For more than 52 years, musician Joe Maccarillo entertained in Sun Valley. Maccarillo, 66, died of a heart attack in the early morning of Wednesday, Jan. 4. The night before, he played in the Sun Valley Lodge Dining Room as usual with his trio that included Jim Watkinson and Ted Dyer. He'd been the leader of the house band there for decades, and also played in the Duchin Room and other venues around the Wood River Valley.
"It was very sudden," his daughter Tina Hathhorn, of Boise, said Thursday, when she and her brothers Gino and Joey were with their mother, Jan, at her home in Hailey. Maccarillo also has five grandchildren: Haley and Nicholas Hathhorn and Joey and his wife Robbi's children, Kristi, Britney and Robert.
"It was fun to have a father in this industry," Hathhorn said. "We'd go to Sun Valley on Christmas Eve with Dad. He never had a Christmas off. He was loved by everybody. And he loved the people he met and loved entertaining. He's going to be missed terribly."
Maccarillo's family moved from New Jersey to the valley in 1945. By the time he and his younger brother Bob were in their preteens they were playing regularly with their dad, Joe Maccarillo Sr., who's regular gig was with the Johnny Lister Band. Joe Jr. played bass, while Bob played accordion.
Maccarillo played for many celebrities, including the Shah of Iran, Marilyn Monroe, Ernest Hemingway, the Kennedys, Esther Williams, Norma Shearer and Bill Gates. He played with Andy Williams and Henry Mancini and even some of the musicians from The Tonight Show, when they were in town visiting.
He loved his local musician buddies, too, including Pete Smith, Bob Shay, Jim Watkinson, Gene Loranger, Frank Gilbo, Ed Laverty, Pete Smith, Leanna Leech, Joe Fos, Ted Dyer, Hap Miller, Johnny Martizia and Jeff Rew among many others. Maccarillo and his pal Jimmy Limes, brother Bob Maccarillo and Bob Ball were called the Holiday Four, "Live at Slavey's."
His children also mentioned Juhl Kauffman, who'd been his teacher and mentor at Wood River High School, from where he graduated in 1957. Of course, by that time he'd already been playing for several years, mostly at Trail Creek Cabin with his father and brother as the Maccarillo Trio. In 1953, they'd won a national amateur contest on the "Horace Heidt Show," which ran on CBS in the early 1950s. They played with the Harl Smith and the Hap Miller bands, created a show called "The Ram Show" and entertained in a quonset hut in Sun Valley known as the Holiday Hut.
After his father Joe Sr. retired and his brother moved to Las Vegas, he played with a legion of other musicians. He'd learned the art of hotel music early on, and was always a favorite with the guests.
Tor Heyerdahl, in the valley since 1971, recalled playing with Maccarillo in the valley for years and in Salt Lake City at the Fort Douglas Country Club in the fall for a couple years. "He was a good man to work for," he said.
For a while he ran a shop called the Third Fret in Hailey. His trio could also be found playing while on a float in Ketchum's Wagon Days parade.
In recent years, Maccarillo played at the Sun Valley Swing 'n' Dixie Jazz Jamboree, often with musicians from other bands.
Jim Watkinson, a Maccarillo Trio member for 15 years, said, "We had a marvelous night Tuesday. It was a fine night. I've known him since 1964. He was one of the first people I met up here. He was playing with the Holiday Four at Slavey's. It was a different town then.
"(Bassist) Eric Larsen has stepped in for the time being. But Joe was unique. He could recognize people and know their song. That was a great gift. He watched that room like a hawk.
"Last night (Wednesday) we worked in the Dining Room and I kept having these flashes. I'd look up and think I'd see him coming down the hall. I certainly miss him."
Wood River High School music teacher and band leader Bart Bailey played with Maccarillo for about 12 years. "When I started playing for him I had no idea what I was doing. He was so patient with me and taught me how to play in the Dining Room. Someone would come in that he hadn't seen in awhile and he'd remember their favorite songs. They'd come down and say, 'I can't believe you remembered.' Joe was my dad away from dad up here in the valley. He was a super good man.
"He had all kind of Joe statements, like after every break, he'd say, 'Back to the salt mines.' If we were wondering about paychecks, we'd ask, 'Joe, has the eagle landed?' If you saw a cute girl on the dance floor, all you could say was, 'Goodness,' and everyone knew what you meant. It was our code word.
"He also knew all the history about Sun Valley. It was amazing. At a moment's notice he'd just jump in and tell people things. We have a string bass that he's been letting the school use for years. Juhl Kauffman was my teacher too and I took over for him when he passed away. That was another connection."
Chris Millspaugh of Ketchum said he met him when he moved here in the 1970s to play music.
"Everyday he'd be in his tux and stop at the Casino for two quick drinks. Then he'd go to work at the Lodge. The most amazing thing about him was he knew all the musicians and he loved them. And he would remember anybody that came into that room. He'd remember their face. Tell me that isn't great. He knew how to work a crowd. And how many musicians have a steady job for 52 years?"
Yet another musician and longtime friend, Ketchum resident Pete Smith, met him in the 1950s.
"I'd come up here and sit in with him. He got me into the Musician's Union," he said. "He was a darned good friend. He sure will be missed. We had a heck of a lot of fun together. Playing drums with him is like going to party and getting paid."
A memorial service will be held at noon on Monday, Jan. 9, in the Limelight Room in the Sun Valley Inn. A Joe Maccarillo Music Scholarship Fund has been set up at the Wells Fargo Bank in Hailey.
Joe Maccarillo celebrated his 50th anniversary in Sun Valley in 2003. Photo by Willy Cook
