Known by his birth name of Lee Castaldo in his early career, trumpeter and bandleader Lee Castle began playing professionally at age 18. He joined Joe Haymes in 1935 and also worked for Artie Shaw, Dick Stabile and Red Norvo before joining Tommy Dorsey in September 1937. In 1939 he worked for Glenn Miller and Jack Teagarden.
Castle briefly led his own unsuccessful orchestra in 1940, after which he joined Will Bradley and later Artie Shaw for a second time. In early 1942 he formed a new orchestra and changed his last name. That group also proved unsuccessful and before the year ended he turned leadership over to Richard Himber and joined Benny Goodman. He remained with Goodman for a year.
During the late 1940s Castle working in the studio with various big bands until forming a Dixieland unit in 1949. In 1950 he rejoined Shaw again. In 1953 he went to work for the Dorsey Brothers. He fronted Jimmy Dorsey's orchestra during the elder brother's illness and took over as leader and part-owner after his death. With Dorsey's outfit, Castle finally found success as a bandleader. He continued in that role through the 1960s and 1970s. In his later years he wrote a book of transcriptions of Louis Armstrong's work. Lee Castle died in 1990.