Arne Fogel taking the stage with Keith Boyles and Dick Bortolussi
photo by Rachel Hirsch
“…I can’t think of anyone else around here who does what Fogel does…… There’s a dearth of male jazz vocalists in general, and none in this area who has mastered Fogel’s unique style of pop/swing. It’s accessible, danceable, romantic and fun….”
– Pamela Espeland, MinnPost
“…Get romantic with one of the smoothest jazz singers in the Twin Cities…”
– Lydia Howell, Pulse Of The Twin Cities
“…one of the Twin Cities’ most interesting people — A singer, musician, actor, composer, writer, producer, music-film-comedy and entertainment historian, collector and oral encyclopedia.”
– Bob Protzman, St. Paul Pioneer Press-Dispatch
SHORT BIOGRAPHY:
ARNE FOGEL IS A 2018 INDUCTEE INTO THE “MINNESOTA MUSIC HALL OF FAME”, AND IS A 2008 INDUCTEE INTO THE “MID-AMERICA MUSIC HALL OF FAME”.
Arne has written, produced and/or appeared in dozens of concert presentations in such venues as Orchestra Hall (where he performed as Rosemary Clooney’s opening act for her penultimate career appearance), Bloomington Center For the Arts, Crooners & The Dunsmore Room, Hanifl Center for the Performing Arts, Hopkins Center for the Arts, 3M History Theater, Phipps Center for the Arts, The Fitzgerald Theater, The Capri Theater, and many other venues throughout the Upper Midwest.
Arne has performed in countless “live” radio concerts and productions, including three years as a regular performer on Garrison Keillor’s “A Prairie Home Companion”.
Arne has performed on nearly 1,500 recording sessions as a singer on jingles and film soundtracks, and has recorded several albums (“YOU CALL IT MADNESS”, “WRAP YOUR TROUBLES IN DREAMS”, “LET’S NOT BE SENSIBLE”), and co-produced several albums for vocalist Nancy Harms.
Arne co-wrote and co-produced the Nancy Harms show “Ellington At Night”, which has been presented in such venues as Lincoln Center (NYC), Albert Hall (London), New Morning (Paris), as well as many other venues around the world, including Crooners in the Twin Cities. “Ellington at Night” was nominated as one of 2015’s “Best New Cabaret Shows” by “Broadway World New York City”.
Arne Fogel is familiar to many people as an on-air personality in the Upper Midwest. For 12 years he produced and hosted his own series of special “Arne Fogel Presents” programs on the stations of the Minnesota Public Radio network, and for over 40 years has entertained radio audiences with his programs on SiriusXM, WWTC-AM, KLBB-AM, KTWN-FM, NETRADIO. COM, and BING CROSBY INTERNET RADIO (“Bing’s Basement”, “The Bing Shift”). Currently, Arne appears on KBEM-FM in the Twin Cities (the programs “Singers & Standards”, which he co-hosted with vocalist Connie Evingson, “Certain Standards”, and “The Bing Shift”).
DETAILED BIO:
ARNE FOGEL IS A 2018 INDUCTEE INTO THE “MINNESOTA MUSIC HALL OF FAME”, AND IS A 2008 INDUCTEE INTO THE “MID-AMERICA MUSIC HALL OF FAME”.
ON THE AIR:
Arne Fogel is familiar to many people as an on-air personality in the upper Midwest. For 12 years he produced and hosted his own series of special “Arne Fogel Presents” programs on the stations of the Minnesota Public Radio network. For over 40 years he has entertained radio audiences with his programs on SiriusXM, WWTC-AM, KLBB-AM, KTWN-FM, NETRADIO. COM, and BING CROSBY INTERNET RADIO (“Bing’s Basement”, “The Bing Shift”). Currently, Arne appears on KBEM-FM “JAZZ 88” in the Twin Cities (the programs “Singers & Standards”, which he co-hosted with vocalist Connie Evingson, “Certain Standards”, and “The Bing Shift”).
Peggy Lee and Arne Fogel, preparing MPR radio special, 1987
Starting in 2000, Arne created and programmed two acclaimed music channels for NETRADIO.COM, one of the first of the internationally-known internet music radio services. Arne served for many years as music director, on-air personality, and special program producer for “The Golden Rock” – WWTC-AM, and hosted and produced “The Old Home Revue” for KTWN-FM.
SINGER, CONCERT PRESENTER, AND SPEAKER:
Arne appears frequently as a singer at the top jazz venues in the Twin Cities, and served as the opening act for Rosemary Clooney during her December 2001 appearance at Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis. He regularly hits the high-school-college-community meeting lecture circuit with songs and historical presentations of popular music and entertainment figures, was chosen from nationwide auditions to participate as a FELLOW of the 1998 EUGENE O’NEIL THEATER CENTER CABARET SYMPOSIUM in Waterford, Connecticut, and was a lecturer, performer, and conference consultant to the Hofstra University (Hempstead, New York) conference “BING! Crosby And American Culture” (2002).
New concerts in recent years have included “HOLIDAY FOR FRANK – A CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION OF BILLIE HOLIDAY AND FRANK SINATRA” presented at BLOOMINGTON CENTER FOR THE ARTS. The popular concert “Fancy Meeting You Here – The Crosby-Clooney Story” has been presented in many upper midwest venues, including the CHANHASSEN DINNER THEATER, CROONERS’ DUNSMORE ROOM, BLOOMINGTON CENTER FOR THE ARTS, and the CAPRI THEATER in MINNEAPOLIS. Maud Hixson co-starred. Fogel wrote, produced and appeared in the such other concert presentations “FRANKIE WENT TO HOLLYWOOD”, and “FRED ASTAIRE AND THE SONGWRITERS”, both presented at BLOOMINGTON CENTER FOR THE ARTS, and both co-starring vocalist MAUD HIXSON. Another BLOOMINGTON CENTER production featured Fogel and vocalist JENNIFER ECKES in “WHAT THE WORLD NEEDS NOW – The music of Burt Bacharach and Hal David”. This show was given several repeat performance in several upper midwest venues. ….HOPKINS CENTER FOR THE ARTS featured the Fogel concert, “WE LOVE OUR PIANOS”, featuring Arne with singers NANCY HARMS & CONNIE EVINGSON, along with pianists RICK CARLSON & TANNER TAYLOR. Arne Fogel also created the concert presentations “HOLLYWOOD CABARET” in 30s, 40s, and ’50s editions, at BLOOMINGTON CENTER FOR THE ARTS, where he also presented “FANCY MEETING YOU HERE – THE CROSBY-CLOONEY STORY”, with MAUD HIXSON . “WITH THESE SONGS IN OUR HEARTS – The music of Rodgers & Hart”, which brought hundreds of patrons to the HOPKINS (MN) CENTER FOR THE ARTS, was another Fogel creation. Arne also co-created and directed “BLUE – SONGS ON THE INDIGO SIDE”, for Minneapolis’ CAPRI THEATER as part of their “LEGENDS” series.
In February of 2015, New York City’s METROPOLITAN ROOM saw the premiere of the concert “ELLINGTON AT NIGHT”, starring vocalist NANCY HARMS. This concert, co-written and co-produced by ARNE FOGEL and NANCY HARMS (in which Fogel does not appear) went on to appearances around the world, including Paris, London (in the legendary Albert Hall), and in New York’s prestigious Lincoln Center.
In recent years, Arne has been a regular performer in “CROONERS” in Minneapolis, frequently in their “DUNSMORE ROOM“, with a series of special concerts he has written, produced and performed, including “SEPTEMBER OF MY YEARS”, “A TRIBUTE TO DEAN MARTIN’S ‘THIS TIME I’M SWINGING”, “1946, THE BIRTH OF THE BOOM”, “GET HAPPY – THE HAROLD ARLEN SONGBOOK”, “THE GEORGE GERSHWIN SONGBOOK”, “THE IRVING BERLIN SONGBOOK” “A CROSBY HOLIDAY” and “THE ANDY WILLIAMS SONGBOOK” , among many others.
Arne filled the Hopkins Center for the concert “AND THE NOMINEES WERE…”. Further special presentations and appearances included “HAVE MERCER ON US”: a special centennial tribute to lyricist JOHNNY MERCER, written & produced by Arne for BLOOMINGTON CENTER FOR THE ARTS, as well as a tribute to the music of Astaire & Rogers at THE HEIGHTS THEATER in Minneapolis. Fogel has been a frequent guest of The NEW STANDARDS’ HOLIDAY SHOWS in Minnesota’s FITZGERALD THEATER, STATE THEATER, and many other venues in Minnesota.
Arne has appeared frequently in singing appearances with KATHRYN CROSBY at THE HEIGHTS THEATER and THE MINNEAPOLIS WOMEN’S CLUB THEATER in Minneapolis.
Other past concert presentations created by Arne Fogel have included “PAIR-SHAPED TONES: A TRIBUTE TO THE GREAT SONGWRITING TEAMS”, “WE GOT RHYTHM”, “BINGSONGS”, “THE MUSIC OF CAHN & VAN HEUSEN”, and others, and Arne has participated in countless other special concert presentations, and “live” radio concerts. Along with the trio “LIEBERMAN, FOGEL & BEY”, Arne was a regular performer on GARRISON KEILLOR’S “A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION” for several years.
Arne Fogel and Rosemary Clooney, backstage during their show at Orchestra Hall
IN THE STUDIO:
Arne is a veteran of over 1500 recording sessions as a singer on jingles, including those for Tuesday Morning Stores, U. S. Cellular, Twix Candy, Oldsmobile, Discover Card, Miller Beer, Old Home Foods, Dairy Queen, Northwest Airlines, General Mills, Hormel, AT&T, Arctic Cat, and hundreds more. He has composed and produced his own music for jingles and industrial presentations as well: among his clients: Honeywell, IDS, John Deere, Our Own Hardware, Creative Lighting, Great Expectations. Arne has recorded several albums (“YOU CALL IT MADNESS”, “WRAP YOUR TROUBLES IN DREAMS”, “LET’S NOT BE SENSIBLE”), and has co-produced several albums for vocalist NANCY HARMS.
Arne has appeared frequently as an actor on TV commercials for such clients as McDonald’s, Knox Lumber, AT&T, Warner Cable, John Deere, Mall Of America, Kellogg’s, Pearle Vision, and many more. He has appeared as voice talent in several hundred radio and TV spots. He had a small speaking role in the Universal feature film “Mallrats”, and the lead role in the short film “Bubblepac”, an entry in the 1999 Sundance Film Festival. In 2004, Arne played one of the leading roles in the Actor’s Theater Of Minnesota production of Joseph Vass‘ original musical play, “Mishegass”.
COPYWRITER, PRODUCER:
Arne Fogel has worked as an on-staff copywriter and broadcast producer for several Twin Cities ad agencies including The Orion Group, The Communications Group, The Directors, and Lane & Associates. His creation of a billboard for Metrobanks earned him a prestigious Obie award, presented by the Outdoor Advertising Association of America for excellence in that medium. Freelancing as a writer and producer of TV and radio commercials for many years, Arne created spots for The Sheraton Mpls. Metrodome, Lind Shoe Corporation, Clothing Distribution Center, Penn Auto Plaza, Good Value Homes, Westlund Meats, and countless others.
JEANNETTE FOGEL
1913 – 2003
SAM FOGEL
1916 – 2011