The Benny Goodman Story him out of a romance with Alice Hammond (played by Donna Reed), whom Goodman eventually married, she says, "Bagels and caviar don't mix." The young Benny Goodman is taught clarinet by a Chicago music professor. He is advised by bandleader Kid Ory to play whichever kind of music he likes best, but to make a living, Benny begins by joining the Ben Pollack traveling band. Later in New York, where his new band band gets a lukewarm reception, Benny meets jazz lover John Hammond and his sister Alice. He is invited to the stately Hammond home to perform a Mozart
Franny Beecher included a blonde 1959 ES-350T, which in his later years he no longer owned. He played a cherry sunburst Gibson ES-137 Classic in concerts and while touring. In October 2007, Beecher performed as a special guest of the Rib House Band at the Bridgeport Rib House in Bridgeport, Pennsylvania. Franny Beecher was the lead guitarist in the Benny Goodman Orchestra in 1948-49. He appeared on The Toast of the Town show (which later became The Ed Sullivan Show) on CBS television with the Benny Goodman band in December, 1948. He is featured on two Benny Goodman albums, "Modern Benny" on