Thomas Wendt, Teddy, Charlie and the Integration of America's Bandstand, Jazz Appreciation Month Event

America's music, jazz, is a true "fusion" of different ethnic and cultural elements. In the mid 1930s, when Jazz was America's popular music, American society was still extremely segregated. But when clarinetist Benny Goodman hired pianist Teddy Wilson in the spring of 1936, and then hired vibraphonist Lionel Hampton and guitarist Charlie Christian shortly thereafter, America's music would never sound or look the same. We'll musically trace the integration and innovation that took place on America's bandstand in the mid/late 1930s.