By the time he settled in Peachtree City in the late '90s, the unassuming Johnny Polzin was just... John H. Polzin, 89, his ban

By the time he settled in Peachtree City in the late '90s, the unassuming Johnny Polzin was just looking for a nice recreational outlet for his musical talent.

He found it with the Peachtree City Wind Ensemble, a laid-back community band that took him in as a clarinet and saxophone player. It didn't matter that he was already 83 when he started with the group. He practiced daily and showed up for rehearsals every Monday.

His band mates knew he was good. They might not have known, though, that he was really, really good. So good that he'd led his own orchestra for decades. So good that he'd played with Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland, for crying out loud.

"You'd have to kind of say, 'Johnny, show us your scrapbook,' and he'd get it out, but he wasn't one to brag about what he'd done," said sax player Ron Bratcher of Sharpsburg. "But then, it was just amazing because it was filled with dozens of autographed photos of these famous people he'd worked with, saying, 'Best wishes, Johnny. You did a great job.' "

John H. Polzin, 89, died Saturday of complications from diabetes at Fairburn Health Center. The body was cremated. The memorial Mass is 7 p.m. today at St. Matthews Catholic Church. Carl J. Mowell & Son Funeral Home, Peachtree City, is in charge of arrangements.

Mr. Polzin, who played the sax, clarinet, flute, oboe and piccolo, started his first band in high school in his hometown of St. Louis. Starting in 1947, he employed a contingency of 45 musicians that he hired out to suit the need — a big band for ballrooms or a jazz ensemble for weddings. His late wife, Carleen Davis Polzin, had been his vocalist.

"Bob Hope, Sammy Davis Jr., Frankie Laine, Lucy and Desi, Milton Berle, Robert Goulet, Jimmy Durante, George Gobel, he played with all of them, up through Glen Campbell and John Davidson," she said.

"But he wasn't the awestruck type who said, 'I worked for this one or that one.' Yes, he got a kick out of it, but he was mostly just intent on making sure it was perfect.

"A lot of musicians got started with him but would quit because of his temperament. But then they'd end up coming back because the other orchestras were so loosely run."

Mr. Bratcher said, "Even when he did voice his opinion that the playing wasn't all that good, he never came down on anybody or tried to embarrass them. He was a fine gentleman, and he was very smooth in his way of letting you know that he didn't like it, but he would tolerate it."

"I threw a saxophone in the Mississippi River because I was just disgusted that night with the band," he said. "I guess sometimes I took my work a little too seriously."

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