Biography
Arthur Lund (April 1, 1915 - May 31, 1990) was an American baritone singer, television and stage actor. He performed with bandleaders Benny Goodman and Harry James before beginning a solo recording career in the 1940s. He later appeared in several Broadway productions and films.
Lund was born in Salt Lake City, Utah. He graduated from Eastern Kentucky University and received a master's degree in aerological engineering from the United States Naval Academy. He initially worked as a high school mathematics teacher in Kentucky while performing music part-time. He eventually left teaching to tour with Jimmy Ray and his band, initially performing under the name Art London.
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Lund began his professional singing career with a band led by clarinetist Jimmy Joy. He later performed and recorded with Benny Goodman, appearing on recordings including "Blue Skies", "On the Alamo", "Winter Weather" and "If You Build a Better Mousetrap". The latter two songs featured Peggy Lee in duets with Lund. He also sang and recorded with trumpeter and bandleader Harry James.
In 1946, Lund began pursuing a solo career. His 1947 recording of "Mam'selle" reached number one on a US Billboard chart and earned a gold disc. Other songs associated with his recording career included "On a Slow Boat to China", "What'll I Do", "You Call Everybody Darlin'", "Peg o' My Heart", "Blue Skies", "My Blue Heaven" and "Mona Lisa".
Lund appeared in several Broadway productions, including "The Most Happy Fella" (1956), "Destry Rides Again" (1959), "Donnybrook!" (1961), "Fiorello!" (1962) and "Sophie" (1963). In "Destry Rides Again", he replaced Scott Brady in the role of the villain. He was also associated with productions that closed before their planned Broadway openings, including "We Take the Town" (1962), in which he served as Robert Preston's standby, and "Breakfast at Tiffany's" (1966).
His film appearances included "The Molly Maguires" (1970), "Black Caesar" (1973), "The Last American Hero" (1973), "Bucktown" (1975), "Baby Blue Marine" (1976), "The Private Files of J. Edgar Hoover" (1977) and "It's Alive III: Island of the Alive" (1987).
On television, Lund appeared as Heber, a gambler, in the episode "False Front" of the Western series "Gunsmoke" in 1962. He also recorded the theme song for the television series "Branded", which premiered in 1965 and starred Chuck Connors.
Lund was married to Kathleen Virginia Bolanz-Lund from 1940 until her death in 1969. On October 16, 1969, she was killed in a car accident near Sacramento Metropolitan Airport in California. She was a passenger in a car driven by Rosemarie Bowe, a former model and actress who was married to actor Robert Stack. The vehicle veered into a culvert. Lund later married Janet Burris Chytraus during the final year of his life.
Lund died on May 31, 1990, at the age of 75. He was survived by his wife, Janet, his daughter Kathleen Ann Olson, his son Arthur Earl Lund III, his sister Ruth Glover, and three grandchildren. He was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Lund has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6126 Hollywood Boulevard.
Biography text from Last.fm, available under CC BY-SA.