User:JonTomlin

Truman "Pinky" Tomlin, ( so-called because of his red hair and fair complexion), was born in Eros, Arkansas, in 1907, but grew up in Durant,  Oklahoma. A boyhood fascination with music soon gave him a widespread reputation as a banjoist and, at age sixteen, he was hired by Louis Armstrong to play on a  river boat in St. Louis, with the Louis Armstrong Band. During that time, Pinky learned to play the guitar, which would later become an important part of his  live shows - both at the Roxy Theatre in New York and at the Biltmore Bowl in  Hollywood.

He came to national attention, while attending the University of Oklahoma, where he personally introduced and performed his original song,  "The Object of My Affection". He had written the song for O.U. coed, Joanne Alcorn of Ponca City, Oklahoma, whom he would later marry.

Ella Fitzgerald chose to sing "The Object of My Affection" for her first "try-out" at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem. Pinky and Ella became life-long friends.

His disarming, easy style, belied an excellent business instinct and an extensive education in music, law and geology, on which he would  come to rely, later in his life.

In 1934, he moved to California, where he earned starring roles in 13 movies for MGM, Twentieth Century Fox and Universal Studios. He also had a supporting role in the Will Rogers Story, which was produced by Warner Brothers,  in 1952.

In 1938, a song he had written, titled "In Ole Oklahoma", was adopted as Oklahoma’s State Song. During his lifetime, he wrote and published 22 songs, several of which were in the top ten on the "Hit Parade" in the 1930s and  1940s.

As the "Big Band" era came to a close in the late 1940s, Pinky returned to his interest in geology and founded a company in Beverly Hills,  called " Pinky Tomlin Oil Properties", where he enjoyed working until he retired  in 1984. During this time, he had a television show in Los Angeles called "Music Is My Beat". He also continued to perform for many charity events in Los Angeles, being especially active in the Beverly Hills Rotary Club.

Pinky Tomlin’s autobiography, appropriately titled " The Object of My Affection" was published in 1981. His wife, Joanne, and he, remained happily married until their respective deaths in 1986 and 1987. They had two children: Sylvia Tomlin Burns of Ponca City, Oklahoma, and Truman Virgil Tomlin,  Jr., (Tom), of Valley Village, California.