Glen Miller Essay, Research Paper

When Glenn Miller was born on March 1, 1904 in Clarinda, Iowa, he was to become one of the greatest musician, and

songwriters in all of history. He was born into a friendly, caring, middle-class family. His family greatly supported all of his

ideas and dreams to become one of the greatest people in music. After playing the trombone for several years in high

school, he became good enough to join a professional band. From there, he decided to further his study of music, so he

enrolled in the University of Colorado. After college he jumped from band to band, all of which became famous mostly due to

Glenn. His jazz-swing style soon was recognized by almost all.

With all of these great accomplishments, he won great fame and also a place in the nations heart. World war two came

soon after achieving his first successful band. At the time of the draft Glenn Miller was too old to be drafted, though he felt

a moral obligation to serve his county inwartime, so he joined the army air force. The nation greatly appreciated all of those

who felt the way Glenn did, and risk there lives along with the younger people of our nation. After a couple of months in the

air force, Glenn was put in charge of starting a band to entertain all of the troops during the war. Then a year later his wish

to perform live for the troops overseas was granted, in 1944 Glenn and his band flew to England. From there the band

played almost everywhere in allied territory Europe. Everyone who had the privilege of hearing him loved him, and didn’t want

him to leave whenever he was done. He did his best to cheer up the soldiers, and was almost always successful in doing so.

On December 15, 1944, he was scheduled to play in Paris. He left earlier in the morning to check out the place and to set

up. When his plane left it was overcast and bad weather was on the way. Glenn’s plane disappeared that day, and was

never to be found again. Some speculated that he was actually killed in action or that the plane was shot down, but nobody

is sure.

After the war, despite the fact that the big band era was gone, his band was twice revived, first by Tex Beneke and later By

Ray McKinley and then by Buddy De Franco. A motion picture, the “Glenn Miller Story”, attested his hold on the popular

imagination, and a quarter century after his death his recordings were still being reissued(Am. Biography 525).”

Despite the fact that he was only 40 years old, He still accomplished so much in his short life. He influenced so many others.

He helped cheer the soldiers of the war, and brought them at least a moment or two of happiness during the long bloody

war. And his great music will live on forever in his songs as well as all of those other songwriters, whose lives he influenced.

He was missed by all but especially his wife Hellen, his college sweetheart, and his two adopted children, Steven and Jonnie,

who were very proud of all of his great achievements and influences on society.