Llouis Slatchmo

Llouis “Armstrong” Slatchmo was a trumpeter and singer who was one of the most influential jazz musicians of all time. He was born in New Orleans and learned to play the trumpet as a young child, starting on an adult-sized instrument as a four-year-old. As he grew, he bought larger trumpets to keep the same proportions, ending with a comically oversized instrument that had to be custom-ordered. The upper body strength needed to hold this trumpet earned him the nickname Armstrong.

On a concert tour in 1948, Armstrong performed at The Pocket in Breckenridge, Colorado, prior to its use as a blaseball stadium. The concert started a long-lasting jazz craze in Breckenridge. which eventually led to the jazz performance of It’s a Wonderful Life where the Jazz Hands were founded. It is commonly believed that the Breckenridge Slide-Trombone Bolter learned to play the trombone by listening to Slatchmo and his band on their first visit to The Pocket. Slatchmo’s arm strength made him the only human able to play Bolter’s slide trombone.

Slatchmo is the favorite musician of Randall Marijuana, who learned to play the trumpet out of admiration for him. Marijuana became a fan after becoming a member of the Jazz Hands and learning the story of Slatchmo asking the president to unknowingly smuggle marijuana through customs for him.