Richard Himber (1900-1966) was an American bandleader, composer, violinist, magician and practical joker. He was born as Herbert Richard Imber in Newark, NJ, to the owner of a chain of meat stores. His parents gave him violin lessons, but when they found him performing in a seedy Newark dive, they took the instrument away from him and sent him to military school. In 1915, he stole away into New York City, where Sophie Tucker heard him play and hired him as a novelty act to play with her and the Five Kings of Syncopation where Himber was the highlight of the cabaret act. He worked his way through Vaudeville and down Tin Pan Alley. He managed Rudy Vallee's orchestra service, which sent out bands for private parties and society functions. A suave salesman and irrepressible idea man, he soon had his own band booking agency. In 1932, he acquired the first known "vanity" telephone number, R-HIMBER, answered 24 hours a day. Later that year, Himber finally formed an orchestra of his own, parlaying a gig at New York's Essex House Hotel into national NBC radio exposure. Among the top-notch professionals in its ranks were Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Artie Shaw and many other future stars of the music world. n 1933 Richard Himber made his first records, for Vocalion. Among the selections was his own theme song, "It Isn't Fair," which became a hit. In 1934 after a single session for Victor's budget label Bluebird, he began recording for the full-priced Victor label until 1939. He led one of the most sophisticated "sweet" dance bands of the era, featuring Joey Nash as his vocalist (1933–1935), who was replaced by Stuart Allen (1935–1939). Himber was also a skilled magician, and invented many magic tricks including "The Himber Wallet," "The Himber Ring," and the "Himber Milk Pitcher." In later years, his band act often included an interlude of magic and he conjured on many television shows as well. Himber was the publisher of the R-H Log, a weekly survey of the most popular tunes on radio and television. To the annoyance of most music publishers, he refused to accept payola. He once ordered his secretary to phone every major publisher and tell them he had a stroke, to which many of them joyfully replied, "It's about time." Other popular tunes that Himber composed were "Moments in the Moonlight," "After the Rain," "Monday In Manhattan," "Haunting Memories," "Time Will Tell," "Am I Asking Too Much," and "I'm Getting Nowhere Fast With You." In 1957 he wrote a TV theme for NBC's Tonight! America After Dark when Jack Lescoulie was the interim host—before Jack Paar took over. In the late 1930s Himber's band was featured in short-subject films produced in New York by Paramount Pictures and Himber was also the maestro for New York's annual Harvest Moon Ball. This lovely record was made in 1933, featuring a vocal by Joey Nash.
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