Remembering World War II

The Boynton Beach Veterans Council remembered the 60th anniversary of V-J Day with a free concert and dance held September 1, 2005 at the city's Civic Center. Music was provided by the seven-piece Ted Knight Orchestra. Click photos to enlarge.

The evening began with a memorial presentation ceremony. City officials made brief remarks, with event chairman Tom Kaiser acting as master of ceremonies.

Piper George Shannon played for the color guard, and later played "Amazing Grace" in honor of those who died in World War II.

Soprano Evelyn Catarella sang the national anthem and the wartime favorite "The White Cliffs of Dover." Guest vocalist Johnny Christi led the singing of "God Bless America."

To conclude the ceremony, the band played a sprightly medley of George M. Cohan tunes, the crowd singing along to "Yankee Doodle Dandy," "Over There," "Give My Regards to Broadway," and the finale, "You're a Grand Old Flag."

When Ted cued Dave Gibble's trumpet to hit the opening notes of "String of Pearls," the dancers took to the floor. The evening was billed as a tribute to Glenn Miller and the band included plenty of the great bandleader's hits. "Little Brown Jug," "In the Mood," and "Tuxedo Junction" were among the crowd's favorites, and Ted's smooth vocal on "Moonlight Cocktails" made for a romantic moment.

Drummer Sy Pryweller was featured on "St. Louis Blues March" as well as Benny Goodman's "Sing Sing Sing." Sy is an expert on big band drumming, having served for many years as head of the jazz band at Palm Beach Community College. Trumpet soloist Gibble took over Sy's spot at the college some years ago when Sy took early retirement, and both men are mainstays of Ted's orchestra.

Ted enjoyed choosing "Miller Medleys," which fans know were four songs in a familiar pattern. He joked that it was tricky to find "something old" that was already old by the 1940s, but came up with a winner in "Makin' Whoopee." For "something new," it was "And All That Jazz" from the hit show, Chicago. Something borrowed? Louis Jordan's "Choo Choo Ch'Boogie" took off down the tracks, coming back for something blue, "Night Train," with jazz solos by everyone on board.

Saxophonists Paul Magersuppe and Randy Emerick are longtime members of Ted's band. Paul played a gorgeous alto solo on the Duke's "Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me," and traded licks with Randy on "In the Mood."

Randy's tenor sax shone on "Embraceable You," and his  baritone sax solo on "Stardust" was a tremendous hit with dancers.

Bassist Ed DeMatteo played with the Rochester Philharmonic in New York before making his way to Florida. Dates with Ted since the two met in 1995 include gigs at Erny's, the now-closed jazz club in Delray Beach, and country club dinner dances. He doesn't get much solo time but his big sound keeps the band right on the beat.

A memorable evening

All night long, people came up to the band to say how much they enjoyed the music. A man from Brooklyn who requested Woody Herman's "Woodchoppers Ball" was delighted to hear it played so well. Couple enjoyed the ballads and medium-tempo numbers just as much as the swing and jump tunes. Many people said they had enjoyed the band of Ted's late father, Vic Knight, and Ted was glad to hear people tell him his father would be proud.

Veteran local news anchor Jim Sackett made a special appearance to accept a collection from the audience for Hurricane Katrina relief, and spoke about the Japanese surrender aboard the USS Missouri sixty years earlier.

Bad weather forced cancellation of the original outdoor concert which was to have been held December 17, 2004, chosen as the 50th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge and the disappearance of Glenn Miller.

Ted said he was glad the event could be re-scheduled in the air-conditioned comfort of the civic center, complete with stage, dance floor, and lighting.