The Washington times., 1938-06-23
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by 70N/N| DORSEY AND GEORGE D ZCV77Z4N

and Jonah Jones, during which
they took thirty-six choruSe!
running Of Jazz Me Blues"
They actually froze everybody
to their seats. You couldn'
hear a voice raised, which wa.
mighty extraordinary for thu
Onyx. It was the real barrel
house, and so hot you were
afraid the walls might catch fire
Condor was calling the choruses
and he simply wouldn't let them
stop, and they didn't want tc
stop Finally, they got tired
Biff was blowing himself blue
in the face. Seemed like he was
trying to blast something out OF
himself. Now Biff wasn't the
sort of person to get drunk. In
fact, although he talked about
getting blotto ever since he'd
come in. he hadn't touched a
drop. But I guess the nearest
thing to getting drunk for him
was playing hot. Everybody was
amazed at Biff's sticking power.
HE certainly has moxie," re-
marked Bud Freeman approx.
ingly.
Biff sat in on almost every
clambake.
He is a balloon lungs, that
boy!" said Benny Goodman.
ASTOUNDS JAZZ CRITIC
Hello, boogie man." was
Tough's greeting to George
Simon, the hot jazz music critic,
who had just walked in.
Where did that fellow get
those chops2" asked Simon, tis-
IDLY aStounded.
After the Onyx closed up for
the night, the gates went over
to AL Brackman's apartment for
more gutbucket. But was al.
ready beat and went to the
hotel where I was staying over
night because I had a record
date in the morning.
This Brakeman is a press
agent for Irving Mills, a big
booker of colored talent, and he
is also a correspondent for a
British music paper. With him
was M. H. Orodenker, critic for
THE Billboard" Everybody was
still raving about Biff.
They couldn't get over him.
He was the sensation of Tin
Pan Alley. Yet that night Biff
was unhappy, in spite of all the
idolizing he was getting from
critics and cats.
There was nothing could do
to help him so I went to the
hotel, wondering about this Hot
House Herbert and why he was
so anxious to get us to play this
society date. I was worrying
bit because, in the first place,
those velvet stiffs usually don't
go for 1--WE and, secondly, Hot
knows he's arsenic to me :.
But Broadway is a funny place.
Anything is liable to happen
and usually does.
TWO THINGS HAPPEN
Two things took place shortly
after that Onyx session that had
important consequences for Biff.
They happened almost in the
same week and they were about
equally important.
The first occurred in the Blue
Room at the Lincoln and the
second took place in the drawing
room Of Gail Sinclair, a Park
Avenue debutante of recent vim
tage.
Of course, after the scrap
they had at the longhaired CAB
fest, Harriet and Biff came run
ming back to each other, kissing
and begging to be forgiven and
swearing nothing would ever
spoil tEeir happiness again.
But things were changing
Harriet was growing up in her
way. just as Biff was growing up
in his. She was getting taste
of another kind Of life: we'll
dressed people, cultured conver'
Sation, highbrow ShindigS. She
liked the taste, and Delmer Tor
renee had made up his mind to
make her like it more.
Harriet had told him, to some
extent, how things stood be
tween Biff and her. Delmer was
already head over heels for Har'
riet. He soon found out that it
was swing which rubbed Harriet
and Biff the wrong way, and
Delmer decided to pour little
gasoline on the fire.
So Delmer persuaded Harriet
to go with him to the Lincoln
one night. Harriet, of course,
was unaware of his motive in ar
ranging this. They came unan'
nounced, and Biff was playing in
the band as usual when I sud
denly saw him 60 pale and stop
blowing sounds out Of his COB
stick. He had seen Harriet and
Terrence at a table near the