Med Flory

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Med Flory
Publicity Photo of Med Flory
Publicity Photo of Med Flory
Background information
Birth name Meredith Irwin Flory
Born ( 1926-08-27 ) August 27, 1926
Logansport, Indiana
Died March 12, 2014 (2014-03-12) (aged 87)
North Hollywood, Los Angeles , California
Genres Jazz
Occupation(s) Musician, actor, screenwriter
Instrument(s) Saxophone

Meredith Irwin Flory , known professionally as Med Flory (August 27, 1926 ? March 12, 2014), [1] was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader, and actor.

Early years [ edit ]

Flory was born in Logansport, Indiana , United States. [2] His mother was an organist and encouraged him to learn clarinet as a child. During World War II , he was an Army Air Force pilot, and after the war he received his college degree in philosophy from Indiana University . [1]

Career [ edit ]

Flory played in the bands of Claude Thornhill and Woody Herman in the early 1950s, before forming his own ensemble in New York City. [2] 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. [3] He was cast in twenty-nine episodes from 1956 to 1957 of the ABC variety show , The Ray Anthony Show .

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 , Ripcord (twice), Rawhide (twice), Gunsmoke (twice), Perry Mason (twice - including 'The Case of Crying Comedian'), Maverick (twice), The Virginian (five episodes), Route 66 (twice), Bronco , Surfside 6 , Mona McCluskey , Run, Buddy, Run , 77 Sunset Strip (three episodes), The Dakotas , Destry , Lawman (three episodes), Wendy and Me , It's a Man's World , The Monroes , Cimarron Strip , Daniel Boone (seven episodes), Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. (twice), Bonanza (three episodes), Mannix , Lassie (ten episodes), How the West Was Won (three episodes), High Mountain Rangers (four episodes as Sheriff Mike McBride) and the films, Starsky and Hutch (once), The Gumball Rally , The Night of the Grizzly with Clint Walker and The Nutty Professor with Jerry Lewis .

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. [2] Supersax's debut album, Supersax Plays Bird , won a Grammy Award .

In 1972, Flory appeared in the first episode of the final season of Mission Impossible as Toledo.

Personal life [ edit ]

Flory was married to Joan Barbara Fry until her death in 2000. [4]

Death [ edit ]

Flory died of a heart ailment [4] on March 12, 2014, in Hollywood , California , at the age of 87. [1]

Filmography [ edit ]

References [ edit ]

  1. ^ a b c Heckman, Don (March 15, 2014). "Med Flory dies at 87; alto saxophonist and actor founded Grammy-winning jazz group Supersax" . The Los Angeles Times .
  2. ^ a b c Colin Larkin , ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing . p. 881. ISBN   0-85112-939-0 .
  3. ^ Pennell, Brenda (1994). "Med Flory". The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz . Macmillan . p. 391.
  4. ^ a b Lentz, Harris M. III (2015). Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2014 . McFarland. p. 114. ISBN   9780786476664 . Retrieved November 8, 2017 .

External links [ edit ]

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