Tony Martin, born Alvin Morris, was the son of Polish immigrants. He received a soprano saxophone as a tenth birthday gift, which sparked his musical journey. As a member of his grammar school's glee club, he developed his skills as an instrumentalist and soprano pop singer.
In high school, Martin formed his first band, "The RedPeppers," and later joined local orchestra leader Tom Gerun as a reed instrument specialist, alongside future band leader Woody Herman. This experience laid the foundation for his future success.
In the mid-1930s, Martin left Gerun to pursue a career in Hollywood, where he adopted his stage name, "Tony Martin." He married actress Alice Faye in 1937, but the couple later divorced. Martin then married the renowned dancer Cyd Charisse in 1948, a union that lasted an impressive sixty years.
Throughout his illustrious career, Martin appeared in numerous hit movies, including "Follow the Fleet" (1936),"The Farmer in the Dell" (1936),"Pigskin Parade" (1936),"The Holy Terror" (1937),"Ali Baba Goes to Town" (1937),"The Big Store" (1941),"Till the Clouds Roll By" (1946),"Casbah" (1948),"Clash by Night" (1952),and "Hit the Deck" (1955). His iconic songs, such as "Kiss Of Fire," "I Get Ideas," "SomeDay," "Fools Rush In," and "There's No Tomorrow," remain some of his most beloved and enduring hits.
Martin also had a successful television career, hosting his own 15-minute variety series on NBC-TV from 1954 to 1956. He made numerous guest appearances on popular TV variety shows, including those hosted by Jack Benny, Dinah Shore, Milton Berle, Merv Griffin, Dean Martin, Nat 'King' Cole, David Frost, Barbara McNair, Johnny Carson, and Ed Sullivan. Additionally, Martin had a range of TV acting roles throughout his career.
