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H. O. Brunn
Harry O. Brunn (January 16, 1919 - January 7, 2008) was a man of many talents. The grandson of a noted 19th century Buffalo carriage builder, he was an actor, musician, lecturer, radio host and art...view moreHarry O. Brunn (January 16, 1919 - January 7, 2008) was a man of many talents. The grandson of a noted 19th century Buffalo carriage builder, he was an actor, musician, lecturer, radio host and artist, but his greatest claim to fame was as a writer. His 1960 book, The Story of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band, the first history of the pioneering New Orleans band that made the first jazz phonograph record, was a landmark in jazz literature.
Brunn attended Amherst High School in Buffalo, New York, a school well-known for the high quality of their music program. After graduating in 1938, he worked at a quality control lab writing reports, then was drafted into the Army Signal Corps in 1942. He was an instructor at Fort Monmouth, N.J., then was assigned to Normandy and the European campaign. He attained the rank of staff sergeant and was awarded four battle stars.
Returning from service, he graduated from Albright Art School in 1949, then began a 27-year career as a writer for technical publications, public relations and advertising. After working in advertising with Boris Associates and the Lloyd Mansfield Agency, he became project director of publications at Bell Aircraft from 1951-1958. He then joined Boeing and became presentation manager for the Minuteman Missile Project in Seattle.
He toured with an English Dixieland band, The Original Downtown Syncopators, first in England, then in America. A trombonist, he led his own Dixieland band in Buffalo in the 1950s. Later he played with the New Charleston Chasers. He also hosted a radio jazz series on WBEN.
In 1963, he returned to Buffalo as manager of tech publications for Sierra Research and oversaw advertising and public relations from 1963 until he retired in 1976 and became a consultant. He later worked on projects for the Amherst Museum and Western New York Heritage magazine.
Brunn died in Buffalo, New York in 2008, aged 88.view less