Tony Martin (2)

Tony Martin was a popular American crooner and actor during the big band era. Born Alvin Morris in San Fransisco, California, on Christmas Day in 1913, Martin began his career playing saxophone alongside Woody Herman in Tom Gerun's orchestra. He was convinced by dance band leader Ben Bernie to switch to singing in the early 1930s, but did not gain much mainstream recognition until 1936, when he appeared in the Fred Astaire-Ginger Rodgers musical "Follow the Fleet". By 1938, Martin was an established and popular crooner as well as actor, and had given up playing saxophone. Throughout the 1940s Martin scored multiple hit songs, such as "To Each His Own" and the Oscar-nominated "It's a Blue World" from Music in My Heart. Martin died on July 27, 2012, aged 98.

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