Jack Kleinsinger, who produced more than 300 Highlights in Jazz concerts spanning five decades, died at home on June 11 from complications after a fall. He was 88.
Kleinsinger was also a former State of New York assistant attorney general.
Highlights in Jazz is the longest running concert series in jazz history, presenting jazz greats such as Dizzy Gillespie, Dave Brubeck, Bucky Pizzarelli, Tito Puente, Maxine Sullivan and Freddy Cole.
Below is provided by Highlights in Jazz spokesman Jim Eigo:
Jack Kleinsinger was proud that every single Highlights in Jazz event was integrated and featured a mix of generations on stage, with the rising stars of each era rubbing elbows with renowned elder statesmen.
Unpublicized surprise special guests were another trademark of each Highlights in Jazz event. Sometimes Jack would bring in a jazz star such as Carmen McRae, Cab Calloway or Lionel Hampton on an unexpected night off, but sometimes even the producer himself was surprised. Buddy Rich, a scheduled performer, asked if it would be OK to bring a friend to sit in: It turned out to be Stan Getz. Kleinsinger also kept an eye out for familiar faces in the crowd. “If I see someone in the audience, they’re fair game, I’m going to bring them up to the bandstand,” he said in a 2020 interview. “But once Gerry Mulligan was there, and I didn’t spot him until he walked down the aisle to the stage, playing his baritone saxophone the whole way.”
In a sense, Jack, too, was a star of the series. His unerring musical taste, encyclopedic memory, and gift for storytelling came together when he took to the stage for master-of-ceremonies duties. He’d engage the audience by sharing jazz history and personal anecdotes accented with a dry sense of humor that reflected his take on music and life in general. Kleinsinger’s stage presence was so distinctive that it was remarked upon by more than one critic, including John S. Wilson of The New York Times, and the renowned Leonard Maltin.
“I’m a ham,” Kleinsinger noted with a laugh. “I always wanted to be an actor or a performer. At 13, I ran away to Hollywood, with a list of producers—I wanted to be a star. I got to Chicago before they found me.”
Jack Kleinsinger was born in the Bronx on August 1, 1936, the only child of Harold and Frieda (Feldman) Kleinsinger. He grew up in the Bronx, and graduated from the New Lincoln School in Manhattan in 1953. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science at the University of Wisconsin, graduating in 1957; followed by graduation from law school at St. John’s University in 1959. “I would have been a theater major if it had existed in those days,” Kleinsinger mused.
Both his parents were educators: Frieda taught elementary school and Harold was a professor at St. John’s University College. Jack came very close to following in their footsteps. “I taught sixth grade in the Bronx while going to law school at night,” he said, “I loved being a teacher. When I became a lawyer, I couldn’t understand what the fuss was all about. I was often tempted to go back to teaching, but the economics and the prestige were among the attractions of practicing law.”
Following his graduation from law school, Kleinsinger served a year in the Army National Guard before going into law practice. In 1961, he became assistant corporation council for the City of New York law department, and in 1970 he went on to become assistant attorney general of New York state, a position he held until retiring in 1991. “It was a job and I did it well, I earned my money,” the life-long New Yorker noted, pointing out that for three years in a row he tried more cases than any other AAG in the state. “And I won more too!”
The job as assistant attorney general was stressful and after hours Jack headed downtown to the jazz clubs to blow off steam. He became such a familiar face on the jazz scene that a couple of musicians—guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli and saxophonist Zoot Sims—took him aside to recommend that he buy a club or rent a hall to put on a concert and get the jazz bug out of his system.
Kleinsinger took them at their word, and produced the first Highlights in Jazz event at Theatre de Lys in Greenwich Village in 1973. Contrary to what his advisors said, putting on a show did nothing to quell his enthusiasm for the music. Pizzarelli offered a second tip, which Jack also took to heart: “Don’t quit your day job!”
“That’s the best advice I ever received,” Kleinsinger said. The concerts were his passion, and he didn’t have to rely on revenue from the Highlights in Jazz series to pay the bills. “So what if they don’t make money? Some people lose a fortune playing the horses and don’t have the kind of fun I’ve had.”
Jack Kleinsinger retained his love and dedication to the music throughout his entire life, staying true to his goal of only putting on concerts he’d be willing to pay money to attend. He was a recipient of goodwill from the musicians he admired, who recognized him first and foremost as an unabashed fan. While Kleinsinger was putting together events, some musicians who recognized him from the clubs were surprised to discover he was in charge. “A lawyer who’s a fan who’s a producer, that was a novelty,” he recalled.
“When I ran away, I wanted to be colorful, I wanted to be in the limelight, I wanted to get attention. In a certain sense it has worked out that way. I’ve had experiences that don’t happen to the average lawyer,” Kleinsinger said. “I never became a movie star or star on Broadway, but with the concerts I got halfway there. I got the recognition, I got to be in the business. I’m certainly not unhappy with how my life turned out. It’s been a good ride: Look at the fun I’m having!”
His contributions to jazz were recognized by numerous awards and tributes, including the city of New York declaring February 5, 1998, to be Jack Kleinsinger and Highlights in Jazz Day, by special proclamation. He was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of North Florida, which houses his archives in the UNF Digital Commons Jack Kleinsinger Library. The collection includes live recordings of every Highlights in Jazz concert, comprising more than 650 hours of music, plus more than 2,000 documents, and memorabilia such as photos, reviews and programs.
Details will be announced soon for a memorial service and celebration
of Jack Kleinsinger’s life.
Visit the Highlights in Jazz Archive at UNF HERE.
