Chuck Gentry
b. Charles T. Gentry, 14 December 1911, Belgrade, Nebraska, USA, d. 1988. Starting out on clarinet, Gentry later mastered most of the saxophone family, specializing on the baritone. He began playing professionally in his mid-'20s and in 1939 joined Vido Musso's big band, which soon folded; by the following year both Gentry and his former boss were working for Harry James. A year later the two men were still together, but this time with Benny Goodman. After a spell with Jimmy Dorsey, Gentry was drafted into the army and, following basic training, was transferred to the unit of musicians being assembled by Glenn Miller, where he remained until 1944. Once discharged, Gentry joined Artie Shaw and then returned for a second period with Goodman. By the late '40s, with most of the name big bands folding, Gentry was turning to studio work in Hollywood, which is where he spent most of the remainder of his career. He made numerous recordings in orchestras, backing artists such as June Christy and Nancy Wilson and performing with various leaders, including Louis Armstrong, Pete Rugolo, Woody Herman and Benny Carter. Occasionally he emerged from the studios to play dates with, for example, Stan Kenton's Los Angeles Neophonic Orchestra and with Bob Crosby at Disneyland.