Muzzy Marcellino

If you've ever noticed the haunting whistling featured in "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly," the theme composed by Ennio Morricone for the Sergio Leone spaghetti Western of the same name starring Clint Eastwood, then you've heard Muzzy Marcellino's famous whistle at its best. He also whistled The High and the Mighty theme, and his mellifluous pucker also is featured on Esquivel's Latin-esque album. Hollywood and advertising agencies routinely called on Marcellino's distinctive talent for whistling throughout the 1950s and into the 1960s. Even Disneyland got in on the act, using the famous whistler's birdcalls for its Tiki Room. Recorded whistles were not Marcellino's only connection to the music world. During the early '30s, he lent his talents to the Lofner-Harris Orchestra and played the Hotel St. Francis in San Francisco. He also worked with other ensembles, among them the Ted Fio Rito Orchestra in 1935. The gig with Fio Rito led to appearances in a few films, including Twenty Million Sweethearts and The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi. Toward the end of the decade, Marcellino led his own ensemble, accompanied by vocalist Gloria De Haven, who later moved on to a successful film career. He employed his talent for whistling only infrequently with his band. After a decade, Marcellino disbanded his group of musicians. He worked for a time on radio with Dick Powell before Art Linkletter hired him to lead an ensemble on House Party, Linkletter's television program. Marcellino held the position of Linkletter's musical director for almost two decades, leaving in 1969. Capitol issued a recording of Marcellino from his House Party years. He also co-wrote several numbers for the Mickey Mouse Club with Jimmy Dodd. ~ Linda Seida, Rovi