The Andrews Sisters the group was formed, and 12 when they won first prize at a talent contest at the local Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis, where LaVerne played piano accompaniment for the silent film showings in exchange for free dancing lessons for herself and her sisters. Following the collapse of their father's Minneapolis restaurant, the sisters went on the road to support the family. They started their career as imitators of an earlier successful singing group, the Boswell Sisters, who were popular in the 1930s. After singing with various dance bands and touring in vaudeville with the likes of Leon Belasco (and his
Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree (with Anyone Else but Me) the "Billboard" charts and was ranked as the nation's twelfth best-selling recording of the year. In May the song was featured in the film "Private Buckaroo" as a performance by the Andrews Sisters with the Harry James orchestra and featuring a tap dancing routine by The Jivin' Jacks and Jills. This scene is often considered one of the most memorable of the film. The Andrews Sisters then released the song on Decca Records. (In a 1971 interview, Patty Andrews reported that this was their most requested song.) Many other artists released records of the song that year, including Kay Kyser.