John Gart

• Born 23 April 1893
• Died 1990, Flushing, New York

Born in France, he was a child prodigy as a pianist, and began working professionally as an accompanist in his teens. He moved to the U.S. in the 1930s and moved from working as an organist in a movie theater to conducting a full theatre orchestra at Loew's in New York. He ran his own dance band briefly, playing in hotels in New York and London, but folded it to move into work in radio. He served as musical director, arranger, and conductor for a variety of CBS radio shows, then switch to television in the late 1940s, working on game and variety shows (remember variety shows?). He was among the early artists signed to Kapp and became their house organist, competing with the others on this list. He also toured as a demonstrator for Conn electronic organs, which he played exclusively on his albums.