Charles "Bud" Dant

Charles "Bud" Dant (b. Washington, Indiana, June 21, 1907 - d. Kailuha-Kona, Hawaii, October 31, 1999) -- Trumpet/cornet player, arranger, band leader, and composer. A graduate of the of Indiana University's School of Music, Dant was friends with Hoagy Carmichael and was the first to transcribe the melody of "Stardust," which the composer whistled for him at the Book Nook restaurant. While in Bloomington, Dant led his own dance band and played with Carmichael's Collegians. After graduating from IU, he moved to the East coast and played in his big bands and led his own. In 1938, he moved to Beverly Hills to work for NBC as an arranger and conductor, and he eventually became its director of music. While at NBC, he also composed music for radio and television. Later in his career, he wrote film scores, and he became a producer at Decca Records, where he worked on albums with clarinetist Pete Fountain, Ricky Nelson, vocalist Teresa Brewer, and keyboardist Earl Grant. In the last phase of his career, he produced albums and hosted a radio show in Hawaii. In fact, he produced "Wipe Out" by the Surfaris.