Skinnay Ennis

Robert " Skinnay " Ennis, also Skinny Ennis (* August 13 1909 in Salisbury, North Carolina, June 3, 1963 † in Beverly Hills ) was an American jazz and pop bandleader, singer and drummer.

Ennis learned during his studies at the University of North Carolina ( Chapel Hill ), the jazz musician Hal Kemp know and played in the late 1920s in Kemp's orchestra as a drummer; he remained until 1938 in Kemp's band and worked at the tours to Europe. Then Ennis started his own as a singer; he took over the orchestra Gil Evans, with whom he successfully collaborated in Hollywood film productions. Evans remained until 1941 arranger and musical director of the orchestra; addition also Claude Thornhill worked as an arranger for the band. Ennis also worked for comedy productions in the 1940s and had a job at Bob Hope's radio program. During the Second World War, he played in various bands and returned after the war returned to Hollywood to continue to work as a bandleader. In the late 1950s the course of his career was less successful; he began to play in hotels in the Los Angeles area. Caused by a choking during a meal at a restaurant in Beverly Hills he died in 1963.