Louis Prima - California

California

By 1935 Louis decided to take his gig out to Los Angeles. His reasons for leaving may have been due to increasing problems with the Italian mob as well as wanting to expand his fame. The mob posed problems because Louis was forced to pay for protection every week and found himself getting too involved in that way of life. He moved to California to get away from that lifestyle and expand his music. During this time there was a movement for big bands and orchestras. Prima hired Louis Masinter on the string bass, a New Orleans native. He also fired McAdams so that he could have Frank Federico, his childhood friend, play the guitar.

Louis looked for opportunity to open a club almost immediately after arriving in Los Angeles. He opened up “The Famous Door” nightclub at Vine Street and Willoughby. The previous club was the Blue Heaven nightclub owned by Gene Austin. Austin turned over the lease to Louis when he went in to ask him about purchasing the club. This accomplishment had him back on track in no time. Shortly after his club was stable, he had his first movie appearance in Rhythm on the Range in 1936, which featured a performance with Bing Crosby.

With all of his success, his marriage back in New Orleans had already failed. Louise and Louis were divorced in 1936 because Prima was found cheating on Louise back in 1933, in the French Quarter. Merely a few months later, he was involved in a new fling with Alma Ross, an actress.

Louis and Alma were quite serious and after only a few months together he asked her to marry him while he started his tour out in the Midwest. The couple faced problems in Wisconsin and Chicago because they did not meet the marital requirements. Guy Lombardo helped them out by arranging a place in South Bend, Indiana. They wed on July 25, 1936. The couple had a few problems; one of the worst was that Louis denied much about his past. He never confessed to Alma that he had a daughter until she found out from a tax return. Louis also pushed Alma into signing with Paramount in 1937. He continued to travel along the East Coast with his band.

Prima struggled to upgrade to big band style. It was not supported by his mentors in New York or Los Angeles. With the help of Guy Lombardo he traveled to Chicago to promote his new format at the Blackhawk in October 1936. The new format was not successful. The show did not bring out Prima’s performance ability, and the music sounded “overly rehearsed”. He lost money and did not pay some of his musicians.