American Gallery - (Audition) - Louis Armstrong

Summary

---

Podcast Summary

Podcast: Harold's Old Time Radio
Episode: American Gallery - (Audition) - Louis Armstrong
Date: March 23, 2026
Host: Harold’s Old Time Radio
Special Narrator: Bing Crosby

---

Overview

This episode of "American Gallery" is a lovingly crafted radio tribute to the legendary jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong (Satchmo). Through dramatic vignettes, narration by Bing Crosby, and voice acting, the show traces Armstrong’s rise from humble beginnings in New Orleans to international stardom. The episode celebrates Armstrong’s artistry, historical impact, and his role as a cultural ambassador, highlighting both his musical milestones and personal anecdotes.

---

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Early Life and Beginnings

[02:01-04:29]

• Born on July 4, 1900, New Orleans: Emphasized as almost serendipitous, given Armstrong's later role as an American ambassador for jazz.
• Colored Waif's Home for Kids: Armstrong’s musical roots began here, first playing tambourine, later cornet after the band’s bugler was sent home.
  • Quote (Bing Crosby): “Shootin’ off firecrackers on New Year’s Eve. Well, so much for Louie’s criminal background…” (02:40)
• First paid gig at age 14: Paid 15 cents, marking the start of his professional journey.

---

The Joe Oliver Years

[04:29-09:17]

• Mentoring by Joe “King” Oliver: Armstrong idolized Oliver and became his protégé after a chance late-night encounter.
  • Quote (Joe Oliver): “When you play, you feel it, boy. I can tell. Same thing happens when you sing.” (06:10)
  • Armstrong replaces Oliver in Kid Ory’s band and receives Oliver’s own cornet as a gift.
  • Quote (Joe Oliver): "Play the lead, son. Remember that? Play the lead melody. That’s what counts." (06:24)
• Transition Opportunities: Armstrong’s humility and reverence for Oliver, famously declining he could fill Oliver’s shoes.
  • Quote (Young Louis Armstrong): "Me taking Joe Oliver's place with Kid Ory. Oh, that's crazy talk, Papa Joe." (08:08)

---

The Riverboat and Learning to Read Music

[09:39-13:21]

• Joined Fate Marable’s riverboat band: Learning the discipline of reading music with “paper men” musicians.
  • Quote (Young Louis Armstrong): "I always thought bars was for leaning on and well, enjoy. Juice." (10:25)
• Armstrong’s humorous skepticism about sheet music, insisting he would learn.

---

Chicago, Fletcher Henderson, and the First Recordings

[13:21-17:13]

• Chicago and Joe Oliver’s Invitation: Armstrong joins Oliver at Lincoln Gardens for $30 a week, a huge leap in his career.
• Switch to Trumpet with Fletcher Henderson’s Band: An important stylistic and professional milestone.
• Columbia Records and the ‘Hot Five’: Armstrong is convinced to record, opening his sound to a global audience.
  • Quote (Tommy Rockwell): “All people have to do to hear Louis Armstrong is wind up their Victrola. There's radio, too." (15:35)
  • Quote (Louis Armstrong): "Me making records? I never thought about it." (15:31)

---

The Power of Scat and “Heebie Jeebies”

[17:13-18:41]

• Introduction of Scat Singing: The recording of “Heebie Jeebies” and the humorous, improvisational quality Armstrong brought to music.
  • Quote (Louis Armstrong): “Are we doing skedat de dot again?” (16:48)
  • Performance of "Heebie Jeebies" dramatized with joyful exuberance.

---

The Birth of “Satchmo” and International Fame

[19:16-24:11]

• Armstrong’s nickname evolution from “Dipper Mouth” to “Satchmo” in 1929.
• The beginning of international recognition:
  • Copenhagen, 1933: Met by 10,000 fans (20:26).
  • Royalty receptions: Greeted by European kings and broke box office records previously held by composers like Sibelius.

---

Cultural Ambassador & The African Homecoming

[21:45-23:36]

• 1956 State Department Tour: Armstrong as "America’s secret weapon" and “our most effective ambassador”.
• Armstrong's emotional return to Africa, touching on his ancestral roots and the enthusiastic reception:
  • Quote (Louis Armstrong): “I got me some blood ties down there. Oh, I won’t know them and they won’t know me. But my ancestors all come from here.” (22:39)
  • Quote (J): “There are about 10,000 people waiting to welcome you… 70 tribal chiefs and their drummers.” (23:00)

---

Lasting Legacy and “Hello, Dolly!”

[24:11-28:26]

• Armstrong’s fifth decade of recording culminates in the massive hit “Hello, Dolly!” in 1964, breaking new ground for any single musician.
  • Performance: “Hello, Dolly, this is Louis. Darling, it’s so nice to have you back where you belong…” (26:44)
• Armstrong’s immense wealth and popularity are highlighted, with the narrator stressing Americans are “richer” because of his music.

---

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Armstrong’s Unique Sound:

  • Bing Crosby (Narrator): “How do you rack up that kind of success? Well, there’s only one answer available. You have the soul and the sound of Louis Armstrong.” (01:29)

• On Mentorship:

  • Joe Oliver to Louis Armstrong: “What you got inside, Lewis, no man’s got the key to that… You just pour your heart out when you sing or play and that’s what it takes.” (07:31)

• On International Recognition:

  • Narrator: “Opera was the big draw in Europe. But Louis played to bigger houses than…Bizet, Rossini or Wagner ever rode. In Finland, he broke the box office records held by that country’s own Sibelius.” (20:26)

• On His Return to Africa:

  • Louis Armstrong: “I got me some blood ties down there…I figure I still got family here. Hey, would you look at that?” (22:39)

• On Armstrong’s Iconic Status:

  • Narrator: “That magic horn of his blew out from Hong Kong to Moscow, from Oslo to Rome. You might even say that Louis’ talent is our most beloved export.” (24:11)

• On “Hello, Dolly!” and Legacy:

  • Narrator: “After 40 years of hits, Louis surpassed even himself. By midsummer, his new record passed the million sales mark…” (25:50)

---

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [00:39] – Introduction to the subject: “An American Gallery... Bing Crosby tells the story in this special tribute to Satchmo.”
• [02:01] – Armstrong’s early life, New Orleans, and entry to music.
• [04:29-09:17] – Meeting Joe Oliver, mentorship, and stepping into the professional spotlight.
• [09:39-13:21] – Life on the riverboat and learning to read music.
• [13:30] – Chicago: Armstrong’s breakthrough with Joe Oliver.
• [15:05-17:13] – Armstrong’s first recordings and band formation.
• [17:46] – "Heebie Jeebies" scat performance.
• [20:26-21:45] – Armstrong’s European tours and status as a global phenomenon.
• [21:45-23:36] – State Department Tours and Armstrong’s emotional homecoming to Africa.
• [26:44-28:26] – “Hello, Dolly!” era and reflection on Armstrong’s cultural impact.

---

Tone & Style

The episode is warm, affectionate, and nostalgic, mixing humor with reverence. Bing Crosby’s narration is both colloquial and poetic, bringing jazz history alive with a sense of personal connection and admiration for Armstrong’s artistry and humanity.

---

Conclusion

“American Gallery – Louis Armstrong” is more than a biographical sketch; it’s a dynamic radio play celebrating one of jazz’s greatest icons. Through lively performances and insightful narration, the episode underscores Armstrong’s role as a trailblazer in music and his lasting influence as an ambassador for American culture across the world.

Transcript

[Bleacher Report Announcer]

The Bleacher Report app is your destination for sports right now. The NBA is heating up. March Madness is here, and MLB is almost back. Every day there's a new headline, a new highlight, a new moment you've got to see for yourself. That's why I stay locked in with the Bleacher Report app. For me, it's about staying connected to my sports. I can follow the teams I care about, get real time, scores, breaking news and highlights all in one place. Download the Bleacher Report app today so you never miss a moment.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

An American Gallery. And here is Bing crosby.

[Narrator/Commentator]

You know, 60 years ago in New Orleans, they called him Little Louie. Then one day somebody looked at that grin, it was as wide as the Mississippi, and they hung on the handle. Dipper mouth. In 1929, where was I? Oh, I was with the Rhythm boys, one of those kids. Around about that time, someone took a closer look at the gentleman in question, and they decided that the label Satchel Mouth was a bit more descriptive. Well, in no time at all, that became Satchmo, and the legend was on its way. Yeah, Louis Armstrong was a jazz giant even then. As a matter of fact, he was cutting records when I had a full head of hair and hope was hustling dimes in a Cleveland pool hall. Satchmo is now in the. Let's see, he's in his fifth decade of recording now. How do you rack up that kind of success? Well, there's only one answer available. You have the soul and the sound of Louis Armstrong.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

Louis Armstrong, jazz trumpeter, saluted this week on An American Gallery. Bing Crosby tells the story in this special tribute to a great American, Satchmo.

[Narrator/Commentator]

Louie. You want to talk about Louie? Well, I hope you're not in a rush, because there's an awful lot to say. Now, you take his birthday, for instance. Well, I mean, for a man who's become kind of an American ambassador, blowing his horn and spreading happiness all over the world, getting born on the 4th of July is almost too much, isn't it? But that's the date. And the year was 1900, and the place was New Orleans. Now, you gotta remember, something else was born in New Orleans jazz. And Louis was with it right from the start. And for him, the start was. Well, you're not going to believe this, but it's true. He started in playing the tambourine in the band at the Colored Waif's Home for Kids. Imagine him banging on that tambourine. Kids who did things like shooting off firecrackers on New Year's Eve. Well, so much for Louie's criminal background. But one day, the bugler in that band was sent home. Louie stepped in and took his place. He switched over to the cornet. Well, a couple months later, the way Louis tells it, that band got to play at socials, picnics, funerals and parades. After about 18 months in the home, Louis was discharged. Fourteen years old, he was picking up jobs as a musician. And that's how it began, this sound. The sound that is known today in just about every country on earth. You just listen a minute and you'll see why,

[Sam Laws (Adult Louis Armstrong)]

Sam.

[Narrator/Commentator]

Oh, yeah. Louie's come a long, long way since that first job at age 14. Incidentally, you know how much he made that night? 15 cents. Of course, that was before withholding taxes. And when Louie wasn't playing, he was a listening. He was listening to the great Joe Oliver. Joe was his idol on the cornet. And he was a star of Kid Ory's jazz band.

[Joe Oliver]

All right, I see you over there, boy. Come here. You wet right down to your skin.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

I. I don't take no notice, Mr. Oliver, sir.

[Joe Oliver]

You know who I am then?

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Ain't nobody in New Orleans don't know Joe Oliver. That's like saying they never heard a kid.

[Joe Oliver]

Oren, your tongue is as sweet as the sound you make on your horn.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

You.

[Sam Laws (Adult Louis Armstrong)]

You heard me play my horn, Mr. Oliver.

[Joe Oliver]

More than once. Parading down the street. Yeah, I heard you. What's your name, boy?

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Louis, sir. Lewis Armstrong.

[Joe Oliver]

How old are you?

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Almost 16.

[Joe Oliver]

You know, it's 2 o' clock in the morning.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

I don't get no other chance to. Here you play, Mr. Oliver.

[Joe Oliver]

Which way you heading?

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Whatever way you're heading, sir. I mean, I don't get no chance to talk to a cat like you just any old day.

[Joe Oliver]

Let's go then. Heard you sing once, too. You're no Caruso or nothing like that, Lewis. But the way you feel, what you sing, that's what counts.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

I don't know nothing about singing. I just sing like I play.

[Joe Oliver]

Lois. Ain't nobody ever done that before. When you play, you feel it, boy. I can tell. Same thing happens when you sing.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

I've been trying to get as good at playing as you are, Mr. Oliver. I know I got a long way to go.

[Joe Oliver]

Play the lead, son. Remember that? Play the lead melody. That's what counts.

[Narrator/Commentator]

They became friends. Real close they were. And within a week, Louie was Joe Oliver's. Well, I guess you'd call him his protege. Oliver would work with Louie every chance he had. And by the time Louie was 17, he had his own band and he was playing every night in a tough dive called My Triangles. Jazz was on the move now. It was really jumping. Moving up to Chicago in 1918, Joe Oliver decided to make the scene up north. And he accepted one of the jobs offered him. And I guess that was a big day for both Joe Oliver and Louis Armstrong.

[Joe Oliver]

Lewis, you come a long way since that rainy night we walked home together.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

I couldn't have done it without you, Papa Joe.

[Joe Oliver]

You're wrong, son. I just happened to be be around. What you got inside, Lewis, no man's got the key to that and he don't need it because the good Lord didn't lock it up. You just pour your heart out when you sing a play and that's what it takes.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

No, Orleans ain't gonna be the same without you, Papa Joe.

[Joe Oliver]

I think it'll get along, Lewis.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Maybe it will. But what about Kid Ori? Losing you is gonna be a mighty big blow to him. I just can't see how he's gonna get off without you.

[Joe Oliver]

He won't have no trouble with you sitting in my spot.

[Sam Laws (Adult Louis Armstrong)]

Me?

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Me with all those cats?

[Joe Oliver]

And I mean sitting in permanent life.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Me taking Joe Oliver's place with Kid Ory. Oh, that's crazy talk, Papa Joe.

[Joe Oliver]

Orry didn't think so. It's all set, Papa Joe.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

I can't fill your shoes.

[Joe Oliver]

Maybe not, but you can blow my horn. Here. A little going away present from me to you. Well, go on, son, take it.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

That's your coronet.

[Joe Oliver]

Not no more it ain't. It's yours. I'm picking up a new one in Chicago. But will you close that big mouth of yours and take it?

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Papa Joe, why are you doing this for me?

[Joe Oliver]

You're a good kid, Lewis. I ain't never had none of my own. You hear what the man said? Now keep that lip loose and wash behind the ears. Boy, you got a steady job. Now. You blow your heart out, Louis.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Papa Joe, I can't take your place. Nobody can.

[Joe Oliver]

The pupil. Tell him to teach you. Son, you as good right now as I ever will be. You hear me?

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Yes.

[Sam Laws (Adult Louis Armstrong)]

Bye, Papa Joe.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Thank you.

[Joe Oliver]

Remember now, you blow your heart out, boy. Blow your heart out.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

And play the leaves, the melody.

[Sam Laws (Adult Louis Armstrong)]

That's what codes. Don't forget that.

[Narrator/Commentator]

Kid Ory's band was the most popular in New Orleans. I guess nobody will dispute that. Nobody. But there was a world outside New Orleans. A world that Joe Oliver had discovered and one that Louis yearned to see for himself. He got his chance when Fate Marable, a red headed bandleader on the riverboat Sydney, offered Louis a job on his Mississippi excursion boat. But Marable's musicians were all paper men. These cats could read music.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

See, now that one's an F. And that solid black one you play faster than the one with the hole in it. My, my, all these little lines and curlicues and dots. All right, now this thingamajig means I sharp the note. And this one means I flatted. And this means the end of a bar. I always thought bars was for leaning on and well, enjoy. Juice.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

Lewis. How's it coming?

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Mr. Marvel, I only got through the fifth grade. In school I learned my reading, writing, rithmetic. And I also learned that Rome wasn't built.

[Joe Oliver]

No.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

One day I'll make you a little bet that while Rome was burning up and old Nero was fiddling away, he wasn't doing it from no groggy gooks on a piece of paper. Mr. Marvel, I feel like I'm burning. Building the Coliseum all by myself and all I got is one dull chisel.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

Lewis, you make a good case for yourself.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

But I said I'd learn and I will.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

Well, it's just that we've got these arrangements, Lewis. We want you sitting in full time.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Yes, sir. I want that too.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

I'm not denying that when we start jamming after the last set and you get in your licks that the crowd doesn't scream for more of that horn of yours.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

They've been mighty nice to me.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

Nice, Lewis and Memphis, St. Louis, Davenport. Everywhere we stop, people are asking if this is the riverboat with that great horn and the voice that sounds like the mating call of a piece of sandpaper.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Oh, go now. Is that what they say?

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

Come on. We'll work on making you a paper man in the morning. The boys are waiting. They want to jam a little for redhead.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

You shall speak my language now.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

All you have to do do is

[Narrator/Commentator]

learn to read mine.

[Sam Laws (Adult Louis Armstrong)]

Hey, look, it's Lo. Hey, where's Louis? Come on, come on.

[Narrator/Commentator]

Give us some of that horn.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Come on, will you?

[Narrator/Commentator]

You heard them, Louie.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

Let's ride a while with some gut bucking.

[Louis Armstrong]

Yeah.

[Narrator/Commentator]

Louie and his horn made every crowd scream for more. He stayed on that steamer until 1922. One day a telegram arrived for him.

[Young Louis Armstrong]

Will you join me at Lincoln Gardens in Chicago? Salary $30 a week. Signed, Joe Oliver. Will I join you, Papa Joe? Will I ever.

[Narrator/Commentator]

Louie told me once that this was like being in a dream. Only it was real. A whole new Phase of his life began in Chicago. And for that matter, it was a whole new chapter in the history of jazz. Together, Oliver and Louis would ride out and ride out until the audiences went wild. For two years, they rocked Chicago. In 1924, Louie joined the great Fletcher Henderson Band. And if you remember your jazz history, you know that that was the best big band of the era. It was Henderson who suggested that Louis switch from cornet to the trumpet. And with that move, Louie conquered the East. But now something else was happening in the world of jazz. Oh, sure, Louis was known the length and breadth of the Mississippi, and he packed them in in New York and Chicago. But millions of other jazz fans had yet to hear Louie play. Well, that little dilemma was solved one day on a train ride from New York back to Chicago.

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

Mr. Armstrong?

[Louis Armstrong]

That's right, friend. Sit down. Sit down here. I'll clear up this mess of manuscripts I'm working at, learning how to read music. But sometimes I get to thinking it's like teaching Mr. Coolidge how to be president after he's been in the White House for three years.

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

My name's Rockwell, Mr. Armstrong.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

Tommy Rockwell.

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

I work for Columbia Records.

[Louis Armstrong]

Now, ain't that a coincidence. I play your records. Cause some of them got off a long hair. But you got some good screwball sounds in them grooves.

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

But we haven't got the best.

[Louis Armstrong]

You said it, not me.

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

Well, how'd you like to record for us?

[Louis Armstrong]

Me? Oh, I make a lot of noise, Mr. Rockwell. You think your wax can handle it?

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

I think it's worth a try.

[Louis Armstrong]

Ain't that something? Me making records? I never thought about it.

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

Well, you know, Mr. Armstrong, this is 1925, playing theaters and ballrooms. There's nothing wrong with that. But when you cut a record, all people have to do to hear Louis Armstrong is wind up their Victrola. There's radio, too. Some of the stations play records. In one day, you could be heard in every city and town in the country.

[Louis Armstrong]

I don't know, Mr. Rockwell. The country's in mighty good shape. You think it's worth the risk?

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

Mr. Armstrong, your name's already up in lines. I want it on a round label. I was thinking of a small group. We'd call it Louis Armstrong and his hot five.

[Louis Armstrong]

Mr. Rockwell, if the good old USA can survive a world war and the Charleston, I guess they can take Louis Armstrong and his hot pie. There.

[Narrator/Commentator]

There was a little meeting that made history. That little colloquy. Louie was the biggest draw in Chicago that year. His name was up in lights. Big Sign Louis Armstrong, world's greatest trumpet player. And Tommy Rockwell got his recording session with Louis. No bright lights on that label, but it was seen for thousands of miles. I wasn't there at that first one, but I can imagine how it went with Louis Armstrong and his hot five.

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

Okay, Louis, we're ready in here.

[Louis Armstrong]

Are we doing skedat de dot again?

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

No, that was great. Let's cut that scat singing number heebie jeebies. And remember, don't move once you set

[Louis Armstrong]

in front of that mic, I won't even blink.

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

Okay, let's go for a take.

[Louis Armstrong]

A take? If I knew you needed one, I would have brought a take alone.

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

That's just an expression, Louis. It means let's try recording.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

Oh, here we go.

[Tommy Rockwell (Columbia Records)]

When I point to you,

[Sam Laws (Adult Louis Armstrong)]

I mean, he's talking up about that. There's a heapy jeepy shoe see Casing with a little bit joy say don't you know it? You don't know I don't feel blue Someone will teach you Come on and do that dance they call the heap of jeep instead yes, ma', am, mama's got the heap of jeep instead.

[Narrator/Commentator]

It.

[Sam Laws (Adult Louis Armstrong)]

Eating. What you doing with the E? I just had to have the E.

[Narrator/Commentator]

Nobody remembers, not even Louie, just who hung on the handle of Satchmol, which was short for satchel mouth, but it happened sometime in 1929.

[Howie Mandel]

The global gaming league is presented by Atlas Earth, the fun cashback app. Hey, it's Howie Mandel and I am inviting you to witness history as me and my Howie do it gaming team take on Gilly the King and wallow two secrets million dollars gaming in an epic global gaming league video game showdown. Plus a halftime performance by multi platinum artist Travy McCoy. Watch all the action and see who wins and advances to the championship match right [e-mail] that's globalgamingleague.com in partnership with Level Up Expo.

[Bleacher Report Announcer]

The Bleacher Report app is your destination for sports right now. The NBA is heating up. March Madness is here and MLB is almost back. Every day there's a new headline, a new highlight, a new moment you've got to see for yourself. That's why I stay locked in with the Bleacher Report app. For me, it's about staying connected to my sports. I can follow the teams I care about. Get real time. Scores, breaking news and highlights all in one place. Download the Bleacher Report app today so you never miss a moment.

[Narrator/Commentator]

It stuck all these years. Those early records of his had great Sales overseas. Terrific. And Louis made his first European tour in 1932. It was such a smash that he had to do it again in 33. All right, all right. That word smash gets overworked a bit in show. Businessman, maybe. You might think that I could be padding the facts a bit. Well, think on this first spell, will you? On the second tour, 10,000 people met him at the station in Copenhagen, Denmark. How about that? And on later tours, he was greeted by the Prince of Wales, the King of the Belgians and the King of Italy. At that time, of course, opera was the big draw in Europe. But Louis played to bigger houses than anything that Bizet, Rossini or Wagner ever rode. Why, in Finland, he even broke the box office records held by that country's own Sebelius. And once, once when he played for the King of England at the London Palladium, he announced a number like this.

[Louis Armstrong]

This one's for you.

[Narrator/Commentator]

24 years later, he played for Princess Margaret. Louis had some words for her, too.

[Louis Armstrong]

We got one of our special fans in the house, and we really gonna lay this one on the princess.

[Narrator/Commentator]

They started calling him things like America's secret weapon, a blue note and a minor key. Our most effective ambassador. In 1956, our own state Department realized they had something special, something real important in Ambassador Satch. So they sponsored a special tour that began in England and finally saw Louis approaching Ghana on Africa's Gold coast.

[J]

Mr. Armstrong?

[Louis Armstrong]

H. Oh, yes? Do us.

[J]

I didn't wait. You did. I?

[Louis Armstrong]

Oh, no, pretty lady. I was dreaming, maybe, but I wasn't sleeping.

[J]

You wanted me to tell you when you could see Africa. Well, it's just come into view.

[Narrator/Commentator]

What?

[Louis Armstrong]

My, my. So that's it.

[J]

We'll be touching down in just a few minutes. I think you can make out the airport from here.

[Louis Armstrong]

Yeah, yeah, I see it. You know, miss, I got me some blood ties down there. Oh, I won't know them and they won't know me. But my ancestors all come from here. And I figure I still got family here. Hey, would you look at that?

[J]

Now, the crowd at the airport, you

[Louis Armstrong]

think maybe something's wrong?

[J]

They just radioed the pilot. There are about 10,000 people waiting to welcome you there. About 20 native bands. And at the Gold coast university, there are 70 tribal chiefs in their drummers. They're going to give you a recital. A talking drum recital.

[Louis Armstrong]

Now, ain't that just too much? A drum recital, huh? Oh, with them cats on the skins, I'm going to be hearing the real stuff.

[Narrator/Commentator]

And the Africans heard The real stuff too.

[Sam Laws (Adult Louis Armstrong)]

It. Yeah.

[Narrator/Commentator]

They heard jazz played by a giant of jazz. They heard the man who did more to influence jazz than any other. They heard American jazz. What's more American than baseball, hot dogs and jazz? On his tours and with his records, Louie brought the jazz beat to every corner of the globe. That magic horn of his blew out from Hong Kong to Moscow, from Oslo to Rome. You might even say that Louis talent is our most beloved exploit. I think you have to say that everywhere Louis goes, the reaction is something like this.

[Sam Laws (Adult Louis Armstrong)]

You did, huh? Thank you.

[Louis Armstrong]

Thank you. Thank you, folks.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

Senior Armstrong.

[Louis Armstrong]

Mr. Armstrong, please. Yes, sir. Friend, you want to damn a little too? I am of the cabinet, the police, Mr. Armstrong. There are 25000 people out there very excited.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

Multo agitato. You think something la demented slow, slow.

[Louis Armstrong]

Maybe they become count.

[Joe Oliver]

See.

[Louis Armstrong]

Okay, daddy. I'll give them a little snow beat, all right. Hey, fell, how about some of that harmy music?

[Narrator/Commentator]

Well, these big tours continued, and Louis kept on making friends for himself in America to this very day. Back home in 1964, something happened that never happened before. Louis Armstrong had started his fifth decade of making records. Something no one musician, anywhere, anytime, any place had ever occurred accomplish. And after 40 years of hits, Louis surpassed even himself. By midsummer, his new record passed the million sales mark. His horn, his grin, his handkerchief, his vocal styling all made the scene. And they gave Satchmo his biggest hit ever. Half a century after little Louis left the colored waif's home in New Orleans, he recorded this tune.

[Sam Laws (Adult Louis Armstrong)]

Hello, Dolly, this is Louis. Darling, it's so nice to have you back where you belong. You look and swell, darling, I can't tell. Darling, you still blowing, you still growing, you still going strong. I feel the room sway while the band playing one of our old favorite songs from way back when. So take a rap b lap bell and go away again. Sam. Sway by the band playing one of our own favorite songs from way back when.

[Louis Armstrong]

So

[Sam Laws (Adult Louis Armstrong)]

golly J have a little faith in me, fellas. Never go away, you never go away Golly, again.

[Narrator/Commentator]

Oh, man, that Satch mo something else, isn't he? You know, Pops is a millionaire several times over. And it takes a lot of fans to do that. But in my book, we Americans are a lot richer because of him.

[Narrator (Bing Crosby)]

You have been listening to another portrait in an American gallery today. Satchmo, the story of a great jazz trumpeter, Louis Armstrong. Bing Crosby starred as the narrator, with d' Urville Martin as the youngster and Sam Laws as the adult Louis Armstrong featured in the cast were Roy Glenn's Sr. Adolph Caesar, Ben Cooper and Janet McLaughlin. Satchmo was written by Robert M. Young based on an article in Life Magazine. The program was produced and directed by William Lally. Sound by Gene Twombly. Art Ballinger speaking this is the United States Armed Forces Radio Service.

[Bleacher Report Announcer]

The Bleacher Report app is your destination for sports right now. The NBA is heating up, March Madness is here and MLB is almost back. Every day there's a new headline, a new highlight, a new moment you've got to see for yourself. That's why I stay locked in with the Bleacher Report app. For me, it's about staying connected to my sports. I can follow the teams I care about, get real time scores, breaking news and highlights all in one place. Download the Bleacher Report app today so you never miss a moment.

[Howie Mandel]

The Global Gaming League is presented by Atlas Earth, the fun cashback app. Hey, it's Howie Mandel and I am inviting you to witness history as me and my How We Do It Gaming team take on Gilly The King Wallow 267's million dollars gaming in an epic Global Gaming League video game showdown. Plus a halftime performance by multi platinum artist Travy McCoy. Watch all the action and see who wins and advances to the championship match right [e-mail] that's globalgamingleague.com in partnership with Level Up Expo.