Glenn Miller

A dance big band leader synonymous with jazz's swing era, Glenn Miller's influence and popularity was at its height when he was presumed dead after his plane disappeared over the English Channel during the Second World War. Brought up on a farm in Iowa, Miller first started playing trombone in the local town orchestra, becoming interested in dance band music while still at school. He eventually dropped out of university to concentrate on music and, after playing with various bands, he co-wrote his first composition Room 1411 with Benny Goodman, and released it as a single. In 1928 he moved to New York, playing in pit orchestras at Broadway shows before joining the Dorsey Brothers orchestra in the 1930s. In 1937 he formed his own band, which went on to make a popular series of recordings, appear in various films and feature regularly on the radio. His smooth operations struck a chord with audiences and in 1942 Miller decided to join the war effort, playing trombone with the Rhythmaires, a dance band who entertained at service clubs. In 1944 he formed a 50-piece Army Air Force Band, which travelled to England to entertain Allied Forces and Miller was flying across the Channel to play for troops in Paris when the plane he was in disappeared.