Verne Langdon (September 15, 1941 - January 1, 2011) was born in Oakland, California to a musical family; his mother was staff First Cellist with NBC radio in San Francisco, his father played violin, and to complete the musical history, Verne's uncle was famed jazz cornetist, bandleader Ernest Loring "Red" Nichols (Red Nichols and The Five Pennies).
By age two Verne was climbing up on the piano bench and duplicating melodies; by age 12 he was studying classical piano with Thomas Ryan, then head of the Music Department at San Jose State University.
When it became obvious to Ryan that Verne's talent for improvising and creating his own melodies was holding the young artist back, Verne's parents were advised to put an end to formal lessons and give his gift free reign.
By fourteen, Verne Langdon was working for both of San Jose (California's) major music stores, demonstrating pianos and organs, where noted keyboard musician Korla Pandit heard Verne perform, and invited him to study music and theory. Verne studied with Pandit for several years, learning and perfecting the simultaneous Hammond organ/grand piano techniques originated by Pandit on radio, most notably the "Chandu the Magician" radio soap opera (1948 revival).
Verne soon thereafter embarked on a successful career in radio, first with a weekly live broadcast organ music show (1959), then as a co-host for the prototype of the Coca-Cola Hi-Fi Club (1959-1960), and finally with his own 4-hour AM and 4-hr PM radio show, 6 mornings and nights per week, on 50000 watt radio station KLOK-AM in the San Francisco Bay Area (1960-1962).
Since 1967 he has produced and/or performed on more than thirty albums distributed by The Orchard (New York), including albums for John Carradine, Jaye P. Morgan, Boris Karloff, Mae West, Korla Pandit, Beatrice Kay, Johann Sebastian Bork, and Jonathan Winters.
Langdon's performance instruments included the Steinway grand piano, Hammond B-3 Electronic Organ and theater pipe organ, harpsichord, calliope, and celesta. His musical compositions have been heard in circuses, arena presentations, parades, television and radio shows, major motion pictures, and The Smithsonian Institution.
Verne Langdon produced LP Vinyl and CD recordings including Key Of Sea, Forever, In Time, Candlelight, Remembering Korla Pandit, John Carradine Hollywood On Parade (single track), Jaye P. Morgan Lately!, Verne Langdon Out Of Love, Fairies In The Moonlight,Baby Sleep Sweet, April Stevens Carousel Dreams, Beatrice Kay Livin' In The Sunlight, Music For Magicians, An Evening With Boris Karloff And His Friends, John Carradine Poe With Pipes, Horrific Halloween Spooktacular, Doctor Druid's Haunted Seance, Music For Zombies, The Phantom Of The Organ, The Vampyre At The Harpsichord, Johann Sebastian Bork Fugue You!, Johann Sebastian Bork Get Lei'd!, Music For Dead Things, and Circus Clown Calliope! Vols. 1&2 and in June of 2006 Old Folks was released, a single track CD for which Verne Langdon wrote both the words and music, performed by Jonathan Winters. In 2006 he recorded the Carnival Of Souls Collection, a compilation of various versions of the song for which he wrote both the words and music and which he sings as the Title Song for writer/director Edgar Arce's (2008) film of the same name.
Verne Langdon has collaborated with Milt Larsen, Stan Freberg, Charlie Paakkari, Kelly Mann, Brian Friedman, and Jonathan Winters.
Langdon died, at the age of 69, on January 1, 2011.
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