True story ! My mother's family was in show business in the 1930's and 40's. Gene Krupa was a family friend for many years because of this. As a boy in elementary school, I was one of MANY students trying to get into the free school program for drum lessons. This was just after the Beatles had debuted on the Ed Sullivan show. The instructor asked each student who their favorite drummer was, and without fail, every single one said : " Ringo Starr"...except ME ! I said : " Gene Krupa", and I was selected immediately by the instructor, as the others were rejected !! In 1973 I had the tremendous pleasure of meeting Gene at one of his gigs not long before his death. I was amazed at how glad he was to see my mother and family...he sat with us in between sets and the conversation was full of memories and good times past. When told that I was a young and aspiring drummer, he said to me : " I always wanted to play in the Boston Symphony Orchestra...that's what I would do, if I were YOU ! " I will never forget that special night, Gene Krupa was the man who made the drums a powerful solo instrument, even shaping the configuration of the modern drum set. Sure, others built upon the idea with great skill like Buddy Rich and Louis Bellson...but, they ALL shared great respect for Gene, who was their main inspiration !!
I watched the movie with my parents (who were huge jazz fans) in 1965, when I was 13. They knew the truth about Gene's arrest and were quick to point out how inaccurate the movie's portrayal of it was. As I grew older and read what people who knew Gene said about him I was saddened that he had allowed the movie to portray him as something between a spoiled teenager and a juvenile delinquent. I'm glad that you folks are helping to set the record straight here in 2023, 50 years after Gene's death.
My dad, Hy Gilbert (lyricist), was a friend of Gene's in Detroit in the 50's. I remember driving around with them as a child. My dad was also a drummer, so I suppose that's how they knew each other. Being a child at the time my memories are fairly vauge
Thank you for setting the record straight. Nobody ever mentions Gene's experimental orchestra, "Swing with Strings", my uncle Virgilio Alonge (Ray Alonge's father) played viola with that outfit in 1944 ! Bill P.
I met Brooks at the Delaware drum show, had a wonderful conversation with him and purchased his book. A wonderful person and a great source of valuable information.
Correction on Mineo's Murder Case. A lifelong criminal had come across Mineo, attempted to rob him and during the ensuing fight stabbed and killed him. He was caught about 40 years later and confessed exactly that.
@@jamescalifornia2964 Williams was not caught 40 years later. Williams was arrested about 2 years after the crime. So still looks like the OP is referring to some mystery man.
Thank you for this! And BTW, the video editing is great. Always a pleasure to hear Brooks talk about Krupa. Thanks again Bart for another great podcast.
The family of drummers owes Brooks Tegler a massive slap on the back for his huge contribution to the furtherance of our knowledge of the life, works and in particular, the equipment used by the greatest of all drumming legends, Gene Krupa. For anyone who isn’t aware, Brooks is a gent of gents who gives freely of his time and vast knowledge, in particular to all things vintage drum related. I mistakenly thought I knew a thing or two until encountering Brooks. Now I just listen!!!!
The Krupa movie came on at 3 in the morning one partying night and at that time Ginger Baker was my fav drummer and I ended up getting into Jazz because of the Big Band music of Goodman and Dorsey and Basie and then all hell hit when I found jazz ranging from Roach to the Jones's to Blakey and I will never forget that movie night. I later found out the movie was of course exaggerated but Mineo's performance was amazing and the movie was entertaining. Thanks for your video and some of what was talked about I knew but I also learned more. Rock On, Jazz!! ;-)
Agreed... Sal Mineos performance was awesome. He really dedicated himself to portray Gene Krupa (on the drums) as well and respectfully as he could. *No matter what the movie tried to portray Gene as...he will always be the best and a legend to his fans.
Thanks for watching, and I agree completely. It was fun to poke holes in the story with Brooks but I think it introduced a whole generation to the drums and a jazz legend, and Sal did a lot of work and played his butt off
This Gene Krupa Story movie inspired me to play the drums. Sal Mineo did play the drums, so he already had some familiarity with playing and he actually took drum lessons from Krupa before the filming of this movie. There is and actual “ Gene Krupa Drum Method of playing Drums, just like their is and actual “Buddy Rich Drum Method of playing the drums. Genes style of playing was the Chicago influence.
When I was a young teen, I bought my first jazz album: Krupa vs. Rich. It was great and was the CD remastered version in 1994. I am glad that this was my introduction to Gene Krupa.
This was Great, Gene was my first influence as a Drummer, and I had learned over the years that I followed him, a lot of what was in the movie was wrong in regard to him being a drug user. I always admired Gene as a person and as the great Talented drummer he was. Thanks for this.😎
I watched this movie in a Saturday matinee when I was 10 years old. Five years later, I was playing drums in a garage band which led to my taking jazz drum lessons from a professional performer (not just a teacher). Although I did not become a career drummer, I did moonlight as a jazz drummer in the local major resorts and I still play. I loved Gene's personality the best and have always admired him for bringing the drums to the front of the orchestra. I own this movie and a bunch of DVD's of his playing. Now that I know that almost all of the story is garbage, I can take comfort in the fact that Gene is not the bad guy portrayed and I can enjoy Sal Mineo's playing over top of Gene's soundtrack. Thank you for clarifying this. I always wondered why the song, "Sing, Sing, Sing" was not included in the movie. I have the movie on Benny Goodman just so I can watch Gene in it. Gene has always been an inspiration to me and he has always seemed to be the gentleman that I imagined. Thank you.
I just saw the movie tonight. I'm 87 and when I was a kid I had the 78rpm records of the 1938 Benny Goodman Carnegie Hall concert. The elephant in the room in the movie and this discussion is that is when and where Krupa became famous. He didn't form his own band until after that concert. Missing this major event in your discussion with the expert makes this video as bad a the movie.
Like many Jazz musicians Gene was a weed user. He got bounced by Goodman well before the arrest because of this. Pateakos was 20, which I guess was a "minor" at the time. The truth about the arrest is really lost to history. He still remains maybe the greatest drummer of all time.
Gene was my dad's idol! My parents gave me a toy snare drum when I was 5 yrs old, then a full kit at age 10. During the next 2 to 3 years I became fascinated by a handful of rock drummers, insisting my dad listen to them. He was never swayed, not a single one could compare to Gene. That was in the mid 1960s, and my dad never said anything about the "dope" arrest. Before 1970, the story I heard had been exaggerated to Gene shooting heroin! I never gave it a thought and never knew the truth until now. No matter what, the only drummer my dad thought more of was me.
Great video....I saw Gene twice in my lifetime...When I was 9 at the Metropole in NYC,and at Frankie's Villa Pompee many years later in the 60's....I still have one of Gene;s brushes...A nicer guy I never met.
Thanks Bart and Brooks! Back in the day, when you hoped for a few seconds of screen time for the drummer in big band scenes, here you at least got a lot of screen time of drum kits, even if inaccurate vis-a-vis Gene’s real life and drum details.
Cool, my dad taught me Jazz drumming, introducing me to Gene Crupa and Buddy Rich, when I was really young, Im 50 now only, got in to Bonham 70's rock, these guys influenced 70's rock drummers, done stuff in rock. Saw this film, yeh bit Hollywood. Gene Crupa I still play, Sing Sing at Hollywood Bowl is still classic. WOW ..great quest ..love it. shame you have not got million views! The younger guys missing Jazz in rock today! hence the swing is going! Listen to your Drum History Podcast ...all the time .great stuff...from UK
When was this video posted? October 27, 2022. Maybe, good sir, you might consider editing out your negative comment, "shame you have not got million views!" Seriously. There's enough covert dooshin' pre-October 22, 2022.
Speaking of inaccuracy, Sal Mineo's stabbing had nothing to do with homophobia. The robber (yes, robber) was a pizza delivery guy who had committed a number of other muggings. Lionel Williams was sentenced to 57 years in prison, but let out after serving just twelve. Talk about a travesty of justice... sounds like the stuff that is happening nowadays. Williams said he had no idea who Mineo was when he stabbed him.
Thanks for this complex but actually very simple conversion demonstrating that methodical stepwise work will get the job done. Result is a matter of personal preference. I thought the conversion made the amp sound as if it had a cold ! But too much mid can always be modified with additional eq. What program did you use for spectrum display ? Many thanks as always.
Thanks for watching Steve! Are you referring to my voice or Brooks? Or the sound of the movie? Either way, I use the EQ on the Metric Halo Channel Strip. A great and powerful plugin.
also, didn’t Jo Jones use a floor tom on the left sometimes? Don’t know when that would’ve started but I know I’ve seen it from a clip circa the mid-50s
I became a drummer because of the movie on WGN Chicago when I was a kid. And seeing Buddy Rich on the tonight show. Also, the opening of Who Do You by John Densmore on The Doors Alive album. It's infuriating that his career and reputation was destroyed by J Edgar Hoover and that film. I saw an interview with Gene and he seemed like such an easy going, nice, articulate person. I remember the conspiracy theories around Sal Mineo's murder being connected to the movie. Has that been pretty much debunked? I would think. Great content. Cheers.
Great report. Like the host and guest. I think I am a bit more forgiving to the movie makers for artistic license, I am not offended that the drum kit models were not exact to the year being depicted. Maybe I'd see that differently if I was a drummer. I think the public was less concerned about such details at that time. I agree with the disparity between personal events and how they were changed to make the production. Really impressed with Sal Mineo's performance, I didn't know he was a drummer. Excellent performance.
Thanks for the critique of the film. I just watched it this evening and so glad you set the record straight. just from seeing some of his interviews It seemed hard to believe he was as arrogant and spoiled as the Sal Mineo character. Just really curious about his love life. Does anyone have any details on that, I see that he married Ethel twice. Did he know her from his Chicago days and did she follow him to New York as it portrays in the movie and did he really treat her so badly? Hoping to get up to Yonkers to see his house at 10 Richie. I just love watching his Leave Us Leap. And so grateful to hear he wasn’t a drug addict as they portrayed in the movie. It is so wrong how Hollywood-misrepresented him. Sal Mineo did a great job, playing the role and mimicking Krupa’s style on the drums. And the soundtrack is amazing as you will say thanks and let me know where I can read more about his love life.
Gene Krupa played the first "ride cymbal "on a Bix Beiderbeck recording 1932/33 ? It was said on a BBC Jazz History programme a couple of years ago. Anyone confirm? Could a 16" be a ride cymbal.Ithink a couple of makers have had 16" rides before?
I've never seen this movie, but It looks like a pretty good film that I'll have to watch someday. The weird thing is that I had heard that Gene Krupa was a junkie, addicted to heroin, and I've believed it until now because I had never heard anyone say that he wasn't. Still, it never actually made sense to me when I've seen his performances. Junkies really don't play like that.
The 1st album I bought was The Original Drum Battle. Buddy and Gene. I think I got it in 1977. Yesh, the movie has a lot wrong, but Sal does a pretty damn good job playing. It looks like he's actually playing the part on the sound track. These days we have to deal with the worst idiocy compaired go this movie: Tommy Lee.
In the commentary it said that Gene played saxophone early on but in the movie he didn't know how to read music until much later ( lessons by his soon to be girlfriend ) Ina Ballen.
The movie did point out that the drug charges were false. It really made it clear that his talent was pure talent...and his "cooler" decisions were REFUSING drugs. I wish the film would have showed the details of how he was framed. I enjoyed the movie, though it should have expressed more of Gene's good points. It's really not a story about his life, it's a story about a very short time frame of his career. It's a shame that it damaged his reputation, especially since most of it was fictionalized. Hollywood should clarify if a film is "inspired" by real people, instead of claiming it a factual account.
All biographical films are works of fiction. A screenwriter writes words that the person never said and creates events that never happened. In the movie," The Eddy Duchin Story "I always think of the very emotional scene when Marjorie Oelrich dies a few days after her son Peter Duchin was born during the Christmas Holidays. Eddy Duchin keeps saying "Merry Christmas" sardonically as he cries, sitting next to a Christmas Tree. Peter Duchin was born on JULY 28th, 1937. This film gave a nice starring role to the 20-year-old Sal Mineo.
My dad, Hy Gilbert (lyricist), was a friend of Gene's in Detroit in the 50's. I remember driving around with them as a child. My dad was also a drummer, so I suppose that's how they knew each other. Being a child at the time my memories are fairly vauge.
Neil Peart mentions in a couple of his books seeing this movie as a kid and as it being an early influence to wanting to become a drummer. I rented it probably 15 years ago and found it hard to swallow because all of the wrong gear and inaccurate story. The soundtrack was by far the best part. Susan Oliver and Yvonne Craig both appeared in one episode of Star Trek each. Coincidentally they both appear as an Orion slave girl. Yvonne is best known as Batgirl on the Batman TV show and Susan Oliver appeared in over 125 TV shows and movies.
Saw this movie as a youngster and the ONLY part I remember is a woman at a nightclub offering him some weed and him turning it down. Maybe that's why I developed a lifelong aversion to drugs and the people that use them.
Very cool. Gene and Buddy Rich were my and still are great inspirations. There's an old Jerry Lewis movie, "Visit To A Small Planet", a scene where he's in a jazz nite club Lewis plays, as the alien, bongos, telekinetically, trading 4's with Buddy Rich on drum set.
typical of many "biography" pics of that era, they cared about entertainment without regard to accuracy. they discounted the intelligence of the audience, and didn't think forward enough to consider that the film just might catch the interest of drummers 60 yrs later.
With all this technology why don’t they do a true story about the drummer buddy rich? We could use his hands using computer graphics that would be awesome
This is really nit picking. Obviously the movie is a sensationalized version of the true story meant to appeal to the masses. That's film making. And this wasn't exactly a billion dollar endeavour. Actually, as cheesy as it is in spots, it hits most of the major points and gives a good insight to a time when a musician could be a major celebrity based mainly on his or her talent. And Sal Mineo did a fantastic of mimicking the parts. NOT an easy task. My main complaint is that Mineo played Gene to appear too angry too much of the time. But all in all, it's a "fun" B movie and something any drummer would get a kick out of.
You are not wrong Nelson! We were just having fun picking out all the details, but Sal Mineo did do a great job performing as Gene. I would agree that his rendition of Gene definitely came off as more angry than the real Krupa. Thank you for watching 👍
Also if I’m not mistaken there’s a scene in the movie I believe it’s the penthouse party scene where the camera is looking up At Gene /Sal from under the small Tom And you can see Genes head Through the two heads on the small Tom which means they were clear plastic heads! Now plastic heads did not even exist in the 1930s they didn’t come Into existence until the late 1950s like 57 or so plus that’s a 1950s era Slingerland drum said he’s playing look at the Beavertail lugs and the disappearing spurs on the bass DrumShell!
When I was about 6 or 7 , I saw the movie . 1969. Gene was always my favorite because my mom being from Budapest in 42 emigrated to West Germany. I was born there in 62 and she had just about any Big Band Album you could name . Guy Lombardo, Tommy Dorsey , Benny Goodman etc etc .. The story that was told to me was that the promoters of the Buddy Rich clan had Gene framed so Buddy could get the jobs . I don't think this was correct because musicians are usually like family and I'd never heard Gene ever suggest anything like that. Either way Gene & Sals Death are very sorrowful.
They must've had some REALLY good shit back in the `30's because, I'm a drummer that doesn't use drugs or booze and I tried grass twice back in the early `90's and it did absolutely nothing too/for me except burn my throat. Here, this guy takes one or two hits and, suddenly, he's a madman!! And, I didn't try it to make my drumming any better, I've always been a very good drummer. I just wanted to see what all the fuss was about and, other than what I've heard about it from my band mates and friends and on `70's comedy albums, I still don't know what the fuss is.
Yo ~ good on ya, mate. Records exist to be set straight. Apart from just being a great musician, I've always loved his vibes. Plus, it's never too late to stand up for the truth. Paz y luz.✨🌙💙🎶
Looky now! Everybody smokes and their parents. What a terrible miscarriage of justice for Gene. J Edgar Hoover was a bully most likely due to his own shortcomings.
It's a movie. Although it is named the Gene Krupa story, it's still just a movie. Maybe Gene should have read the script. But after all it's only a movie.
Why do they always ruin biopics and turn them into fiction? I was scrolling through TubiTV and came across The Gene Krupa Story, and thought, it must be one of those typical movies that got a lot wrong, and came to TH-cam to see if there was anything about it here. Wow! I had no idea it got every detail wrong, and now I guess I don't want to see it, but I kind of do because of the soundtrack, and to see how Sal Mineo played him. I'm watching this first, this is fantastic! It sounds though, like every detail is made up in the movie - very disappointing. Is there a good biography of Krupa, one that was written by someone who knew the truth and wrote about it? Thanks in advance!
This is the first time I've ever heard that Gene Krupa was a drug addict! Hollywood makes these false "biographical" movies that can ruin an entertainer's life, as it did for Gene! I don't believe he was a drug addict at all, and, in my opinion, Mr Krupa was the best drummer ever! I liked Sal Mineo, too, though!
when i was coming up my journeyman found i liked playing drums and gave me all these big band albums, he loved drummers but i always remember him saying Gene was a drug addict, crock of shit i realise now but most importantly i started listening to Mr Krupa, legend fer sure.
So much blah blah blah! The movie was superb and great entertainment. Sal Mineo should have won an oscar for an incredible performance. There have been incredible black drummers since them who dont get any publicity at all.
Not unlike Benny Goodman. When asked after having just viewed "The Benny Goodman Story," Benny said, "Well, the music was good..." Say what you will about this film, it's been cemented into the public consciousness when Mystery Science Theater 3000 started quoting this film with some regularity. (Go Gene, go!) 😂
I agree with everything Brooks says in this video, particularly the opening comments where it's mentioned that many were inspired by this film to learn to play drums. I indeed was one of those. At age seven in 1959 I sat there in that movie theater totally spellbound at the opening credit scene, where that overhead camera pans down on Sal Mineo working over that white marine pearl set of drums. To this day, I still remember saying out loud "I wanna do that!" And to this day, in my 70s, my drums are still set up the way Gene set his set up.
Interesting! I remember TCM airing this movie, The Glenn Miller Story and The Benny Goodman Story at some point a long time ago when I watched that channel. Kinda glad I didn’t see this one if they just bastardized Gene’s life and career. Another one of these kinds of movies I’ve seen is The Fabulous Dorseys but at least they actually got Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey together to play some amazing music in that film and got other talents like Charlie Barnet to play as well. I know Gene Krupa for his fantastic music, including when he had Gerry Mulligan on as an arranger. And I’ve heard Gene in interviews as well. Very sharp guy with a clear passion for what he did. Of course, his work for Benny Goodman was unforgettable and so many classic recordings from that time as well. And I realized this is also what happened with Charlie Parker with that movie Bird too. I actually saw that one as a kid but later on when I got older and listened to a TH-cam video from Loren Schoenberg about the film and the problems the jazz historians at the time had with it in the late 80s, I could definitely see where they were coming from now. Anyway, I’m glad that you debunked the inaccuracies of this film. It’s why I take those kinds of biopics with a grain of salt. Cheers.
That's why I literally NEVER watch biopics. They are NOT docs, they are ENTERTAINMENT. Also, Krupa has a great reputation today, so in the long run, it really did not affect his legacy in a negative way. Not sure why people keep harping on this movie. It's not very good. (PS. I LOVE REEFER and so did Louis. Nothing wrong with it at all. )
At 36:00 I am very appreciative of that which you've shared here. I am not a skilled podcast-maker (lol... never made one such thing) so, I don't pretend to know 'how, why, what' your reasons for presenting this as you have. I will let you know, however, that I nearly stopped the video early because I (a drummer) I was somewhat unsure of the 'agenda.' The hyper-focus on the historical accuracy of the drums used, cymbals making hi-hat sounds, ete. etc. et al, was actually a TURN OFF. I was concerned that y'all were just stroking drum-talk stroke. But... y'all also SOUND intelligent. So... I let it play and with RELIEF, I listened as Mr. Tegler focused on a REAL problem: propaganda. Thanks for the great video :)
It was a great movie. You guys are nit picking over bs. Both of you were not with him when all of these things happened. Krupa was involved with the production, so nothing could be too untrue. As far as the drums used, it’s possible that in 1959, the drums of the 20s were not available. It doesn’t matter, the drums used were old enough.
True story ! My mother's family was in show business in the 1930's and 40's. Gene Krupa was a family friend for many years because of this. As a boy in elementary school, I was one of MANY students trying to get into the free school program for drum lessons. This was just after the Beatles had debuted on the Ed Sullivan show. The instructor asked each student who their favorite drummer was, and without fail, every single one said : " Ringo Starr"...except ME ! I said : " Gene Krupa", and I was selected immediately by the instructor, as the others were rejected !! In 1973 I had the tremendous pleasure of meeting Gene at one of his gigs not long before his death. I was amazed at how glad he was to see my mother and family...he sat with us in between sets and the conversation was full of memories and good times past. When told that I was a young and aspiring drummer, he said to me : " I always wanted to play in the Boston Symphony Orchestra...that's what I would do, if I were YOU ! " I will never forget that special night, Gene Krupa was the man who made the drums a powerful solo instrument, even shaping the configuration of the modern drum set. Sure, others built upon the idea with great skill like Buddy Rich and Louis Bellson...but, they ALL shared great respect for Gene, who was their main inspiration !!
I watched the movie with my parents (who were huge jazz fans) in 1965, when I was 13. They knew the truth about Gene's arrest and were quick to point out how inaccurate the movie's portrayal of it was. As I grew older and read what people who knew Gene said about him I was saddened that he had allowed the movie to portray him as something between a spoiled teenager and a juvenile delinquent. I'm glad that you folks are helping to set the record straight here in 2023, 50 years after Gene's death.
Thank you for watching! That is great that your parents set the record straight for you
My dad, Hy Gilbert (lyricist), was a friend of Gene's in Detroit in the 50's. I remember driving around with them as a child. My dad was also a drummer, so I suppose that's how they knew each other. Being a child at the time my memories are fairly vauge
Ken Burns was 6 yrs old when he made this documentary. Cut him some slack. He wasn’t even wearing long pants yet!
Thank you for setting the record straight.
Nobody ever mentions Gene's experimental orchestra, "Swing with Strings", my uncle Virgilio Alonge (Ray Alonge's father) played viola with that outfit in 1944 !
Bill P.
That is awesome!
@@DrumHistoryPodcast Thanks, and uncle Virgil was a great guy to boot ! 😀
I met Brooks at the Delaware drum show, had a wonderful conversation with him and purchased his book. A wonderful person and a great source of valuable information.
Absolutely!
Correction on Mineo's Murder Case. A lifelong criminal had come across Mineo, attempted to rob him and during the ensuing fight stabbed and killed him. He was caught about 40 years later and confessed exactly that.
Thank you for the clarification! Very tragic
Huh? Are you saying someone other than Lionel Williams, the guy who was convicted in 1979 and did 12 years was the killer?
@@mattskustomkreations - I believe he is referring to Williams ..❓️🤔
@@jamescalifornia2964 Williams was not caught 40 years later. Williams was arrested about 2 years after the crime. So still looks like the OP is referring to some mystery man.
Thank you for this! And BTW, the video editing is great. Always a pleasure to hear Brooks talk about Krupa. Thanks again Bart for another great podcast.
Thank you Tim!!
The family of drummers owes Brooks Tegler a massive slap on the back for his huge contribution to the furtherance of our knowledge of the life, works and in particular, the equipment used by the greatest of all drumming legends, Gene Krupa.
For anyone who isn’t aware, Brooks is a gent of gents who gives freely of his time and vast knowledge, in particular to all things vintage drum related.
I mistakenly thought I knew a thing or two until encountering Brooks. Now I just listen!!!!
The Krupa movie came on at 3 in the morning one partying night and at that time Ginger Baker was my fav drummer and I ended up getting into Jazz because of the Big Band music of Goodman and Dorsey and Basie and then all hell hit when I found jazz ranging from Roach to the Jones's to Blakey and I will never forget that movie night. I later found out the movie was of course exaggerated but Mineo's performance was amazing and the movie was entertaining. Thanks for your video and some of what was talked about I knew but I also learned more. Rock On, Jazz!! ;-)
Agreed... Sal Mineos performance was awesome. He really dedicated himself to portray Gene Krupa (on the drums) as well and respectfully as he could.
*No matter what the movie tried to portray Gene as...he will always be the best and a legend to his fans.
Thanks for watching, and I agree completely. It was fun to poke holes in the story with Brooks but I think it introduced a whole generation to the drums and a jazz legend, and Sal did a lot of work and played his butt off
😅😅😂😊
I saw the movie many years ago and mineo captured the essence of gene Krupa in detail.
This Gene Krupa Story movie inspired me to play the drums. Sal Mineo did play the drums, so he already had some familiarity with playing and he actually took drum lessons from Krupa before the filming of this movie. There is and actual “ Gene Krupa Drum Method of playing Drums, just like their is and actual “Buddy Rich Drum Method of playing the drums. Genes style of playing was the Chicago influence.
So good to see this! Brooks is a terrific guy - and a GREAT drummer! I used to sweat a little heavier when he came into the room. Kudos to you both.
Damn straight. Around 16:00 Tegler finally mentions AGENDA. Around 29:00 he is all-out speaking truth.
When I was a young teen, I bought my first jazz album: Krupa vs. Rich. It was great and was the CD remastered version in 1994. I am glad that this was my introduction to Gene Krupa.
That is a great introduction!
This was Great, Gene was my first influence as a Drummer, and I had learned over the years that I followed him, a lot of what was in the movie was wrong in regard to him being a drug user. I always admired Gene as a person and as the great Talented drummer he was. Thanks for this.😎
I watched this movie in a Saturday matinee when I was 10 years old. Five years later, I was playing drums in a garage band which led to my taking jazz drum lessons from a professional performer (not just a teacher). Although I did not become a career drummer, I did moonlight as a jazz drummer in the local major resorts and I still play. I loved Gene's personality the best and have always admired him for bringing the drums to the front of the orchestra. I own this movie and a bunch of DVD's of his playing. Now that I know that almost all of the story is garbage, I can take comfort in the fact that Gene is not the bad guy portrayed and I can enjoy Sal Mineo's playing over top of Gene's soundtrack. Thank you for clarifying this.
I always wondered why the song, "Sing, Sing, Sing" was not included in the movie. I have the movie on Benny Goodman just so I can watch Gene in it. Gene has always been an inspiration to me and he has always seemed to be the gentleman that I imagined. Thank you.
My grandfather was the band manager for Gene when he was falsely set up for weed in San Francisco.
@@francisverniere9250 Wow. Sad times. Everything I've ever seen or heard about Gene, as well as those around him, has been positive.
This gentleman's commentary has me rolling on the floor. It's so hilarious, I literally can't catch my breath.
I just saw the movie tonight. I'm 87 and when I was a kid I had the 78rpm records of the 1938 Benny Goodman Carnegie Hall concert. The elephant in the room in the movie and this discussion is that is when and where Krupa became famous. He didn't form his own band until after that concert. Missing this major event in your discussion with the expert makes this video as bad a the movie.
Like many Jazz musicians Gene was a weed user. He got bounced by Goodman well before the arrest because of this. Pateakos was 20, which I guess was a "minor" at the time. The truth about the arrest is really lost to history. He still remains maybe the greatest drummer of all time.
Gene was my dad's idol! My parents gave me a toy snare drum when I was 5 yrs old, then a full kit at age 10.
During the next 2 to 3 years I became fascinated by a handful of rock drummers, insisting my dad listen to them. He was never swayed, not a single one could compare to Gene. That was in the mid 1960s, and my dad never said anything about the "dope" arrest. Before 1970, the story I heard had been exaggerated to Gene shooting heroin! I never gave it a thought and never knew the truth until now. No matter what, the only drummer my dad thought more of was me.
That is super cool! And yes the heroine thing was such nonsense. Thanks for watching!
Great video....I saw Gene twice in my lifetime...When I was 9 at the Metropole in NYC,and at Frankie's Villa Pompee many years later in the 60's....I still have one of Gene;s brushes...A nicer guy I never met.
Thanks Bart and Brooks! Back in the day, when you hoped for a few seconds of screen time for the drummer in big band scenes, here you at least got a lot of screen time of drum kits, even if inaccurate vis-a-vis Gene’s real life and drum details.
Thanks for watching Richard. You are 100% right, it is always fun to see drums on the big screen
That scene where his kisses a girl in the trailer at 1:05 is not in the movie. Or at least the DVD I have of it.
Thats a good point - perhaps a cut scene that just appears in the trailer
Cool, my dad taught me Jazz drumming, introducing me to Gene Crupa and Buddy Rich, when I was really young, Im 50 now only, got in to Bonham 70's rock, these guys influenced 70's rock drummers, done stuff in rock. Saw this film, yeh bit Hollywood. Gene Crupa I still play, Sing Sing at Hollywood Bowl is still classic. WOW ..great quest ..love it. shame you have not got million views! The younger guys missing Jazz in rock today! hence the swing is going! Listen to your Drum History Podcast ...all the time .great stuff...from UK
When was this video posted? October 27, 2022. Maybe, good sir, you might consider editing out your negative comment, "shame you have not got million views!" Seriously. There's enough covert dooshin' pre-October 22, 2022.
Thank you Andrew! I appreciate you watching and listening to the Podcast. We all love Gene and know that he is a legend. Cheers
Thanks. yes, some comments thought I was negative...no, Love this channel, and Gene and the Drums. Thank you.
@@andrewjohnson388 No worries Andrew, not negative at all. I completely understand :)
@@DrumHistoryPodcast Cheers 😀
OK,so if there never was a Gene Krupa, there never would have been a Keith Moon,and where does that leave me?playing a clarinet???
Speaking of inaccuracy, Sal Mineo's stabbing had nothing to do with homophobia. The robber (yes, robber) was a pizza delivery guy who had committed a number of other muggings. Lionel Williams was sentenced to 57 years in prison, but let out after serving just twelve. Talk about a travesty of justice... sounds like the stuff that is happening nowadays. Williams said he had no idea who Mineo was when he stabbed him.
Thanks for the clarification. A terrible tragedy
It's hard to find reissues of GK's band except on Spotify.
Thanks for this complex but actually very simple conversion demonstrating that methodical stepwise work will get the job done. Result is a matter of personal preference. I thought the conversion made the amp sound as if it had a cold ! But too much mid can always be modified with additional eq. What program did you use for spectrum display ? Many thanks as always.
Thanks for watching Steve! Are you referring to my voice or Brooks? Or the sound of the movie? Either way, I use the EQ on the Metric Halo Channel Strip. A great and powerful plugin.
also, didn’t Jo Jones use a floor tom on the left sometimes? Don’t know when that would’ve started but I know I’ve seen it from a clip circa the mid-50s
Yes I think you are correct about Jo Jones, I have definitely seen that a few times. Good call
31:25 is priceless. Kudos to Mr. Tegler.
I became a drummer because of the movie on WGN Chicago when I was a kid. And seeing Buddy Rich on the tonight show. Also, the opening of Who Do You by John Densmore on The Doors Alive album. It's infuriating that his career and reputation was destroyed by J Edgar Hoover and that film. I saw an interview with Gene and he seemed like such an easy going, nice, articulate person. I remember the conspiracy theories around Sal Mineo's murder being connected to the movie. Has that been pretty much debunked? I would think. Great content. Cheers.
Great report. Like the host and guest. I think I am a bit more forgiving to the movie makers for artistic license, I am not offended that the drum kit models were not exact to the year being depicted. Maybe I'd see that differently if I was a drummer. I think the public was less concerned about such details at that time.
I agree with the disparity between personal events and how they were changed to make the production. Really impressed with Sal Mineo's performance, I didn't know he was a drummer. Excellent performance.
Thanks for the critique of the film. I just watched it this evening and so glad you set the record straight. just from seeing some of his interviews It seemed hard to believe he was as arrogant and spoiled as the Sal Mineo character. Just really curious about his love life. Does anyone have any details on that, I see that he married Ethel twice. Did he know her from his Chicago days and did she follow him to New York as it portrays in the movie and did he really treat her so badly? Hoping to get up to Yonkers to see his house at 10 Richie. I just love watching his Leave Us Leap. And so grateful to hear he wasn’t a drug addict as they portrayed in the movie. It is so wrong how Hollywood-misrepresented him.
Sal Mineo did a great job, playing the role and mimicking Krupa’s style on the drums. And the soundtrack is amazing as you will say thanks and let me know where I can read more about his love life.
Gene Krupa played the first "ride cymbal "on a Bix Beiderbeck recording 1932/33 ? It was said on a BBC Jazz History programme a couple of years ago. Anyone confirm? Could a 16" be a ride cymbal.Ithink a couple of makers have had 16" rides before?
That is a very good question. You should ask that on the "America's Ace Drummer Man: Gene Krupa" facebook group
What a great video this is! 💯👏🏼 thank you so much for this 🙏🏼
I've never seen this movie, but It looks like a pretty good film that I'll have to watch someday. The weird thing is that I had heard that Gene Krupa was a junkie, addicted to heroin, and I've believed it until now because I had never heard anyone say that he wasn't. Still, it never actually made sense to me when I've seen his performances. Junkies really don't play like that.
31:36 the great Shelly Manne!
The 1st album I bought was The Original Drum Battle. Buddy and Gene. I think I got it in 1977. Yesh, the movie has a lot wrong, but Sal does a pretty damn good job playing. It looks like he's actually playing the part on the sound track. These days we have to deal with the worst idiocy compaired go this movie: Tommy Lee.
I love when he's smoking the joint and the TV subtitle reads "freak out music"...made me think of Frank Zappa!
In the commentary it said that Gene played saxophone early on but in the movie he didn't know how to read music until much later ( lessons by his soon to be girlfriend ) Ina Ballen.
The movie did point out that the drug charges were false. It really made it clear that his talent was pure talent...and his "cooler" decisions were REFUSING drugs. I wish the film would have showed the details of how he was framed. I enjoyed the movie, though it should have expressed more of Gene's good points. It's really not a story about his life, it's a story about a very short time frame of his career. It's a shame that it damaged his reputation, especially since most of it was fictionalized. Hollywood should clarify if a film is "inspired" by real people, instead of claiming it a factual account.
One of the best 2:00 am movies ever.
Vic Arpeggio on SCTV borrowed pretty heavily from it
Flaherty is great.
All biographical films are works of fiction. A screenwriter writes words that the person never said and creates events that never happened. In the movie," The Eddy Duchin Story "I always think of the very emotional scene when Marjorie Oelrich dies a few days after her son Peter Duchin was born during the Christmas Holidays. Eddy Duchin keeps saying "Merry Christmas" sardonically as he cries, sitting next to a Christmas Tree. Peter Duchin was born on JULY 28th, 1937. This film gave a nice starring role to the 20-year-old Sal Mineo.
BS. I just watched the movie, and IN NO WAY did it portray Gene Krupa as a drug addict.
That's what I thought! It did paint his character in a negative light, but clarified the drug charges were false.
Yes it did But Sal mineo I was amazing in this film
Bravo Brooks! Thanks Bart form producing this.
Thank you Chet!
Sad to hear they got so much of his life wrong in the movie. That movie is why I fell in love with drums at 5 years old.
As a teen ager I saw this movie 12 times in 1959. He was my favorite drummer and think of his solos ofter- that was 65 years ago.
I am honored to say that I grew up in the same neighborhood as Gene on the south side of Chicago...the hood was called "The Bush."
Wow very cool!
My dad, Hy Gilbert (lyricist), was a friend of Gene's in Detroit in the 50's. I remember driving around with them as a child. My dad was also a drummer, so I suppose that's how they knew each other. Being a child at the time my memories are fairly vauge.
Neil Peart mentions in a couple of his books seeing this movie as a kid and as it being an early influence to wanting to become a drummer. I rented it probably 15 years ago and found it hard to swallow because all of the wrong gear and inaccurate story. The soundtrack was by far the best part. Susan Oliver and Yvonne Craig both appeared in one episode of Star Trek each. Coincidentally they both appear as an Orion slave girl. Yvonne is best known as Batgirl on the Batman TV show and Susan Oliver appeared in over 125 TV shows and movies.
It is definitely influential for young drummers of the day but it certainly didn't age well :)
Shocking! Movie dramatization turns out to not be a documentary!
“Don’t diddle it” she says to a rudimental drummer 😭 next time a homie’s bogarding the J, imma have to hit him with _don’t diddle it_ 🤣
Haha thats great
Gene studied for the Priesthood for a perod of time. I was unable to determine if Gene could sight-read music.
Saw this movie as a youngster and the ONLY part I remember is a woman at a nightclub offering him some weed and him turning it down. Maybe that's why I developed a lifelong aversion to drugs and the people that use them.
Very cool. Gene and Buddy Rich were my and still are great inspirations. There's an old Jerry Lewis movie, "Visit To A Small Planet", a scene where he's in a jazz nite club Lewis plays, as the alien, bongos, telekinetically, trading 4's with Buddy Rich on drum set.
typical of many "biography" pics of that era, they cared about entertainment without regard to accuracy. they discounted the intelligence of the audience, and didn't think forward enough to consider that the film just might catch the interest of drummers 60 yrs later.
With all this technology why don’t they do a true story about the drummer buddy rich? We could use his hands using computer graphics that would be awesome
Yes a Buddy movie would be great!
But using AI Deep Fake would be awful though.
This is really nit picking. Obviously the movie is a sensationalized version of the true story meant to appeal to the masses. That's film making. And this wasn't exactly a billion dollar endeavour. Actually, as cheesy as it is in spots, it hits most of the major points and gives a good insight to a time when a musician could be a major celebrity based mainly on his or her talent. And Sal Mineo did a fantastic of mimicking the parts. NOT an easy task. My main complaint is that Mineo played Gene to appear too angry too much of the time. But all in all, it's a "fun" B movie and something any drummer would get a kick out of.
You are not wrong Nelson! We were just having fun picking out all the details, but Sal Mineo did do a great job performing as Gene. I would agree that his rendition of Gene definitely came off as more angry than the real Krupa. Thank you for watching 👍
Bob Dylan wanted to make a movie about Buddy Rich years ago.
Also if I’m not mistaken there’s a scene in the movie I believe it’s the penthouse party scene where the camera is looking up At Gene /Sal from under the small Tom And you can see Genes head Through the two heads on the small Tom which means they were clear plastic heads! Now plastic heads did not even exist in the 1930s they didn’t come Into existence until the late 1950s like 57 or so plus that’s a 1950s era Slingerland drum said he’s playing look at the Beavertail lugs and the disappearing spurs on the bass DrumShell!
Yep that is a great catch!
When I was about 6 or 7 , I saw the movie . 1969. Gene was always my favorite because my mom being from Budapest in 42 emigrated to West Germany. I was born there in 62 and she had just about any Big Band Album you could name . Guy Lombardo, Tommy Dorsey , Benny Goodman etc etc ..
The story that was told to me was that the promoters of the Buddy Rich clan had Gene framed so Buddy could get the jobs . I don't think this was correct because musicians are usually like family and I'd never heard Gene ever suggest anything like that. Either way Gene & Sals Death are very sorrowful.
Brooks Tegler, a great drummer, as well!!
Agreed!
They must've had some REALLY good shit back in the `30's because, I'm a drummer that doesn't use drugs or booze and I tried grass twice back in the early `90's and it did absolutely nothing too/for me except burn my throat. Here, this guy takes one or two hits and, suddenly, he's a madman!! And, I didn't try it to make my drumming any better, I've always been a very good drummer. I just wanted to see what all the fuss was about and, other than what I've heard about it from my band mates and friends and on `70's comedy albums, I still don't know what the fuss is.
I like how everyone in 1927 has 1958 hairdos. The women’s clothes are late 50s too.
Yo ~ good on ya, mate. Records exist to be set straight. Apart from just being a great musician, I've always loved his vibes.
Plus, it's never too late to stand up for the truth.
Paz y luz.✨🌙💙🎶
Thanks for watching!
Looky now! Everybody smokes and their parents. What a terrible miscarriage of justice for Gene.
J Edgar Hoover was a bully most likely due to his own shortcomings.
It is a great time to be a drummer with so many cymbal options!
It's a movie. Although it is named the Gene Krupa story, it's still just a movie. Maybe Gene should have read the script. But after all it's only a movie.
They really should of pointed out that he wasn’t a worthless alcoholic.It’s an ok movie that used pot as sensationalism
Yeah good point
be cool if he podcasted the book and up loaded it on spotfi and itunes
That would be awesome - it would certainly be a lot of info
love this movie because of SAL MINEO. as in all music bio's they're all fictional big friggin deal!
Why do they always ruin biopics and turn them into fiction? I was scrolling through TubiTV and came across The Gene Krupa Story, and thought, it must be one of those typical movies that got a lot wrong, and came to TH-cam to see if there was anything about it here. Wow! I had no idea it got every detail wrong, and now I guess I don't want to see it, but I kind of do because of the soundtrack, and to see how Sal Mineo played him. I'm watching this first, this is fantastic! It sounds though, like every detail is made up in the movie - very disappointing. Is there a good biography of Krupa, one that was written by someone who knew the truth and wrote about it? Thanks in advance!
Strange today in San Francisco grass is completely legal and would have made Gene even a bigger star.
This is the first time I've ever heard that Gene Krupa was a drug addict! Hollywood makes these false "biographical" movies that can ruin an entertainer's life, as it did for Gene! I don't believe he was a drug addict at all, and, in my opinion, Mr Krupa was the best drummer ever! I liked Sal Mineo, too, though!
Agreed! Thanks fort watching
The movie did clarify the drug charges were false.
Brooks Tegler, great musician, great friend ❤️
Maybe they could do a remake with Miles Teller.
Gene was totally involved with the production of the movie. I don't believe he would let outright lies to be made about him.
His involvement is very interesting
@@DrumHistoryPodcast Did he want a different--"tougher"--public image?
Buddy rich wasn’t even mentioned in the film and he’s the greatest drummer that ever lived in Jean Krupa and buddy we’re good friends 12:21
GENE Krupa.
when i was coming up my journeyman found i liked playing drums and gave me all these big band albums, he loved drummers but i always remember him saying Gene was a drug addict, crock of shit i realise now but most importantly i started listening to Mr Krupa, legend fer sure.
That is interesting. Such a negative perception that people really clung on to.
So much blah blah blah! The movie was superb and great entertainment. Sal Mineo should have won an oscar for an incredible performance.
There have been incredible black drummers since them who dont get any publicity at all.
Not unlike Benny Goodman. When asked after having just viewed "The Benny Goodman Story," Benny said, "Well, the music was good..."
Say what you will about this film, it's been cemented into the public consciousness when Mystery Science Theater 3000 started quoting this film with some regularity. (Go Gene, go!) 😂
I think people get Gene mixed up with The Man With the Golden Arm too.
I agree with everything Brooks says in this video, particularly the opening comments where it's mentioned that many were inspired by this film to learn to play drums. I indeed was one of those. At age seven in 1959 I sat there in that movie theater totally spellbound at the opening credit scene, where that overhead camera pans down on Sal Mineo working over that white marine pearl set of drums. To this day, I still remember saying out loud "I wanna do that!" And to this day, in my 70s, my drums are still set up the way Gene set his set up.
This narrative is nuts.
"Rebel With a Drum Kit."
Have never watched it because of the lies it tells and what it did to him.
Beyond it being not true, it just gets pretty boring. It is fun to see the drum sets at least
Keith moon was a krupa clone.
Chick Webb thats the movie that has to be made youll understand why Gene and Buddy called Webb (The Daddy)
I agree - I am working on another episode on Chick!
@@DrumHistoryPodcast great!!!! 👍
This movie was slow and horribly inaccurate. Maybe for the time people appreciated it, but it didn't age well.
I would agree completely Scott. With or without the inaccuracies, I just got bored watching it
@@DrumHistoryPodcast I watched it because Neil Peart said he had enjoyed it.
So he didn’t become a Priest? Heck I liked the fact that he became a Priest😢
Yes his set up is great
Anticedent flower power.
Interesting! I remember TCM airing this movie, The Glenn Miller Story and The Benny Goodman Story at some point a long time ago when I watched that channel. Kinda glad I didn’t see this one if they just bastardized Gene’s life and career. Another one of these kinds of movies I’ve seen is The Fabulous Dorseys but at least they actually got Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey together to play some amazing music in that film and got other talents like Charlie Barnet to play as well.
I know Gene Krupa for his fantastic music, including when he had Gerry Mulligan on as an arranger. And I’ve heard Gene in interviews as well. Very sharp guy with a clear passion for what he did. Of course, his work for Benny Goodman was unforgettable and so many classic recordings from that time as well.
And I realized this is also what happened with Charlie Parker with that movie Bird too. I actually saw that one as a kid but later on when I got older and listened to a TH-cam video from Loren Schoenberg about the film and the problems the jazz historians at the time had with it in the late 80s, I could definitely see where they were coming from now.
Anyway, I’m glad that you debunked the inaccuracies of this film. It’s why I take those kinds of biopics with a grain of salt. Cheers.
I might related to gene Krupa my grandma told me that i am but my mum says she is lying and my mums last name is Krupa
Maybe someday someone will make a "boring" movie about you Mr van der Zee
I knew it! When a was 7 years old, and I saw the movie. I said, that's fake. Davey Tough never used 2 floor toms!
Ha smart kid!
That's why I literally NEVER watch biopics. They are NOT docs, they are ENTERTAINMENT. Also, Krupa has a great reputation today, so in the long run, it really did not affect his legacy in a negative way. Not sure why people keep harping on this movie. It's not very good. (PS. I LOVE REEFER and so did Louis. Nothing wrong with it at all. )
Thats a good point that most young people don't really know about weed stuff with Gene, but it definitely still rings true in the older generation.
At 36:00 I am very appreciative of that which you've shared here. I am not a skilled podcast-maker (lol... never made one such thing) so, I don't pretend to know 'how, why, what' your reasons for presenting this as you have. I will let you know, however, that I nearly stopped the video early because I (a drummer) I was somewhat unsure of the 'agenda.' The hyper-focus on the historical accuracy of the drums used, cymbals making hi-hat sounds, ete. etc. et al, was actually a TURN OFF. I was concerned that y'all were just stroking drum-talk stroke. But... y'all also SOUND intelligent. So... I let it play and with RELIEF, I listened as Mr. Tegler focused on a REAL problem: propaganda. Thanks for the great video :)
Thanks for watching John, that is interesting input. I appreciate you sticking through it and enjoying it!
Omg..I feel the exact same way..What’s up with this obsession over the drums!!
It was a great movie. You guys are nit picking over bs. Both of you were not with him when all of these things happened. Krupa was involved with the production, so nothing could be too untrue. As far as the drums used, it’s possible that in 1959, the drums of the 20s were not available. It doesn’t matter, the drums used were old enough.
GOSH...They really really did a lot of STUPID stuff on this...Golly Gee Whiz lot's of historical inaccuracies!
Gotta say that there were beautiful women in this flick
Am sure many here have no idea the hard drugs many big name players were strung out on,Krupa was just the tip of the ice berg...👀
Reefer madness!!!
💨
😎👍💗🇺🇸 🇵🇱 🥁🎼 GO GENO GO!!!
Polish pride from Chicago's southside!!!
Thanks for listening buddy!
😳💙💙