Med Flory
| Med Flory | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Meredith Irwin Flory |
| Born |
August 27, 1926 Logansport, Indiana, U.S. |
| Died |
March 12, 2014 (aged 87) North Hollywood, California |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, actor, screenwriter |
| Instruments | Saxophone |
| Associated acts | Supersax |
Meredith Irwin "Med" Flory (August 27, 1926 – March 12, 2014) was an American jazz saxophonist and bandleader.
Biography
Flory's mother was an organist, and encouraged Flory to take up clarinet as a child. During World War II Flory was an Army Air Force pilot, and after the war he got his college degree in philosophy from Indiana University.[1]
He played in the bands of Claude Thornhill and Woody Herman in the early 1950s before forming his own ensemble in New York City. In 1955 he relocated to California and started a new group, which played at the 1958 Monterey Jazz Festival. In the late 1950s he played with Terry Gibbs, Art Pepper, and Herman again, playing both tenor and baritone saxophone.[2]
In the 1960s, Flory was less active in music, working in television and film as an actor and screenwriter; his credits include Wagon Train, The Rifleman, Perry Mason, Maverick, Route 66, Daniel Boone, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., Lassie, and the film The Nutty Professor.
In the mid-1960s Flory worked with Art Pepper and Joe Maini on transcriptions and arrangements of Charlie Parker recordings, and in 1972, he co-founded Supersax, an ensemble devoted to Parker's work. Supersax's debut album, Supersax Plays Bird, won a Grammy Award. He died March 12, 2014 in North Hollywood at the age of 87.[1]
References
- 1 2 Heckman, Don (March 15, 2014). "Med Flory dies at 87; alto saxophonist and actor founded Grammy-winning jazz group Supersax". Los Angeles Times.
- ↑ Pennell, Brenda (1994). "Med Flory". The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz. Macmillan. p. 391.
External links
- Med Flory at AllMusic
- Med Flory discography at Discogs
- Med Flory at the Internet Movie Database
- Med Flory at Find a Grave