BUDDY ARNOLD, 1926-2003
Co-Founder Passes
Arnold and wife Carole Fields, beloved both in and out of recovery circles, started MAP in 1992 as a non-profit organization to help addicted musicians and industry people get treatment.
In lieu of flowers, a MAP spokesperson said donations to MAP would be welcomed in Arnold’s name (see address below). Plans for a memorial are pending.
Bronx-born Arnold took up the saxophone at 9 and was gigging by 16. He served in the Army during WWII, and after that toured with the likes of Buddy DeFranco, Tommy Dorsey and Stan Kenton.
Drugs increasingly got in the way of Arnold’s music, however, and he ultimately spent over 30 years as an addict—even landing in prison from time to time for junkie behavior such as writing false prescriptions.
During his last incarceration, he decided to get clean, and did. After earning an early release, he took a job with a rehab program and began helping other addicts. After marrying Fields in 1986, the two began to work with musicians and eventually formed MAP.
To date, MAP has helped over 1,500 human beings get straight. Eighty-two cents of every dollar MAP raises goes directly to getting clients into treatment. Please send tax-deductible donations to Musicians’ Assistance Program, 817 Vine St., Suite 219, Hollywood, CA 90038.
