly after World War II. It is often mistaken for a German folk song, but it is actually an original composition...
", and his brassy polka "Hoop Dee Doo" became a game-show staple.
Milton DeLugg (born December 2, 1918 in
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
,
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
) is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
composerA composer is a person who creates music, usually by musical notation, for interpretation and performance. The level of distinction between composers and other musicians varies, which affects issues such as copyright and the deference given to individual interpretations of a particular piece of...
and
arrangerIn investment banking, an arranger is a provider of funds in the syndication of a debt. They are entitled to syndicate the loan or bond issue, and may be referred to as the "lead underwriter". This is because this entity bears the risk of being able to sell the underlying securities/debt or the...
.
A talented accordionist, he appeared in short
SoundiesSoundies were an early version of the music video: three-minute musical films, produced in New York, Chicago, and Hollywood between 1940 and 1946, often including short dance sequences...
musicals and occasional movies (like 1949's
Jolson Sings AgainJolson Sings Again is the 1949 film sequel to The Jolson Story, both of which cover the life of singer Al Jolson.-Brief synopsis:In this follow-up to The Jolson Story, we pick up the singer's career just as he has returned to the stage after a premature retirement. But his wife has left him and the...
). He quickly became a successful arranger and composer. His clients ranged from the American Junior Miss Pageant to
Jackie WilsonJack Leroy "Jackie" Wilson Jr. was an American singer, and performer, and a 1987 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee. Known as "Mr. Excitement", Wilson was important in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. He was known as a master showman, and as one of the most dynamic singer and...
, and he was a musician on such radio programs as
The Abe BurrowsAbe Burrows was an American humorist, author, and director for radio and the stage.-Early years:Born Abram Solman Borowitz in New York City, Burrows graduated New Utrecht High School in Brooklyn and later attended both City College and New York University...
Show. One of his best-known tunes is an arrangement of the song "
The Happy Wanderer"The Happy Wanderer" is a popular song by Friedrich-Wilhelm Möller written shortly after World War II. It is often mistaken for a German folk song, but it is actually an original composition...
", and his brassy polka "Hoop Dee Doo" became a game-show staple. He is also the composer of "Hooray for Santy Claus", the catchy theme song for the low-budget motion picture
Santa Claus Conquers the MartiansSanta Claus Conquers the Martians is a 1964 science fiction film that regularly appears on lists of the worst films ever made. It is regularly featured in the "bottom 100" list on the Internet Movie Database, and was also featured in an episode of the 1986 syndicated series, the Canned Film Festival...
. He also composed "Roller Coaster" - recorded by Henri Rene Orchestra on RCA Victor. It was used as the opening and closing theme of "Masquerade Party" - a popular quiz show in the early 1950s.
In 1950 and 1951, DeLugg was musical director, bandleader, and accordionist on
Broadway Open HouseBroadway Open House, network television's first late-night comedy-variety series, was telecast live on NBC from May 29, 1950 to August 24, 1951, airing weeknights from 11pm to midnight...
an
NBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices in Burbank,California...
late-night television program which has been considered a forerunner to
The Tonight ShowThe Tonight Show is an American late-night talk and variety show airing on NBC since 1954. Tonight is the third longest-running entertainment program in U.S...
. He often played a song he co-wrote, titled, "
Orange Colored Sky"Orange Colored Sky" is a popular song.It was written by Milton DeLugg and Willie Stein and published in 1950.The best-known version of the song was recorded by Nat King Cole , but a number of other singers have recorded it, including Cole's daughter, Natalie.The recording by Nat King Cole was...
," which was best remembered as a hit for
Nat King ColeNathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat "King" Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz...
. In 1950, DeLugg was also orchestra conductor for the short-lived
Abe Burrows' AlmanacAbe Burrows' Almanac is an American television series that aired on CBS in 1950. The live program, hosted by Abe Burrows, featured music, song and comedy performances by guests. The show was broadcast on Wednesday evenings at 9:00 PM. Milton DeLugg conducted the orchestra...
.
In 1953, he played accordion leading the Milton DeLugg Trio on the short-lived
Bill CullenWilliam Lawrence Francis Cullen was an American radio and television personality whose career spanned five decades...
Show.
http://userdata.acd.net/ottinger/cullen/shows/billshow.html
In 1958, Milton DeLugg produced
Buddy HollyCharles Hardin Holley , known professionally as Buddy Holly, was an American singer-songwriter and a pioneer of rock and roll...
's famous record "Rave On!"
For decades, DeLugg has been associated with
NBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices in Burbank,California...
as a musical director. In 1966, he was briefly musical director of the
Tonight Show BandKevin Eubanks and the Primetime Band is the house band of The Jay Leno Show. The band was formerly known as Kevin Eubanks and the Tonight Show Band while appearing on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.-Members:*Leader/Guitar: Kevin Eubanks...
during the tenure of
Johnny CarsonJohn William “Johnny” Carson was an American television host and comedian, known as host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson for 30 years . Carson received six Emmy Awards including the Governor Award and a 1985 Peabody Award; he was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 1987...
.
DeLugg enjoyed a long association with Chuck Barris, beginning as arranger of the original theme to
The Newlywed GameThe Newlywed Game is an American television game show that pits newly-married couples against each other in a series of revealing question rounds to determine how well the spouses know each other. The program, originally created by Nick Nicholson and E. Roger Muir and produced by Chuck Barris, has...
in 1966. From 1976 to 1980, he was musical director of
The Gong ShowThe Gong Show is a parody of television variety shows. It broadcast on NBC's daytime schedule from June 14, 1976 through July 21, 1978, and in first-run syndication from 1976-1980 and 1988-1989...
(appearing with his "Band With a Thug"). DeLugg often appeared on the show as a comic foil, in the characters of bad joke teller Naso Literatus and philosopher Old Drool. DeLugg's venerable "Hoop Dee Doo" became a fixture on
The Gong ShowThe Gong Show is a parody of television variety shows. It broadcast on NBC's daytime schedule from June 14, 1976 through July 21, 1978, and in first-run syndication from 1976-1980 and 1988-1989...
, and was used whenever the contest winner was chosen.
DeLugg also wrote the theme music for other Barris projects including
The $1.98 Beauty Show,
Camouflage (where, in a throwback to an earlier era of game shows, the music was actually performed live by DeLugg and his band),
Leave It to The Women,
Three's a CrowdThree's a Crowd is an American television sitcom spinoff of Three's Company. It was loosely based on the British TV series Robin's Nest which was itself a spin-off of Man About the House on which Three's Company was based.-Synopsis:...
, and
The New Treasure Hunt. He also recorded new versions of the theme songs to the 1970s versions of
The Dating GameThe Dating Game is an ABC television show that first aired on December 20, 1965 and was the first of many shows created and packaged by Chuck Barris from the 1960s through the 1980s...
and
The Newlywed GameThe Newlywed Game is an American television game show that pits newly-married couples against each other in a series of revealing question rounds to determine how well the spouses know each other. The program, originally created by Nick Nicholson and E. Roger Muir and produced by Chuck Barris, has...
, as well as providing the themes for their 1980s revivals. DeLugg and sidemen Mark Stevens, Billy Neale and Ray Neapolitan appeared in Chuck's
The Gong Show MovieThe Gong Show Movie is a 1980 film that shows how Chuck Barris lives through a week of being the host and creator of The Gong Show, through a series of outrageous competitors, stressful situations, a nervous breakdown and other comic hijinks in his life and work on the TV show...
(1980) as The Hollywood Cowboys.
DeLugg remains active today as musical director of the annual
Macy's Thanksgiving Day ParadeThe Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual parade presented by Macy's Department store. The three-hour event is held in New York City starting at 9:00 a.m. EST on Thanksgiving.-History:...
.