Louis Armstrong

      More Letters From Paradise
         Louis Armstrong

Unless you are a big jazz buff, or listen to National Public Radio, you may not know the following story. I heard Garrison Keillor tell the story this morning. It is so good that I want to pass it along to you.

 Today is President Obama's birthday. Born here in Honolulu, in spite of what Donald Trump says. He shares this date with the late great Louis Armstrong.

Louis was born a poor kid in New Orleans. He used to sing for pennies, and he kept them in his mouth so that the big kids couldn't get them. He came to be called "Satchel Mouth." Later it became simply "Satchmo." He worked for a Jewish couple who were coal dealers. They bought him a tin trumpet. Because they had been so kind to him, he wore a star of David around his neck for the rest of his life.

      Aloha
      Grant
p.s. Read about the discovery of a diary on my  blog. morelettersfromparadise.blogspot.com