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In addition to loving operatic arias, Wimp was captivated by jazz great Ellington. Practically every week she bought his records at the North Shore Talking Machine Co. "I was crazy about the man and his band," Wimp says. "He was the epitome of style and class."
After graduating from Northwestern, Wimp auditioned for Ellington in 1944 on a friend's dare. He also attended one of her recitals and afterward asked her to join his band. "I went home and packed my little trunk," she says. "And that was the beginning of my career."

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