He called Floren up to the stage to play a few numbers, including his soon-to-be-signature tune, “Lady of Spain.” Welk, a North Dakota native, recognized Floren in the audience the two knew each other from their early days on the upper Midwest musician’s circuit. A very rare photo of a very young Myron Floren playing his button box on the farm in Roslyn, SD. Lawrence Welk’s orchestra headlined the show that evening. On March 7, 1950, Floren took his wife to the Casa Loma ballroom, in St. Myron Floren joined a musical group called the Buckeye Four. Their marriage lasted 59 years, until his death in 2005. War Department for his efforts.Īfter the war, he married Berdyne on Aug. He joined its group of performers playing for servicemen all over the European Theater, with shows many times staged very close to the front lines.
But he discovered that a childhood bout with rheumatic fever made him ineligible for the military.ĭriven by the desire to serve, however, he turned to the USO. With the outbreak of World War II, Floren, wanting to do his part, tried to enlist as a member of the Army Air Corps. Instead, he majored in English, with a minor in music. He wanted to major in music at Augustana, but the music director there looked down his nose at the accordion and wouldn’t allow him to do so. Oh, and he also played accordion on a variety of local radio station music shows. He also was playing with the band Bill and His Old-Timers, and attending nearby Augustana College.