Archives: October 1998
10/01/98 85 Years in South Florida
On September 24, 1913 The American Federation of Musicians, itself only 17 years old, chartered the Musicians Protective Union, Local 655 in Miami, Florida.
In The Beginning
The biggest supporter of music in the early years was the real estate industry. In the 1920’s they were hiring big bands and using pop music to sell land in South Florida. One developer, George Merrick, even brought Paul Whiteman and his band to Coral Gables to play in the Venetian Pool (literally!). And of course Miami had always been romanticized in songs such as Joe Burke’s Moon over Miami.
10/01/98 Member Benefits
Union Driver and Traveler
What would it be like if you could have all the benefits (and more) of a AAA membership for only $49.95 a year for your entire family? Well, you can!
10/01/98 Recording Rap
The number of recording contracts filed increases each month. So many of our members have come to realize that there really is a pension fund and they like the idea of a Special Payments Fund check every year. Equally important, they now receive their session pay a lot sooner and in many cases the amount of that pay is more than what they used to get.
10/01/98 Symphonic Shorts
FPO Members Raise $5000 for Charity
This summer,
musicians of the FPO gave a 4-concert series of free performances to benefit
local charitable groups. Organized by Richard Hancock, Susan Moyer, and Hank
Skolnick, concerts took place at Coral Gables Congregational Church, Lutheran
Ministry in Christ in Coral Springs, and 1st Congregational Church of United
Church of Christ in Ft. Lauderdale. Most of the concerts drew audiences of over
150 people.
10/01/98 Official Business
Scale Increase!
Please note that the next scale increase (approved in October 1997) goes into effect on November 1; see your Directory for the new rates. Call if you have questions. Thanks!
What Your Dues Pays For...
10/01/98 Treasurer's Report
Do your part to save us money!
What can I say? There’s been a lot of bad tradition in this office going back at least twenty years; I think "balanced budget" must have been a foreign word. Things are slowly turning around. We’re working to cut our expenses as much as we can– reducing phone bills, minimizing office expenses, but there’s only so much we can cut and still be able to give decent service; if we disconnect the phones, how will we take your calls?
10/01/98 President's Report
…it’s been an incredibly productive time since our last newsletter…we have finished negotiations with the Boca Pops Orchestra and believe we have a very favorable contract. The Orchestra Negotiating Committee (Rupert Ziawinski, Holly Ballard, Margaret Butler, Stu Brenner, & Neal Bonsanti), Chris Durham (our negotiator), and myself have spent an enormous amount of time on this and now it goes for ratification on September 26th…
