ARTIE SHAW Philip & Kelvin LaVerne coffee table, circa 1960, signed ''Philip + Kelvin LaVerne'', bronze with pewter overlay, the rectangular top extending to downswept sides ending in scroll-form supports, decorated overall with figures on a riverbank, est:$3000/5000
15'' H x 53'' W x 22'' D. Note: Artie Shaw 1910-2004 On behalf of the Artie Shaw Estate, John Moran Auctioneers is proud to bring to public auction for the first time select items from Artie Shaw?s personal collection. Rivaled only by Benny Goodman as the Swing Era?s greatest clarinetist, Artie Shaw ranks among the greatest popular musicians of the 20th century. Billboard Magazine ranked Artie Shaw?s orchestra as the best band of the year in its 1939 College Survey, and its 1956 nationwide disc-jockey survey placed Artie Shaw?s 1941 recording of Hoagy Carmichael?s ?Stardust? as the greatest recording of all time, with his 1938 recording of Cole Porter?s ?Begin the Beguine? ranking third. Shaw?s 1940 recording ?Frenesi? became the third best-selling song of the 1940s, charting at number one for thirteen weeks, also making it the third highest ranking hit to chart during the entire pre-rock era (1890-1954). At a time when the nation?s population was half what it is now, Artie Shaw produced a string of hits which have gone on to sell over 100 million records. During his career in Hollywood, Shaw garnered two Academy Award nominations and in 2004 he received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. He was also awarded the Smithsonian?s James Smithson Medal for lifetime achievements in music and honorary doctorates from California Lutheran University and the University of Arizona. Several notable musicians and singers worked for and recorded with Shaw?s orchestra, including Buddy Rich, Helen Forrest, Mel Torm?, and Ray Coniff. When Shaw hired Billie Holiday in 1938 he became the first white band leader to employ a black female vocalist full-time. During World War II, Shaw enlisted in the United States Navy, forming a band that served in the Pacific Theatre and reportedly played as many as four concerts a day in battle zones. Artie Shaw led a tumultuous private life, and married eight times. Two of his wives were Ava Gardner and Lana Turner. Shaw?s relationship to popular music and fame was equally troubling and he quit the business several times during the height of his fame, only to form a new orchestra and begin again. He retired from music completely around 1954 and turned his attentions to writing, sport fishing, marksmanship and various other enterprises. Just one year before his death Artie Shaw donated two of his clarinets to the Smithsonian Institution. His music lives on through the still-active Artie Shaw Orchestra (relaunched in 1983), and in the soundtracks of films such as Martin Scorsese?s ?The Aviator?, Clint Eastwood?s ?Flags of Our Father?s? and HBO?s ?The Sopranos?. Provenance: Tangible Property from the Estate of Artie Shaw. Condition: Good condition overall. Decoration well-executed. General light marks, scratches and rubbing to surface commensurate with age.