Pucker Up

There is a whistling champion on Wall Street. The N.Y. Times reported August 19th that Christopher W. Ullman of the Carlyle Group is a whistling champion who has appeared on the "Tonight Show" with Jay Leno. He told Leno about his training regimen, which included a no- kissing rule for 24 hours before performing in order to avoid softening the lips. He learned his art by listening to his father whistle Gilbert & Sullivan songs around the house. G&S numbers were fast moving lyrics. In his first contest his rendition of "In the Mood" garnered him second place. In 2001 he was working in Washington for O.M.B. under George W. Bush. One morning he was summoned unexpectedly to the Oval Office to whistle for George W. Bush, who had heard rumors of his talent. Nervously, he performed a set that included Beethoven's Fifth, Take the A Train by Duke Ellington and "The Battle Hymn of the Republic". " I was rocking." he said. At Carlyle he performed for visiting executives and once opened for Tony Bennett at a function.  He also does "Happy Birthday" for friends and colleagues, but confessed that sometimes he feels like a trained monkey.
tjs
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