Joseph Kearns, Mr. Wilson on Dennis the Menace show, owned a giant Wurlitzer; Part carousel organ, and circus calliope organ. Greatest Theater Organist of all time, combined Broadway, Big Band, into some of the liveliest music ever played on organ pipes.

23 MP3 Songs in this album (67:55) !
Related styles: Easy Listening: American Popular Song, Easy Listening: Nostalgia, Solo Instrumental

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George Wright at the Mighty Wurlitzer. He told a group of colleagues, "I am a song and dance man. But, instead of singing or dancing, I play the theatre pipe organ." Others could imitate his favorite combinations of ranks and arranging techniques. But no one could hold a theatre filled with thousands of patrons in the palm of his hand, then serenade each individually, with the compelling intensity of George Wright. Almost single handedly, he brought the space-killing combination of church organ and carousel organ from the obsolete accompaniment of silent pictures and midnight radio sleepy time music into the spotlight as a one-man Broadway pit orchestra, dance band, jazz band, and vocalist. Personally complex, professionally controversial, he was probably the greatest ever to entertain on this large, impractical, wonderful instrument.

Although Al Jolson's 1927 part-talkie "The Jazz Singer" rendered these big Wurlitzer and other brands of pipe organ unnecessary for film accompaniment, many of the theatres continued to employ staff organists for decades, for solo features and sing-alongs. George Wright's career took him from Sacramento, California, to the Special 4 manual Wurlitzer of San Francisco's Fox Theatre, then to crossroads of the world, the Paramount Theatre, Times Square, New York City, in the 1940's. It's fun to speculate as to the impact this new playing style had on listeners used to snippets of opera overtures from silent film, or lace curtain parlor songs. Must have knocked their socks off.

He moved to Los Angeles, becoming associated with the HIFI record label, whose series of recordings of George Wright at the Mighty Wurlitzer sold over one million copies. These have been reissued on CD and belong in every record collection.

While under contract to HIFI, George Wright made these recordings in 1957 for a major record label who planned a series of budget-priced recordings for wide distribution. In the pseudonymous names of the organists, he honored childhood organ teacher Inez MacNeil, and lifetime San Francisco Bay area friend June Melendy. Not surprisingly, when the owners of the HIFI label heard about it, they were not amused.

The organ was a 1929 three manual (keyboards) Wurlitzer of 18 ranks or sets of pipes designed for Warner Brothers studios, later moved to their radio station, KFWB, and used for broadcasting until it was removed, stored, then purchased in 1955 and installed and playing by early 1956, in the Hollywood home of noted character actor and former theatre organist Joseph Kearns. His most famous role was that of "Mr. Wilson" on the "Dennis the Menace" TV show, but actor Kearns had years of radio announcing and character acting behind him, including roles as "Ed," the keeper of Jack Benny's money vault, and in dozens of films and vintage TV series.