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Frank DeVol was born in Moundsville, West Virginia on September 20, 1911. He grew up in Canton, Ohio. His father had a "pit" orchestra at the local movie house and his mother had a sewing shop in Canton. His father was also an accountant. He graduated from McKinley High School in 1929. He attended Miami of Ohio University for six weeks. His parents wanted him to be a lawyer but he wanted a musical career. He was a member of the musicians' union from the age of 14 and worked for his father in the theatre orchestra. His instruments were violin, saxophone at first. After his stint in college he joined Emerson Gill's orchestra in Ohio and traveled the state. Later he joined Horace Heidt's band and not only was a musician but he became an arranger for the band. Later he traveled with Alvino Rey's band. This affiliation led to long time friendships with the King Family.
Finally, in 1943 he settled in California and started his own band appearing on KHJ radio and accompaniment to many radio shows, such as Jack Carson and Jack Smith. With the beginning of television he moved to working on "The Betty White Show" and "The Dinah Shore Show" among others. In the 1950's he broke into movie composing and composed the score for 50 films. In addition, he composed the music for a number of television shows, such as "Family Affair," "The Smith Family," "My Three Sons," and "The Brady Bunch." He was also a character actor and acted in both films and TV. After his first wife, Grayce, died in 1989, he married Helen O'Connell in 1991. Helen died two years later. Frank left two daughters and four grandchildren when he died October 27, 1999 in Lafayette, CA. 5 nominations |