From the Los Angeles Times:
Artie Shaw, who rose to fame as one of the Swing era’s finest band leaders and most innovative clarinetists before slamming the door on the music business with a Shakespearean flourish, died today. He was 94.
Unwilling to compromise and play just what the audience wanted (the same stuff), Shaw retired at age 44 in 1954. He never again played or recorded publicly.
Shaw was married eight times, including to Lana Turner and Ava Gardner, and he reportedly had affairs with Betty Grable and Lena Horne.
The title for this post stolen unabashedly from dangerousmeta!. Begin the Beguine was Shaw’s most famous hit recording.