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A child prodigy on the violin, Jerry Gray (family name Graziano) took up the study of composing and arranging while still a boy in East Boston. His first important job in music was as an arranger for Artie Shaw in the mid-'30s, while he was still in his teens -- Gray was responsible for the hits "Any Old Time," "What Is This Thing Called Love," and, most notably, "Begin the Beguine." He joined Glenn Miller as an arranger in 1939, coinciding with the Miller band's sudden rise to national fame, and remained with Miller right up until the bandleader's death in late 1944. Gray's successes with Miller included his arrangements of "String of Pearls" and "Pennsylvania 6-5000." When Miller joined the Air Force and recruited his legendary military band, Gray went along, earning the rank of sergeant in the process, and worked with the new ensemble. When Miller was reported missing on December 25, 1944 while flying across the English Channel on an official mission to France, Gray took over cond...