51. He Wouldn’t Let Him Go
Back when Frank Sinatra was just getting big, he had a contract with Tommy Dorsey. When he wanted out of the orchestra to go solo, Tommy wouldn't let him. Apparently, his contract said that if he left, Sinatra would have to pay out 43% of all his future earnings: all to Tommy and his agent. Sinatra ended up having to fork over $75,000 just to become a free man.
Another man who must have been feeling free was Tommy’s brother Jimmy.
52. He Couldn’t Live Without Him
With Tommy out of the picture, Jimmy took over as the lead of the orchestra. But this would not last for long. Just as he took over for his brother, he received a devastating diagnosis. Jimmy had throat cancer. On June 12, 1957—just six months after his brother—Jimmy also passed.
The future of the Dorsey Brothers was now in one person’s hands.
53. She Owned His Name
Strangely, the owner of the name “Tommy Dorsey” was Dorsey’s widow, Jane. So, Jane had to give the okay when Warren Covington took the helm. They renamed the band the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra Starring Warren Covington. Jane wisely kept her husband's full name in the title.
But there’s reason to believe that, despite their fighting, Tommy really had found true love with his third wife.
54. She Loved Him Till The End
Jane passed on August 28, 2003, and she requested her burial to be beside Tommy at the Kensico Cemetery, in Valhalla, New York. Yes, they had been starting divorce proceedings, but she must have still loved him. In fact, her son later said that his mother never got over losing Tommy Dorsey.
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Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18,
