Biography

Muggsy Spanier was born on November 9, 1906 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He was an actor, known for The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000), Is Everybody Happy? (1929) and Floor Show (1948). He died on February 12, 1967 in Sausalito, California, USA.

Jazz cornetist.

Inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame in 1997.

The band cut several sides for Decca and had its longest residency at the Arcadia Ballroom in New York.

He was nicknamed after Mugsy McGraw, a baseball manager. For a long time, Spanier harboured ambitions of becoming the first left-handed third baseman in major league baseball.

Spanier began his professional career in and around Chicago in the 1920's. He came to the fore with the orchestra of Ted Lewis (1929 to late 1936). Briefly with Ben Pollack, then (following a near-fatal illness) formed his own band, the 'Ragtimers', in 1938. This was a 15-piece dixieland orchestra, which, for a while, rivaled Bob Crosby's 'Bobcats'. Many of the best arrangements were by former Crosby alumnus Deane Kincaide. The band also sported many top jazz musicians, like Irving Fazola, Ralph Muzzillo and Nick Caiazza.