Anthony John Franchini (August 2, 1898 – September 17, 1997) was an American guitarist, most known for his Hawaiian guitar partnership with
Frank Ferera
Frank Ferera (June 12, 1885 - June 26, 1951) was a Hawaii musician who recorded successfully between 1915 and 1930. He was the first star of Hawaiian music and influenced many later artists.
Biography
Frank Ferera was born in Honolulu, Kingdom o ...
, making him one of the most-recorded musicians of all time. After his time with Ferera, his career was remarkably varied, playing with symphony orchestras and
country and western
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, or d ...
bands, often simultaneously, also working in additional genres, before retiring in his 90s.
Biography
Early life and career
Antonio Giuseppe Franchini was born to Ercole, a
fishmonger
A fishmonger (historically fishwife for female practitioners) is someone who sells raw fish and seafood. Fishmongers can be wholesalers or retailers and are trained at selecting and purchasing, handling, gutting, boning, filleting, displaying, ...
, and Genney Franchini in
Naples
Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
, Italy, on August 2, 1898.
As per Italian custom at the time, he began his formal education at age two.
His family moved to
Boston
Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
, United States, in 1903.
In Boston he attended Elliott Grade School, and began formal violin lessons under private tutelage the following year.
He taught himself
mandolin
A mandolin (, ; literally "small mandola") is a Chordophone, stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally Plucked string instrument, plucked with a plectrum, pick. It most commonly has four Course (music), courses of doubled St ...
and guitar as he worked out currently popular songs in recreational pursuit.
He began his musical career at the age of eight in Boston.
He did not finish grade school, dropping out in the eighth grade.
In 1914, Franchini joined Tony Colucci and Gus Sullo in a trio of stringed instruments.
The highlight of their act was to interchange instruments, in the midst of performing, while playing "
Maple Leaf Rag
The "Maple Leaf Rag" (copyright registered on September 18, 1899) is an early ragtime musical piece composed for piano by Scott Joplin. It was one of Joplin's early works, becoming the model for ragtime compositions by subsequent composers. It ...
".
They toured the
Keith Circuit as "French, Fields and Foley". The act ended in 1917, as Colucci chose to relocate to New York.
Franchini joined the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
in June 1917, even though he was not yet a citizen of the United States.
He was placed in Battery F, 5th Division of the
19th Field Artillery Regiment
The 19th Field Artillery Regiment is a Field Artillery regiment of the United States Army first formed in 1916.
History
The Regular Army formed the 19th Field Artillery on 1 July 1916.
Distinctive unit insignia
*Description
A gold color metal ...
, where he operated a 70mm gun.
He spent ten months in training at a base near
Leon Springs, Texas
Leon Springs is an unincorporated community in Bexar County, Texas, United States, now partially within the city limits of San Antonio. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had a population of 137 in 2000. It is located within t ...
.
Sent overseas, he landed in
Brest, France
Brest (; ) is a port, port city in the Finistère department, Brittany (administrative region), Brittany. Located in a sheltered bay not far from the western tip of a peninsula and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an impor ...
, and conditioned there before being sent to the
Vosges
The Vosges ( , ; ; Franconian and ) is a range of medium mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a single geomorphological unit and ...
for combat.
He spent eight months in combat, participating in the battles of
Saint-Mihiel
Saint-Mihiel () is a commune in the Meuse department in the Grand Est region in Northeastern France.
Geography
Saint-Mihiel lies on the banks of the river Meuse.
History
A Benedictine abbey was established here in 708 or 709 by Count Wulfoalde ...
and
Château-Thierry
Château-Thierry (; Picard: ''Catieu-Thierry'') is a French commune situated in the department of the Aisne, in the administrative region of Hauts-de-France, and in the historic Province of Champagne.
The origin of the name of the town is u ...
.
As part of the occupation he was assigned to
Koblenz
Koblenz ( , , ; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz'') is a German city on the banks of the Rhine (Middle Rhine) and the Moselle, a multinational tributary.
Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman military p ...
and remained there until he was discharged on October 18, 1919.
With Frank Ferera
Franchini lived in a hotel in New York City upon arriving back to the States.
There, he met up again with Colucci and Sullo and the three held a
jam session
A jam session is a relatively informal musical event, process, or activity where musicians, typically instrumentalists, play improvised solos and vamp over tunes, drones, songs, and chord progressions. To "jam" is to improvise music without ...
in Franchini's room. Frank Ferera, who resided in a room above Franchini's, overheard the music and was impressed to the point that he requested that Franchini make a record with him.
Thus Franchini began recording with Ferera in 1919, a few months before Helen Louise Greenus (Ferera's wife and recording partner) disappeared at sea.
Ferera asked Franchini to be his recording partner in 1920.
Together they became one of the most popular recordings artists in the 1920s.
Labels that released Ferrera and Franchini duets include
Brunswick,
Columbia,
Emerson,
Gennett
Gennett Records () was an American record company and label in Richmond, Indiana, United States, which flourished in the 1920s and produced the Gennett, Starr, Champion, Superior, and Van Speaking labels. The company also produced some Supertone, ...
,
Lyric
Lyric may refer to:
* Lyrics, the words, often in verse form, which are sung, usually to a melody, and constitute the semantic content of a song
* Lyric poetry is a form of poetry that expresses a subjective, personal point of view
* Lyric, from t ...
,
Okeh
OKeh Records () is an American record label founded by the Otto Heinemann Phonograph Corporation, a phonograph supplier established in 1916, which branched out into phonograph records in 1918. The name originally was spelled "OkeH" from the init ...
,
Pathé
Pathé SAS (; styled as PATHÉ!) is a French major film production and distribution company, owning a number of cinema chains through its subsidiary Pathé Cinémas and television networks across Europe.
It is the name of a network of Fren ...
,
Paramount
Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to:
Entertainment and music companies
* Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS.
**Paramount Picture ...
, and
Victor. During their association, the duo of "Ferera and Franchini" typically recorded four to six sessions every single day.
Besides records released under their names they also recorded behind
Anna Case
Anna Case (October 29, 1887 - January 7, 1984) was an American operatic lyric soprano. She recorded with Thomas Alva Edison, who used her voice extensively in "tone tests" of whether a live audience could tell the difference between the actual s ...
,
Vernon Dalhart
Marion Try Slaughter (April 6, 1883 – September 14, 1948), better known by his stage name Vernon Dalhart, was an American country music singer and songwriter. His recording of the classic ballad " Wreck of the Old 97" was the first country son ...
,
Ernest Hare
Ernest Dudley Hare (5 December 1900, Highgate, London – 1981, London) was an English stage and film actor
An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor perfo ...
,
Billy Jones, and
Bert Williams
Bert Williams (November 12, 1874 – March 4, 1922) was a Bahamian-born American entertainer, one of the pre-eminent entertainers of the vaudeville era and one of the most popular comedians for all audiences of his time. While some sources have ...
.
Altogether, more than 3500 sides were recorded by Ferera and Franchini.
On top of this, he was also an active
session musician
A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a reco ...
in his own right, accompanying Dalhart on some of Dalhart's early country music recordings and diversely performing Spanish music in Victor's ethnic catalog. This period of activity was financially a time of great prosperity for Franchini.
Franchini did more than make phonograph records. Ferera and Franchini worked tirelessly to learn material, it took extra time as Ferera could not read music.
Fortunately Franchini was a good cook, and liked to make Itialian dishes when practicing at Ferera's living quarters.
Franchini took a break from recording activities in 1924 to conduct the Nat Martin Orchestra which was supporting the
Marx Brothers
The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act known for their anarchic humor, rapid-fire wordplay, and visual gags. They achieved success in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in 14 motion pictures. The core group consisted of brothers Chi ...
in the revue ''
I'll Say She Is
''I'll Say She Is'' (1924) is a musical comedy revue written by brothers Will B. Johnstone (book and lyrics) and Tom Johnstone (music). It was the Broadway debut of the Marx Brothers ( Groucho, Harpo, Chico, and Zeppo). The initial production p ...
''.
In 1926 he formed a school of music in which was to last through the late 1940s, serving as its director.
Ferera abruptly decided to leave the music business in 1927, and a seven-and-a-half year partnership ended amicably.
Franchni signed as a composer to the Irving Berlin publishing company.
From 1928 to 1932 he was musical arranger for the
RKO Pictures
RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, is an American film production and distribution company, historically one of the major film studios, "Big Five" film studios of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood's Clas ...
program on
WEAF.
At the same time, he was musical director for
Paramount
Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to:
Entertainment and music companies
* Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS.
**Paramount Picture ...
's
Koko the Clown
Koko the Clown is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer. His first appearance as the main protagonist in ''Out of the Inkwell'' (1918–1929), a major animated series of the silent era. Throughout the series, he goes on many adven ...
.
However, the period was financially disastrous for Franchini. Previously wealthy, he lost his fortune in the
Wall Street crash of 1929, and as record and publishing sales subsequently dried up in the following
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
, so did his formerly lucrative royalty income.
Post-Ferera: a varied career
Franchini spent the period of 1932 to 1936 concentrating on his compositions, working with
Claude Hopkins
Claude Driskett Hopkins (August 24, 1903 – February 19, 1984) was an American jazz stride pianist and bandleader.
Biography
Claude Hopkins was born in Alexandria, Virginia, United States. Historians differ in respect of the actual date of his ...
and
Clarence Williams, among others.
Franchini wrote more than 150 compositions under the name Mel Ball.
Most of them were in the
Hawaiian music
The music of Hawaii includes an array of traditional and popular styles, ranging from native Hawaiian folk music to modern rock and hip hop. Styles like slack-key guitar are well known worldwide, while Hawaiian-tinged music is a frequent par ...
genre.
He then spent the next two school years teaching music at Hobbs Junior High School in
Medford, Massachusetts
Medford is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the time of the 2020 United States census, Medford's population was 59,659. It is home to Tufts University, which has its campus on both sides of the Medford and Somervill ...
.
In 1938 he returned to songwriting, including an extended idea-gathering tour through the
Midwest
The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...
that lasted from 1939 to 1940. He transcribed Hawaiian music into English, and wrote original songs such as "Just an Old Bouquet of a Bygone Day", "Pretending" and "Talking to My Heart", the last a collaboration with
Jimmy Dorsey
James Francis Dorsey (February 29, 1904 – June 12, 1957) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, composer and big band leader. He recorded and composed the jazz and pop standards " I'm Glad There Is You (In This World of Ordinary Peopl ...
.
Upon the
attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Territory of ...
, Franchini drove from his home in Medford to
Camp Edwards
Camp Edwards is a United States military training installation located in western Cape Cod in Barnstable County, Massachusetts. It was named after Major General Clarence Edwards, commander of the 26th Division in World War I. The base is cur ...
in order to volunteer again for the armed services.
He was given the rank of Corporal and assigned to the 101st Engineers Band.
His service was mostly non-musical. He was sent to
Jefferson Barracks Military Post
The Jefferson Barracks Military Post is located on the Mississippi River at Lemay, Missouri, south of St. Louis. It was an important and active U.S. Army installation from 1826 through 1946. It is the oldest operating U.S. military installat ...
where he became a drill sergeant, teaching obstacle course and arms nomenclature.
During his World War Two service, he became a naturalized
U.S. citizen
Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Consti ...
in 1942.
He was never sent overseas before his discharge on May 15, 1943.
His next stop was in Houston, where he joined a trio that was the resident entertainment at
Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
's Cotton Club.
Soon afterwards, he joined the
Houston Symphony
The Houston Symphony is an American orchestra based in Houston, Texas. The orchestra is resident at the Jesse H. Jones Hall for the Performing Arts.
History
The first concert of what was to become the Houston Symphony took place on June 21, 1 ...
as a violinist under
Ernst Hoffmann.
He attended the
University of Houston
The University of Houston (; ) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas, United States. It was established in 1927 as Houston Junior College, a coeducational institution and one of multiple junior colleges formed in ...
at this time, taking studies in Italian and Social Studies.
Franchini moved to New Orleans in 1946, under contract with Ted Phillips Orchestra at the Jung Hotel.
Later in the year he was booked at the Mirror Room in the
Alexandria, Louisiana
Alexandria is the ninth-largest city in the state of Louisiana and is the parish seat and largest city of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River of the South, Red River ...
Bentley Hotel.
Here he was partnered with organist/showgirl
Princess White Cloud for what was originally to be two weeks, but the popularity of the show extended the contract to four months, upon which Princess White Cloud had to leave because of a previous agreement with a circus.
Franchini found himself in
Shreveport, Louisiana
Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the List of municipalities in Louisiana, third-most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge. The bulk of Shreveport is in Caddo Parish, Lo ...
, when he met
Hank Williams
Hiram "Hank" Williams (September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. An early pioneer of country music, he is regarded as one of the most significant and influential musicians of the 20th century. W ...
.
Williams knew Franchini by reputation as a Hawaiian guitarist and a classical violinist, but asked Franchini if he could do a "hoe down".
Franchini proceeded to play one, and a surprised Williams was so impressed he immediately requested that Franchini join his touring group, an offer which was accepted.
Franchini, under the pseudonym Tony Zachary, played fiddle for
Hank Williams
Hiram "Hank" Williams (September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. An early pioneer of country music, he is regarded as one of the most significant and influential musicians of the 20th century. W ...
from 1949 to 1951.
Williams, with Franchini in tow, toured as a unit with
Hank Snow
Clarence Eugene "Hank" Snow (May 9, 1914 – December 20, 1999) was a Canadian country music guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He recorded 140 albums and charted more than 85 singles on the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' country charts betw ...
and the
Bailes Brothers.
In between tours, he spent time in Los Angeles, playing at clubs.
In his spare time he learned German and improved his Spanish at the
Berlitz School of Languages
Berlitz Corporation is a language education and leadership training company which is based in Princeton, New Jersey. The company was founded in 1878 by Maximilian Berlitz in Providence, Rhode Island in the United States. Berlitz Corporation is ow ...
.
He joined the
Henry Busse
Henry Busse Sr. (May 19, 1894 – April 23, 1955) was a German-born jazz trumpeter. A 1948 review in ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine said that Busse had "a keen sense of musical commercialism".
Early life
Born May 19, 1894, in ...
orchestra in 1951 as lead violinist, touring California, Nevada, and Nebraska.
Franchini left Busse in May 1953 in order to form another combo under his own control.
In-between tours with Busse he played with the
Phoenix Symphony
The Phoenix Symphony is an American symphony orchestra based in Phoenix, Arizona. The orchestra performs primarily at Phoenix Symphony Hall, and is the only full-time, professional orchestra in the state of Arizona.
History
Founded in 1947, th ...
and the El Paso Symphony orchestras.
He spent 1953 playing nightclubs. Then he spent the following two years with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra, while simultaneously playing
Western music in nightclubs. At the end of 1955, Franchini moved to Las Vegas, where he played for the
Dunes Hotel as it opened, played at the
Sahara
The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...
for four weeks accompanying
Marlene Dietrich
Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however, Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...
, and finished the year with the
Jimmie Durante
James Francis Durante ( , ; February 10, 1893 – January 29, 1980) was an American comedian, actor, singer, and pianist. His distinctive gravelly speech, Lower East Side accent, comic language-butchery, jazz-influenced songs, and prominen ...
show at the
Desert Inn
The Desert Inn, also known as the D.I., was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, which operated from April 24, 1950, to August 28, 2000. Designed by architect Hugh Taylor and interior design by Jac Lessman, it was the ...
.
It was back to California in 1956, where he teamed with Ace and Duece Spriggins, formerly of the
Sons of the Pioneers
The Sons of the Pioneers are one of the United States' earliest Western singing groups. Known for their vocal performances, their musicianship, and their songwriting, they produced innovative recordings that have inspired many Western music per ...
, and together they played for private occasions around
Palm Springs
Palm Springs (Cahuilla language, Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Rivers ...
and at the Mirador Hotel there.
Franchini left the Spriggins, as he desired to relocate back to New York City.
Franchini went back to school, and in 1957 earned a college degree in biochemistry.
He further expanded his musical repertoire when he played
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...
as part of the Sampson Horton Orchestra on
Jay Gee Records.
The next three years (1958–1961) were of a more sedate musical persuasion, as they were spent touring with the
Mantovani
Annunzio Paolo Mantovani (; 15 November 1905 – 30 March 1980) was an Italian British conductor, composer and light orchestra-styled entertainer with a cascading strings musical signature.
The book '' British Hit Singles & Albums'' ...
orchestra.
This was in turn followed by more road time with the national touring production of
The Sound of Music
''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, '' The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. ...
.
Later life and career
Franchini converted to the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian restorationist Christian denomination and the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. Founded durin ...
in 1966.
He moved to
Las Vegas
Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
in the 1970s, where he became an activist for the
Republican Party, campaigning for
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
and
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...
and volunteering at election day polls into his 90s.
Franchini worked in many casino orchestras, and in his 80s also supplemented his income as a strolling violinist for local Las Vegas restaurants.
In 1983, he re-arranged "
The Star-Spangled Banner
"The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written by American lawyer Francis Scott Key on September 14, 1814, after he witnessed the bombardment of Fort ...
", as he felt the song too difficult to sing for most people.
The Nevada members of the
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...
presented this arrangement to three presidents in hopes it would be considered.
His last musical engagement was as a mandolinist as part of a trio while in his 90s.
Franchini died at the age of 99 on September 17, 1997, at a Las Vegas hospital.
He is buried at Veterans Memorial Cemetery in
Boulder City, Nevada
Boulder City is a city in Clark County, Nevada, United States. It is approximately southeast of Las Vegas. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of Boulder City was 14,885. The city took its name from Boulder Canyon ...
.
His scrapbooks and other memorabilia were donated to the
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the ...
.
Personal life
Franchini was married three times, each of which ended in divorce.
Franchini enjoyed robust health into his late 90s; he regularly drove until he broke a hip aged 97.
References
External links
*
*
Anthony J. Franchini recordingsat the
Discography of American Historical Recordings
The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database catalog of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The 78rpm era was the time period in which any flat disc records were being played at ...
.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Franchini, Anthony
1898 births
1997 deaths
20th-century American guitarists
American male guitarists
Brunswick Records artists
Columbia Records artists
Edison Records artists
Gennett Records artists
Okeh Records artists
Paramount Records artists
Victor Records artists
Musicians from Naples
Military personnel from Massachusetts
Musicians from Boston
Musicians from Las Vegas
Italian emigrants to the United States
Converts to Mormonism
20th-century American male musicians