Pete Candoli (born Walter Joseph Candoli; June 28, 1923 – January 11, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He played with the big bands of Woody Herman and Stan Kenton and worked in the studios of the recording and television industries.

Career

A native of Mishawaka, Indiana, Pete Candoli was the older brother of Conte Candoli. During the 1940s he was a member of big bands led by Sonny Dunham, Will Bradley, Ray McKinley, Tommy Dorsey, Teddy Powell, Woody Herman, Boyd Raeburn, Tex Beneke, and Jerry Gray. For his ability to hit high notes on the trumpet he was given the nickname "Superman". While he was a member of Woody Herman's First Herd, he sometimes wore a Superman costume during his solo. In the 1950s he belonged to the bands of Stan Kenton and Les Brown and in Los Angeles began to work as a studio musician. His studio work included recording soundtracks for the movies Bell, Book and Candle (in which the Brothers Candoli performed in scenes set in the movie's Zodiac nightclub), Private Hell 36, Day the World Ended (1955) ('The S.F. Blues'), Peter Gunn (on 38 episodes, acting once), Save the Tiger, The Man with the Golden Arm, and The Prisoner of Second Avenue; appearing with The Tonight Show Band ; and acting in The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, (1957); Kings Go Forth, (1958); Touch of Evil, (1958); 'Pete', in three episodes of Johnny Staccato, (1958–59); Porgy and Bess, (1959); as trumpet player 'Johnny', in 'The Hand', an episode of Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond, (series 2, episode 15), 1959, (broadcast US, 15th Dec); as the 'Spokesman', in one episode of The Untouchables (1959 TV series), (1959-1963); Monsanto Night Presents Michel Legrand, a 1972 TV special, in which he played 'Mos Santos'; a bartender and trumpet player in the short film, 'Tarzana', (1978), (starring his then wife, Edie Adams); and as 'Sam Johnson', in one episode of Hotel (American TV series), (1983), among others. Pete Candoli and his brother Conte formed a band that performed in the late 1950s and early 1960s and intermittently from the 1970s to the 1990s. In the early 1970s he performed in nightclubs with his second wife, singer Edie Adams. Heart surgery delayed his career at the end of the 1970s, but he returned to performing at musical festivals and with Lionel Hampton. He reunited with the Woody Herman band for its fifty-and sixtieth anniversary concerts. Candoli was featured in the cartoon series The Ant and the Aardvark, which used a jazz score for its theme and musical cues. Candoli died of complications from prostate cancer on January 11, 2008, at the age of 84. Conte Candoli died of cancer as well in 2001.

Awards and honors

Discography

As leader

With Conte Candoli

As sideman

With Glen Gray With Woody Herman With Stan Kenton With Peggy Lee With Henry Mancini With Skip Martin With Mark Murphy With Ted Nash With Shorty Rogers With Pete Rugolo With others