William Albert “Bitsy” Mullins (1926–2003)

From 1944 to the mid-1960s, Pine Bluff (Jefferson County) native and jazz trumpeter Bitsy Mullins performed with numerous orchestras across the country, spending twenty years performing in Las Vegas, Nevada, hotels alongside jazz greats Count Basie, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Dick Haymes, Kim Novak, and Mel Torme.

William Albert “Bitsy” Mullins was born on March 13, 1926, in Pine Bluff to Joseph Franklin Mullins and Alice Barry Mullins. Mullins developed an early love for music, starting to play music at age six. Mullins said, “That is at least where I learned the rudiments of music, the keys, and the time and all that.” Mullins began playing the cornet at age ten.

In 1942, Mullins graduated from Pine Bluff High School. He briefly studied at the University of Arkansas (UA) in Fayetteville (Washington County) before joining the Ray Herbeck Orchestra. “Herbeck called me and offered me the job in 1944, but I was due to go up for an army physical,” Mullins said. “And I was turned down. So, I called him that night, and the next day, I was on my way, on a train to Kansas City, Missouri, to join his band.” He stayed with Herbeck’s orchestra from September 1944 to January 1945. From January 8, 1945, to late May 1945, he was a member of Randy Brooks’s orchestra.

From June 1945 to December 11, 1945, Mullins worked with the Charlie Spivak Orchestra. During this time, his cornet was stolen, and he moved on to the trumpet. In November 1945, he also joined Buddy Rich’s new orchestra. He played nights with Spivak at the Commodore Hotel in New York City while rehearsing with Rich at Haven Studios during the day. His first official gig with Rich’s orchestra was on New Year’s Eve. He remained with Rich’s orchestra until June 1946.

In 1946, Mullins went back to UA, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and mathematics in the spring of 1948. In the summer of 1947, Mullins played with the University of Texas band and Buddy Morrow’s Orchestra. In the autumn of 1948, he played with Ray McKinley’s Orchestra.

From 1948 to 1950, Mullins ran his ten-piece band in Little Rock (Pulaski County). He then ran his own four-piece band in Los Angeles, California. From 1950 to 1953, Mullins worked with a variety of orchestras, including the Blue Steele Orchestra, the Joe Reichman Orchestra, the Milt Chapman Orchestra, the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra, the Bob Brookmeyer Orchestra, and the Tex Beneke Orchestra. He also worked with Ray McKinley’s Orchestra on two occasions.

From March 13, 1954, to November 10, 1955, he played with Tommy Dorsey’s Orchestra featuring Jimmy Dorsey, moving from jazz trumpet to lead trumpet. He performed on a television series for Jackie Gleason alongside the Dorseys, playing with Count Basie, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Dick Haymes, Kim Novak, and Mel Torme. In 1955, he played with a young Elvis Presley, a year before Presley’s performance on The Ed Sullivan Show.

From 1955 to 1975, Mullins performed in Las Vegas. He served as the house band’s first trumpet player in the main showroom of major hotels, including the Frontier, the Tropicana, the Stardust, the Riviera, and the Fremont. He also played at the Dunes Hotel for ten years. While playing in Las Vegas, he performed with famous artists including Tony Bennett, Frankie Laine, Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin, Lena Horne, Peggy Lee, Patti Page, Judy Garland, Frankie Avalon, Carol Channing, the Mills Brothers, Sid Caesar, George Burns, Jimmy Durante, the McGuire Sisters, Henny Youngman, Peter Marshall, and Zsa Zsa Gabor. During this time, he also toured South Africa with Patti Page.

Mullins also performed with lesser-known artists such as Louis Bellson, Charlie Shavers, Jo Jones, Mel Lewis, Charlie Teagarden, Sy Oliver, Neal Hefti, and Gordon Jenkins. Most of his recordings were with the Dorsey brothers and Buddy Rich, while a few were with bandleaders Charlie Spivak and Tex Beneke.

In the mid-1960s, Mullins retired to Pine Bluff. In 1995, he was inducted into the Arkansas Jazz Hall of Fame.

Mullins died at Jefferson Regional Medical Center in Pine Bluff on July 5, 2003. His family asked for contributions to go to the Band Museum in Pine Bluff. Mullins was preceded in death by one of his daughters, Joanne Ban; his surviving children included Joseph F. Mullins, Marty Mullins, Patty Jenab, and Sue Mullins.

For additional information:
Bitsy Mullins Timeline. Talking-Shellac.com. https://www.talking-shellac.com/bitsymullins (accessed February 26, 2025).

Obituary of William A. “Bitsy” Mullins.” Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, July 9, 2003, p. 7B.

Obituary of William A. Mullins. https://www.robinsonfuller.com/obituaries/William-A-Mullins?obId=12213001 (accessed February 26, 2025).

Ninfa O. Barnard
Pine Bluff, Arkansas

A version of this entry was previously published on the website ExplorePineBluff.com and is reprinted here, in a slightly altered form, with permission.