There are still plenty of us around from the Silent (1928-1945) and Boomer (1946-1964) generations.  Growing up with old movies and multi-generational TV variety shows were part of our cultural foundation.  We easily remember personalities from decades before our birth.  I can safely say that we had more respect for what came before us than today’s generations.  As Cicero famously wrote: “To not know what happened before your birth is to forever remain a child.”

We knew of Rudolph Valentino, the silent movie heart-throb even though we never sat through one of his movies.  Bing Crosby was still singing during our youth.  Rudy Vallee, another popular “crooner” of the 1930s made movies into the 1960s (How to Succeed in Business Without Even Trying).  But until recently, I had never heard of the Jazz Age crooner Russ Columbo.  He has an amazing story.