Rodgers and Hart were an American songwriting partnership of composer Richard Rodgers (1902 – 1979) and the lyricist Lorenz Hart (1895 – 1943). They worked together on 28 stage musicals and more than 500 songs from 1919 until Hart's death in 1943.

History

Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart were introduced in 1919, when both attended Columbia University, when asked to write an amateur club show. After writing together for several years, they produced their first successful Broadway musical, ''The Garrick Gaieties'', in 1925, which introduced their hit song, "Manhattan" and led to a series of successful musicals and films. They quickly became among the most popular songwriters in America, and from 1925 to 1931 had fifteen scores featured on Broadway. In the early 1930s they moved to Hollywood, where they created several popular songs for film, such as "Isn't It Romantic?" and "Lover", before returning to Broadway in 1935 with Billy Rose's ''Jumbo''. From 1935 to Hart's death in 1943, they wrote a string of highly-regarded Broadway musicals, most of which were hits.

Many of their stage musicals from the late 1930s were made into films, such as ''On Your Toes (1936)'' and ''Babes in Arms'' (1937), though rarely with their scores intact. ''Pal Joey'' (1940), termed their "masterpiece", has a book by ''The New Yorker'' writer John O'Hara. O'Hara adapted his own short stories for the show, which featured a title character who is a heel. So unflinching was the portrait that critic Brooks Atkinson famously asked in his review "Although it is expertly done, how can you draw sweet water from a foul well?" When the show was revived in 1952, audiences had learned to accept darker material (thanks in large part to Rodgers' work with Oscar Hammerstein II). The new production had a considerably longer run than the original and was now considered a classic by critics. Atkinson, reviewing the revival, wrote that "it renews confidence in the professionalism of the theatre."

Analysis

''Time Magazine'' devoted a cover story to Rodgers and Hart (September 26, 1938). They wrote that their success "rests on a commercial instinct that most of their rivals have apparently ignored". The article also noted the "spirit of adventure." "As Rodgers and Hart see it, what was killing musicomedy [sic] was its sameness, its tameness, its eternal rhyming of June with moon."

Their songs have long been favorites of cabaret singers and jazz artists. For example, Ella Fitzgerald recorded their songbook. Andrea Marcovicci based one of her cabaret acts entirely on Rodgers and Hart songs.

Hart's lyrics, facile, vernacular, dazzling, sometimes playful, sometimes melancholic, raised the standard for Broadway songwriting. "His ability to write cleverly and to come up with unexpected, polysyllabic rhymes was something of a trademark, but he also had the even rarer ability to write with utmost simplicity and deep emotion." Rodgers, as a creator of melodies, ranks with Jerome Kern and Irving Berlin.

Their shows belong to the era when musicals were revue-like and librettos were not much more than excuses for comic turns and music cues. Still, just as their songs were a cut above, so did the team try to raise the standard of the musical form in general. Thus, ''A Connecticut Yankee'' (1927) was based on Mark Twain's novel, and ''The Boys From Syracuse'' (1938) on William Shakespeare's ''The Comedy of Errors.'' "They had always considered the integration of story and music a crucial factor in a successful show." They used dance significantly in their work, using the ballets of George Balanchine.

Comparisons between Rodgers and Hart and the successor team of Rodgers and Hammerstein are inevitable. Hammerstein's lyrics project warmth, sincere optimism, and occasional corniness. Hart's lyrics showed greater sophistication in subject matter, more use of overt verbal cleverness, and more of a "New York" or "Broadway" sensibility. The archetypal Rodgers and Hart song, "Manhattan," rhymes "The great big city's a wondrous toy/Just made for a girl and boy" in the first stanza, then reprises with "The city's glamor can never spoil/The dreams of a boy and goil" in the last. Many of the songs ("Falling in Love with Love", "Little Girl Blue", "My Funny Valentine") are wistful or sad, and emotional ambivalence seems to be perceptible in the background of even the sunnier songs. For example, "You Took Advantage of Me" appears to be an evocation of amorous joy, but the very title suggests some doubt as to whether the relationship is mutual or exploitative.

Stage and film productions

(1920) ''Fly With Me''

(1925) ''The Garrick Gaieties''

(1925) ''Dearest Enemy''

(1926) ''The Girl Friend''

(1926) ''Betsy''

(1926) ''Peggy-Ann''

(1926) ''The Fifth Avenue Follies''

(1926) ''Lido Lady''

(1926) ''Garrick Gaieties'' - 2nd Edition

(1927) ''A Connecticut Yankee''

(1927) ''One Dam Thing After Another''

(1928) ''Present Arms''

(1928) ''Chee-Chee''

(1928) ''She's My Baby''

(1929) ''Heads Up!''

(1929) ''Spring Is Here''

(1930) ''Ever Green''

(1930) ''Simple Simon''

(1931) ''America's Sweetheart''

(1932) ''Love Me Tonight'' (film)

(1932) ''The Phantom President'' (film)

(1933) ''Hallelujah I'm A Bum'' (film)

(1934) ''Hollywood Party'' (film)

(1935) ''Mississippi'' (film)

(1935) ''Jumbo''

(1936) ''On Your Toes''

(1936) ''The Show Is On''

(1937) ''Babes in Arms''

(1937) ''I'd Rather Be Right''

(1938) ''The Boys from Syracuse''

(1938) ''I Married an Angel''

(1939) ''Too Many Girls''

(1940) ''Higher and Higher''

(1940) ''Pal Joey''

(1942) ''By Jupiter''

(1943) ''A Connecticut Yankee'' (revised, with additional songs, their last collaboration)

Songs

According to Chuck Denison, "My Heart Stood Still" is one of Rodgers and Harts' most enduring hits. Their song "Blue Moon" was used in the 1934 movie ''Manhattan Melodrama'' as the title song. The song was re-written and Glen Grey and the Casa Loma Orchestra recorded it in 1936, and that version topped the charts for 3 weeks. Elvis Presley included a haunting version on his self-titled debut album, in 1956. It again was #1 in 1961, this time in the doo-wop style, by the Marcels.

Frederick Nolan writes that "My Romance" (written for ''Jumbo'') "features some of the most elegantly wistful lyrics...[it] is, quite simply, one of the best songs Rodgers and Hart ever wrote."

Other of their many hits include "Here In My Arms", "Mountain Greenery", "My Heart Stood Still", "The Blue Room", "Ten Cents a Dance", "Dancing on the Ceiling", "Lover", "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered", "Mimi", and "Have You Met Miss Jones?",

List of well-known songs

(1925) "Manhattan", "Mountain Greenery" (from ''The Garrick Gaieties'')

(1927) "Thou Swell" (from ''A Connecticut Yankee'')

(1928) "You Took Advantage of Me" (from ''Present Arms'')

(1929) "Spring is Here", "Yours Sincerely" and "With a Song in My Heart" (from ''Spring Is Here'')

(1932) "Lover", "Mimi", "Isn't It Romantic?", (from ''Love Me Tonight'')

(1934) "Blue Moon" (from ''Manhattan Melodrama'')

(1935) "Little Girl Blue", "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" (from ''Jumbo'')

(1936) "There's a Small Hotel" (from ''On Your Toes'')

(1937) "Where or When", I Wish I Were in Love Again", "My Funny Valentine", "Johnny One Note", "The Lady is a Tramp" (from ''Babes in Arms'')

(1938) "This Can't Be Love", "Falling in Love with Love" (from ''The Boys from Syracuse'')

(1939) "I Didn't Know What Time It Was" (from ''Too Many Girls (musical)'')

(1940) "It Never Entered My Mind," (from ''Higher and Higher'')

(1940) "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered", "I Could Write a Book" (from ''Pal Joey'')

(1942) "Wait Till You See Her" (from ''By Jupiter'')

Other works

''All Points West'' (1937), monodrama commissioned by Paul Whiteman and Rodgers & Hart's first "serious" composition

See also

List of songwriter tandems

Herbert Fields

Notes

References

Block, Geoffrey Holden. ''The Richard Rodgers reader'' (2002), Oxford University Press US, ISBN 0-19-513954-2

Denison, Chuck. ''The Great American Songbook:Stories of the Standards'' (2004), Author's Choice Publishing, ISBN 1-931741-42-5

Everett, William and Laird, Paul. ''The Cambridge Companion to the Musical'' (2008), Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-86238-8

Green, Stanley. ''The world of musical comedy'' (1984, 4th Edition), Da Capo Press, ISBN 0-306-80207-4

Nolan, Frederick. ''Lorenz Hart:A Poet on Broadway'' (1995), Oxford University Press US,ISBN 0-19-510289-4

Secrest, Meryle. ''Somewhere for me:a biography of Richard Rodgers'' (2002), Hal Leonard Corporation, ISBN 1-55783-581-0

External links

Interview with Mary Rodgers about Rodgers and Hart for PBS (1999)

Internet Movie Database listing, Richard Rodgers

Internet Broadway Database listing, Richard Rodgers

Internet Movie Database listing, Lorenz Hart

History of The Musical Stage, 1920s IV, by John Kenrick, musicals101.com

Category:Celebrity duos Category:Musical duos Category:Songwriting teams

de:Rodgers und Hart he:רוג'רס והארט nl:Rodgers en Hart

Birth date	February 18, 1970
Birth place	Seal Beach, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actress/Singer
Years active	1982–present
Spouse	Robert Hartmann }}

Susan Egan (born February 18, 1970) is an American actress and singer known for her work on the Broadway stage.

Early life and career

Egan was born in Seal Beach, California. She attended Orange County High School of the Arts and UCLA. In the meantime she started her career touring with the performance group The Young Americans. While attending UCLA, she took time off when Tommy Tune cast her as Kim in his touring production of ''Bye Bye Birdie''. After the tour ended she was cast in the tour of ''State Fair'' in 1992 and officially dropped out of college to move to New York City.

An unknown at the time, she won the coveted role of "Belle" in the original Broadway cast of ''Beauty and the Beast'' for which she was nominated for the Tony Award and the Drama Desk Award, Outstanding Actress in a Musical.

She played "Belle" for one year on Broadway and then reprised her role in the Los Angeles production in 1995 along with many of the original Broadway cast members. At the Sacramento Music Circus she played "Maria" in ''The Sound of Music'' in 1996 and "Molly Brown" in ''The Unsinkable Molly Brown'' in 2002. She joined the Broadway musical ''Thoroughly Modern Millie'' in February 2004 as "Millie".

Egan's voice has been featured in the English language versions of two feature films by Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki ''Spirited Away'' and ''Porco Rosso'' as well as the Disney animated feature, ''Hercules''. She reprised the role of Megara in the Disney/Square Enix video game ''Kingdom Hearts II''.

Egan appeared at the Hollywood Bowl in the concert version of ''Show Boat'' in August 2001 as "Julie". She has performed in one-woman cabaret-style concerts at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center in October 2001, and the Orange County Performing Arts Center in 2000. She sings with symphonies as well; she performed in concert at the Walt Disney Concert Hall with the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles in November 2004.

Susan Egan was in Lady and the Tramp 2 as Angel (singing voice). She was the Interim Artistic Director of the Orange County High School of the Arts in 2002-2003.

On TV, she is best known for her co-starring role as Nikki Cox's Eve Arden-ish best friend on the WB sitcom ''Nikki'', which ran for two seasons from 2000-2002.

Personal life

She is married to Robert Hartmann and they have two daughters, Nina, born February 6, 2007, and Isla, born December 15, 2009. She currently resides in Orange County, California.

Filmography

''Source:''

''Porco Rosso'' (1992) as Madame Gina (English voice)

''Hercules'' (1997) as Megara (voice)

''Abadox'' (1998) as Katie Budd (UK voice)

''Man of the Century'' (1999) as Samantha Winter

''Spirited Away'' (2001/2002) as Lin (English voice)

''The Disappearing Girl Trick'' (2001) as Bridget Smith

''Revolution OS'' (2001) as Narrator

''Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure '' (2001) as Angel (singing voice)

''Gotta Kick It Up!'' (2002) as Heather Bartlett

''13 Going on 30'' (2004) as Tracy Hansen

Broadway and stage

''Source:''

''Beauty and the Beast'' (1994, Belle)

''State Fair'' (1992, tour; 1996, replacement Margie)

''Triumph of Love'' (1997, Princess Léonide)

''Putting It Together'' (1999, The Mark Taper Forum, California)

''Cabaret'' (1998 revival) (various, 1999, 2000, 2003, Sally Bowles)

''The Unsinkable Molly Brown'' (2002, "Molly Brown", Sacramento Music Circus)

''Thoroughly Modern Millie'' (2004, replacement Millie Dillmount)

''Bye Bye Birdie (U.S. Tour)

Discography

''Source:

2002: ''So Far...''

2004: ''Coffee House''

2005: ''All That & More''

2006: ''Winter Tracks''

2007: ''Susan Egan Live!''

Other

''Source:''

''Revolution OS'' (2001) as Narrator

''Kingdom Hearts II'' (2006) as Megara (voice)

''House M.D.'' Episode 5.17 (2009) as Audrey

References

External links

Official website

More Than Just a Beauty—Show Music Magazine

Category:1970 births Category:Living people Category:People from the Greater Los Angeles Area Category:American stage actors Category:American voice actors Category:American television actors Category:American film actors Category:American female singers

es:Susan Egan it:Susan Egan

name	Deanna Durbin
birth name	Edna Mae Durbin
birth date	December 04, 1921
birth place	Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
years active	1936–1948
occupation	Actress/Singer
spouse	Vaughn Paul (1941–1943)Felix Jackson (1945–1949)Charles David (1950–1999)}}

Deanna Durbin (born December 4, 1921) is a Canadian-born, Southern California-raised retired singer and actress, who appeared in a number of musical films in the 1930s and 1940s singing standards as well as operatic arias.

Durbin made her first film appearance in 1936 with Judy Garland in ''Every Sunday'', and subsequently signed a contract with Universal Studios. Her success as the ideal teenage daughter in films such as ''Three Smart Girls'' (1936) was credited with saving the studio from bankruptcy. In 1938 Durbin was awarded the Academy Juvenile Award.

Later, as she matured, Durbin grew dissatisfied with the girl-next-door roles assigned to her, and attempted to portray a more womanly and sophisticated style. The film noir ''Christmas Holiday'' (1944) and the whodunit ''Lady on a Train'' (1945) were, however, not as well received as her musical comedies and romances had been.

Durbin withdrew from Hollywood and retired from acting and singing in 1949. She married film producer-director Charles Henri David in 1950, and the couple moved to a farmhouse in the outskirts of Paris. Since then she has withdrawn from public life.

Early life

Born Edna Mae Durbin at Grace Hospital in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, she was taken to Hollywood when just a year old and began to sing children's songs as soon as she could talk. By the age of ten her parents recognised that she had definite talent and took her to a singing teacher, leading her to sing in local entertainments.

She was given the professional name Deanna at the beginning of her association with Universal Studios in 1936, when she was still 14 years old. Her parents, James and Ada Durbin, were immigrants from Lancashire, England who would become U.S. citizens after moving their family from Winnipeg to Southern California in 1923. Durbin had an older sister named Edith, who recognized Deanna's musical talents at an early age and helped Deanna to take singing lessons at Ralph Thomas Academy. This led to her discovery by MGM in 1935.

In late 1936, Cesar Sturani, who was the General Music Secretary of the Metropolitan Opera, offered Deanna Durbin an audition. Durbin turned down his request because she felt she needed more singing lessons. Andrés de Segurola, who was the vocal coach working with Universal Studios (and himself a former Metropolitan Opera singer), believed that Deanna Durbin had an excellent opportunity to become an opera star. Andrés de Segurola had been commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera to watch her progress carefully and keep them advised. Durbin started a collaboration with Eddie Cantor's radio show in 1936. This collaboration lasted until 1938 when her heavy workload for Universal Studios made it imperative for Durbin to discontinue her weekly appearances on Eddie Cantor's radio show.

Career

Durbin signed a contract with MGM in 1935 and made her first film appearance in a short subject, ''Every Sunday'' (1936), with another young contract player, Judy Garland. The film was to serve as an extended screen test for the pair as studio executives were questioning the wisdom of having two female singers on the roster. Ultimately Louis B. Mayer decreed that both girls would be kept, but by the time that decision was made Durbin's contract option had elapsed.

Durbin was quickly signed to a contract with Universal Studios and made her first feature-length film ''Three Smart Girls'' in 1936. The huge success of her films was reported to have saved the studio from bankruptcy. In 1938 she received a special Academy Juvenile Award, along with Mickey Rooney. Such was Durbin's international fame and popularity that diarist Anne Frank pasted her picture to her bedroom wall in the Achterhuis where the Frank family hid during World War II. The picture can still be seen there today, and was pointed out by Frank's friend Hannah Pick-Goslar in the documentary film ''Anne Frank Remembered''.

Joe Pasternak who produced many of the early Deanna Durbin movies said about her:

"Deanna's genius had to be unfolded, but it was hers and hers alone, always has been, always will be, and no one can take credit for discovering her. You can't hide that kind of light under a bushel. You just can't, no matter how hard you try!"

In 1936, Durbin auditioned to provide the vocals for Snow White in Disney's animated film ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'' but was ultimately rejected by Walt Disney, who declared the 15 year old Durbin's voice "too old" for the part.

Durbin is perhaps best known for her singing voice, variously described as being light but full, sweet, unaffected and artless. With the technical skill and vocal range of a legitimate lyric soprano, she performed everything from popular standards to operatic arias. Dame Sister Mary Leo in New Zealand was so taken with Durbin's technique that she trained all her students to sing in this way. Sister Mary Leo produced a large number of famous sopranos including Dames Malvina Major and Kiri Te Kanawa.

The Russian cellist/conductor Mstislav Rostropovich in a late 1980s interview cited Deanna as one of his most important musical influences, stating: "She helped me in my discovery of myself. You have no idea of the smelly old movie houses I patronized to see Deanna Durbin. I tried to create the very best in my music, to try and recreate, to approach her purity."

Durbin was the heroine of two 1941 novels, ''Deanna Durbin and the Adventure of Blue Valley'' and ''Deanna Durbin and the Feather of Flame'', both written by Kathryn Heisenfelt and published by Whitman Publishing Company. "The heroine has the same name and appearance as the famous actress but has no connection ... it is as though the famous actress has stepped into an alternate reality in which she is an ordinary person." The stories were probably written for a young teenage audience and are reminiscent of the adventures of Nancy Drew. They are part of a series known as "Whitman Authorized Editions", 16 books published between 1941-1947 that featured a film actress as heroine.

Between December 15, 1936 and July 22, 1947, Deanna Durbin recorded 50 tunes for Decca Records. While often re-creating her movie songs for commercial release, Durbin also covered independent standards, like "Kiss Me Again", "My Hero", "Annie Laurie", "Poor Butterfly", "Love's Old Sweet Song" and "God Bless America".

The star-making five-year association of Deanna Durbin, producer Joe Pasternak and director Henry Koster ended following the film ''It Started With Eve'' in 1941. After Pasternak moved from Universal to MGM, Durbin went on suspension between October 16, 1941 and early February 1942 for refusing to appear in ''They Lived Alone'', scheduled to be directed by Koster. Ultimately, the project was canceled when Durbin and Universal settled their differences. In the agreement, Universal conceded to Durbin the approval of her directors, stories and songs.

Durbin married an assistant director, Vaughn Paul, in 1941 and they were divorced in 1943. Her second marriage, to film writer-producer-actor Felix Jackson in 1945, produced a daughter, Jessica Louise Jackson, and ended in divorce in 1949.

In private life, Durbin continued to use her given name; salary figures printed annually by the Hollywood trade publications listed the actress as "Edna Mae Durbin, player." Her studio continued to cast her in musicals, and filmed two sequels to her original success, ''Three Smart Girls''. The second sequel was a wartime story called ''Three Smart Girls Join Up'', but Durbin issued a press release announcing that she was no longer inclined to participate in these team efforts and was now performing as a solo artist. The ''Three Smart Girls Join Up'' title was changed to ''Hers to Hold''. Joseph Cotten, who played alongside Deanna Durbin in ''Hers to Hold'', praised her integrity and character in his autobiography.

She made her only Technicolor film in 1944, ''Can't Help Singing'', featuring some of the last melodies written by Jerome Kern plus lyrics by E. Y. Harburg. A musical comedy in a Western setting, this production was filmed mostly on location in southern Utah. Her co-star was Robert Paige, who is better known for his work in television dramas in the 1950s.

Durbin tried to assume a more sophisticated movie persona in such vehicles as the World War II story of refugee children from China, ''The Amazing Mrs. Holliday'' (1943), directed in part by Jean Renoir, who left the project before its completion; the film noir ''Christmas Holiday'' (1944), directed by Robert Siodmak, and the whodunit ''Lady on a Train'' (1945), but her substantial fan base preferred her in light musical confections.

Rodgers and Hammerstein's groundbreaking Broadway production of ''Oklahoma!'' in 1943 might have showcased Deanna Durbin as original Laurie, but Universal refused to accept the proposal.

In 1945 and 1947, Deanna Durbin was the top-salaried woman in the United States. Her fan club ranked as the world's largest during her active years.

In 1946, Universal merged with two other companies to create Universal-International. The new regime discontinued much of Universal's familiar product and scheduled only a few musicals. Durbin stayed on for another four pictures, but her last two releases, ''Up in Central Park'' (1948), a film adaptation of the 1945 Broadway musical, and a project announced as ''For the Love of Mary'' and finally released as ''Something in the Wind'' (1947), saw her box-office clout diminish.

On August 22, 1948, two months after the latter film was finished, Universal-International announced a lawsuit which sought to collect from Durbin $87,083 in wages the studio had paid her in advance. Durbin settled the complaint amicably by agreeing to star in three more pictures, including one to be shot on location in Paris. Ultimately, the studio would allow Deanna's contract to expire on August 31, 1949, so the three films were not produced. Durbin, who obtained a $200,000 ($|r=0}}}} as of ), severance payment chose at this point to retire from movies. She had already turned down Bing Crosby's request for her to appear in two of his projects for Paramount Pictures, ''Top o' the Morning'' and ''A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court''.

Personal life

In Paris on December 21, 1950, Deanna Durbin, shortly after turning 29 years old, married Charles David, the producer-director of both French and American pictures who had guided her through ''Lady on a Train'' (1945). Durbin and David raised two children: Jessica (from her second marriage to Felix Jackson) and Peter (from her union with David).

Over the years, Durbin resisted numerous offers to perform again, including two choice proposals by MGM, asking her to take the female lead in the screen version of Cole Porter's ''Kiss Me Kate'' (1953), and to costar with Mario Lanza in Sigmund Romberg's operetta, ''The Student Prince'' (1954). As for stage shows, Durbin had been invited to play ''Kiss Me Kate'' 's Lilli Vanessi in London's 1951-52 West End production, and reportedly, Alan Jay Lerner first had Deanna in mind to portray Eliza Doolittle in the 1956 Broadway cast of ''My Fair Lady''. Suggestions that Durbin vocalize at the major Las Vegas casinos went unfulfilled.

She granted only one interview in 1983, to film historian David Shipman, steadfastly asserting her right to privacy. She maintains that privacy today, declining to be profiled on Internet websites.

However, Durbin has made it known that she did not like the Hollywood studio system. She has emphasized that she never identified herself with the public image that the media created around her. She speaks of the Deanna "persona" in the third person and considers the film character ''Deanna Durbin'' a by-product of her youth and not her true self.

Durbin's husband of over 48 years, Charles David, died in Paris on March 1, 1999.

Legacy

Deanna Durbin has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1722 Vine Street.

Frank Tashlin's Warner Bros. cartoon ''The Woods Are Full of Cuckoos'' (1937) contains an avian caricature of Deanna Durbin called "Deanna Terrapin".

Durbin's name found its way into the introduction to a song written by satirical writer Tom Lehrer in 1965. Prior to singing "Whatever Became of Hubert?", Lehrer said that Vice President Hubert Humphrey had been relegated to "those where-are-they-now columns: Whatever became of Deanna Durbin, and Hubert Humphrey, and so on."

She is mentioned in Richard Brautigan's novel ''Trout Fishing in America'', when the narrator claims to have seen one of her movies seven times, but can't recall which one.

Filmography

+ Film credits
Title	Year	Role	Notes
''Every Sunday''	1936	Edna	short subject (opposite Judy Garland)
''Three Smart Girls''	1936	Penelope "Penny" Craig	Academy Juvenile Award
''One Hundred Men and a Girl''	1937	Patricia Cardwell
''Mad About Music''	1938	Gloria Harkinson
''That Certain Age''	1938	Alice Fullerton
''Three Smart Girls Grow Up''	1939	Penny Craig
''For Auld Lang Syne: No. 4''	1939	Herself	short subject
! scope="row"	1939	Constance "Connie" Harding
''It's a Date''	1940	Pamela Drake	a short subject, ''Gems of Song'', was excerpted from this feature in 1949
''Spring Parade''	1940	Ilonka Tolnay
''Nice Girl?''	1941	Jane "Pinky" Dana
''''	1941	Herself	short subject for the American Red Cross
''It Started with Eve''	1941	Anne Terry
''''	1943	Ruth Kirke Holliday
''Show Business at War''	1943	Herself	short subject
''Hers to Hold''	1943	Penny Craig
''His Butler's Sister''	1943	Ann Carter
''Road to Victory''	1944	Herself	short subject
''Christmas Holiday''	1944	Jackie Lamont/Abigail Martin
''Can't Help Singing''	1944	Caroline Frost	her only film in Technicolor
''Lady on a Train''	1945	Nikki Collins/Margo Martin
''Because of Him''	1946	Kim Walker
''I'll Be Yours''	1947	Louise Ginglebusher
''Something in the Wind''	1947	Mary Collins
''Up in Central Park''	1948	Rosie Moore
''For the Love of Mary''	1948	Mary Peppertree

Deanna Durbin songs

''A Heart That's Free [From "100 Men and a Girl"]''

''Alice Blue Gown''

''Alleluia [From "100 Men and a Girl"]''

''Always [From "Christmas Holiday"]''

''Adeste Fideles (O Come All Ye Faithful)''

''Amapola [From "First Love"]''

''Annie Laurie''

''Any Moment Now [From "Can`t Help Singing"]''

''Ave Maria [From "Mad About Music"]''

''Ave Maria [From "It's a Date"]''

''Be A Good Scout [From "That Certain Age"]''

''Because [From "Three Smart Girls Grow Up"]''

''Begin the Beguine [From "Hers to Hold"]''

''Beneath the Lights of Home [From "Nice Girl"]''

''Brahms' Lullaby [From "I'll Be Yours"]''

''Brindisi (Libiamo ne' lieti calici) [From "100 Men and a Girl"]''

''Californ-I-Ay''

''Can't Help Singing [From "Can`t Help Singing"]''

''Can't Help Singing (Deanna Durbin & Robert Paige) [From "Can`t Help Singing"]''

''Carmena Waltz''

''Chapel Bells [From "Mad About Music"]''

''Cielito Lindo (Beautiful Heaven)''

''Ciribiribin''

''Clavelitos (J. Valverde) [From "It Started with Eve"]''

''Danny Boy [From "Because of Him"]''

''Embrace Me''

''Every Sunday'' (with Judy Garland)

''Filles de Cadiz (The Maids of Cadiz) [From "That Certain Age"]''

''Gimme a Little Kiss, Will Ya, Huh? [From "Lady on a Train"]''

''God Bless America''

''Goin' Home [From "It Started With Eve"]''

''Goodbye [From "Because of Him"]''

''Granada [From "I'll Be Yours"]''

''Home! Sweet Home! [From "First Love"]''

''Il Bacio (The Kiss) [From "Three Smart Girls"]''

''I'll Follow My Sweet Heart''

''I'll Take You Home Again Kathleen [From "For The Love Of Mary"]''

''I'll See You In My Dreams''

''I Love to Whistle [From "Mad About Music"]''

''(I'm) Happy Go Lucky and Free [From "Something in the Wind"]''

''(I'm) Happy Go Lucky and Free [From "Something in the Wind"] (Deanna Durbin & Donald O'Connor)''

''In the Spirit of the Moment [From "His Butler's Sister"]''

''Italian Street Song''

''It's a Big, Wide, Wonderful World [From "For The Love Of Mary"]''

''It's Dreamtime [From "I'll Be Yours"]''

''It's Foolish But It's Fun [From "Spring Parade"]''

''It's Only Love [From "Something In The Wind"]''

''It's Raining Sunbeams [From "100 Men and a Girl"]''

''Invitation To The Dance [From "Three Smart Girls Grow Up"]''

''Je Veux Vivre (from Roméo et Juliette) [From "That Certain Age"]''

''Kiss Me Again''

''La Estrellita (Little Star)''

''Largo Al Factotum (from The Barber of Seville) [From "For The Love Of Mary"]''

''Loch Lomond [From "It's a Date"]''

''Love At Last [From "Nice Girl"]''

''Love Is All [From "It's a Date"]''

''Lover [From "Because of Him"]''

''Love's Old Sweet Song''

''Make Believe (Jerome Kern song)''

''Mighty Like a Rose'' (From ''The Amazing Mrs. Halliday'')

''Molly Malone''

''More and More [From "Can`t Help Singing"]''

''More And More/Can't Help Singing [From "Can`t Help Singing"]''

''Musetta's Waltz (from La bohème) [From "It's a Date"]''

''My Heart Is Singing [From "Three Smart Girls Grow Up"]''

''My Hero''

''My Own [From "That Certain Age"]''

''Nessun Dorma (from Turandot) [From "His Butler's Sister"]''

''Never in a Million Years/Make Believe''

''Night and Day [From "Lady on a Train"]''

''O Come All Ye Faithful''

''Old Folks at Home [From "Nice Girl"]''

''On Moonlight Bay [From "For The Love Of Mary"]''

''One Fine Day (from Madama Butterfly) [From "First Love"]''

''One Night Of Love''

''Pace, Pace, Mio Dio (La forza del destino) [From "Up In Central Park"]''

''Pale Hands I Loved (Kashmiri Song) [From "Hers to Hold"]''

''Perhaps [From "Nice Girl"]''

''Poor Butterfly''

''Russian Medley [From "His Butler's Sister"]''

''Sari Waltz (Love's Own Sweet Song) [From "I'll Be Yours"]''

''Say a Pray'r for the Boys Over There [From "Hers to Hold"]''

''Seal It With a Kiss''

''Seguidilla (from Carmen) [From "Hers To Hold"]''

''Serenade to the Stars [From "Mad About Music"]''

''Silent Night [From "Lady On A Train"]''

''Someone to Care for Me [From "Three Smart Girls"]''

''Something in the Wind [From "Something in the Wind"]''

''Spring in My Heart [From "First Love"]''

''Spring Will Be A Little Late This Year [From "Christmas Holiday"]''

''Swanee - Old Folks At Home [From "Nice Girl"]''

''Summertime (from Porgy And Bess)''

''Sweetheart''

''Thank You America [From "Nice Girl"]''

''The Blue Danube [From "Spring Parade"]''

''The Last Rose of Summer [From "Three Smart Girls Grow Up"]''

''The Old Refrain [From "The Amazing Mrs. Holiday"]''

''The Prince''

''The Turntable Song [From "Something in the Wind"]''

''There'll Always Be An England [From "Nice Girl"]''

''Two Guitars ["Две гитары" - Russian Gypsy Folk song (Lyrics - Apollon Grigoriev, music - Ivan Vasiliev), from "His Butler's Sister" (1943)]''

''Two Hearts''

''Un bel di vedremo (from Madama Butterfly) [From "First Love"]''

''Viennese Waltz [From "For The Love Of Mary"]''

''Vissi d'arte (from Tosca) [From "The Amazing Mrs. Holiday"]''

''Waltzing in the Clouds [From "Spring Parade"]''

''When April Sings [From "Spring Parade"]''

''When I Sing [From "It Started with Eve"]''

''When The Roses Bloom Again''

''When You're Away [From "His Butler's Sister"]''

''You Wanna Keep Your Baby Looking Nice, Don't You [From "Something in the Wind"]''

''You're As Pretty As A Picture [From "That Certain Age"]''

References

External links

The Deanna Durbin Showcase

The Deanna Durbin Database

The Deanna Durbin Page

YouTube - Deanna Durbin "The Turntable Song" Something in the Wind - The opening scene of ''Something in the Wind'' - "The Turntable Song"

YouTube - Deanna Durbin "Mighty like a Rose" w. Frank Lebby Stanton m. Ethelbert Nevin (see also "Mighty Lak' a Rose")

Photographs of Deanna Durbin

Deanna Durbin Devotees

Category:1921 births Category:Living people Category:Academy Juvenile Award winners Category:Canadian expatriates in France Category:Canadian female singers Category:Canadian sopranos Category:Canadian film actors Category:Canadian people of English descent Category:People from Paris Category:People from Winnipeg Category:Decca Records artists Category:Opera crossover singers Category:20th-century actors

ca:Deanna Durbin de:Deanna Durbin es:Deanna Durbin fr:Deanna Durbin it:Deanna Durbin la:Deanna Durbin nl:Deanna Durbin ja:ディアナ・ダービン pl:Deanna Durbin ru:Дурбин, Дина simple:Deanna Durbin fi:Deanna Durbin sv:Deanna Durbin

birth name	David Lemuel Keith
birth date	May 08, 1954
birth place	Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
spouse	Nancy Clark
website	}}

David Lemuel Keith (born May 8, 1954) is an American actor and director. He received Golden Globe nominations for Best Supporting Actor and New Star of the Year – Actor for his performance in ''An Officer and a Gentleman''.

Career

Keith had an early supporting role in the prison film ''Brubaker''. He had a supporting role in ''The Rose'', starring Bette Midler, and later co-starred with Richard Gere in ''An Officer and a Gentleman''. Keith played a local thug in ''The Great Santini'', starred in ''The Lords of Discipline'' and ''White of the Eye'', and held a prominent supporting role in ''U-571'' opposite Matthew McConaughey. He played opposite child-star Drew Barrymore in the 1984 hit ''Firestarter'' and Brooke Shields in 1992's ''Running Wild''.

Keith played Elvis Presley in the 1988 film ''Heartbreak Hotel''. He directed ''The Curse'' and ''The Further Adventures of Tennessee Buck'' (in which he also starred). He appeared in the 1995 film ''The Indian in the Cupboard'' as the cowboy "Boo-Hoo" Boone. He played the leading role of Nate Springfield in the 2003 film ''Hangman's Curse''. He also co-starred in ''The Class'', an American sitcom, as Yonk Allen, a retired professional football player. Other roles include parts in ''Daredevil'' and the 2002 television film ''Carrie''. He appeared in the 2004 film ''Raise Your Voice'' starring Hilary Duff, and the 2006 film ''Expiration Date''.

He has appeared on many television shows, including ''NCIS'', ''Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'', ''Law & Order: Criminal Intent'', ''CSI: Miami'' and ''High Incident''. In 2010, Keith co-starred as Robert Allen (James Wolk) father of John Allen in the short lived TV drama Lone Star.

Personal life

Keith was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, the son of Hilda Earle, a worker for the Knox County Board of Education, and Lemuel Grady Keith, Jr., a personnel division worker for the Tennessee Valley Authority. He is of Scots-Irish ancestry.

Keith was a National Advisory Board member and spokesperson for PROTECT: The National Association to Protect Children. Keith was present during the sentencing phase for John Couey, who was convicted by a jury of his peers for kidnapping, raping, and murdering Jessica Lunsford. Keith said that he was planning on going to Washington D.C. with Mark Lunsford after the sentencing, to lobby Congress for more support of child sexual predator laws. Keith gave an interview with Tampa Bay ABC affiliate WFTS-TV and was quoted saying this:

One of the great things I said about Mark (Lunsford) is he wants justice and he wants closure in this, he wants justice for his daughter. But what he really wants is to protect children and if we can get child molesters in jail, that's the way you protect children!

Keith married Nancy Clark, a realtor, in 2000 and the couple resides in Knoxville, TN.

Filmography

As actor

''Happy Days'' (TV series) (1978) - Fred Collins

''Co-ed Fever'' (TV series) (1979) - Tuck

''Friendly Fire'' (television film) (1979) - Leroy Hamilton

''The Great Santini'' (1979) - Red Petus

''The Rose'' (1979) - Pfc. Mal

''The Golden Moment: An Olympic Love Story'' (television film) (1980) - Wayne Robinson

''Brubaker'' (1980) - Larry Lee Bullen

''Back Roads'' (1981) - Mason

''Take This Job and Shove It'' (1981) - Harry Meade

''An Officer and a Gentleman'' (1982) - Sid Worley

''The Lords of Discipline'' (1983) - Will McLean

''Independence Day'' (1983) - Jack Parker

''Firestarter'' (1984) - Andrew 'Andy' McGee

''Gulag'' (television film) (1985) - Mickey Almon

''If Tomorrow Comes'' (TV mini-series) (1986) - Daniel Cooper

''White of the Eye'' (1987) - Paul White

''The Further Adventures of Tennessee Buck'' (1988) - Buck Malone

''Heartbreak Hotel'' (1988) - Elvis Presley

''Guts and Glory: The Rise and Fall of Oliver North'' (television film) (1989) - Lt. Col. Oliver North

''The Two Jakes'' (1990) - Det. Lt. Loach

''Off and Running'' (1991) - Jack Cornett

''Flesh 'n' Blood'' (TV series) (1991) - Arlo Weed

''Running Wild'' (1992) - Jack Hutton

''Caged Fear'' (1992) - Tommy Lane

''Liar's Edge'' (1992) - Gary Kirkpatrick

''Distant Cousins'' (1993) - Harry Young

''Whose Child Is This? The War for Baby Jessica'' (television film) (1993) - Dan Schmidt

''Major League II'' (1994) - Jack Parkman

''XXX's & OOO's'' (television film) (1994) - Bullet Dobbs

''Raw Justice'' (1994) - Mace

''Temptation'' (1994) - Bone Babancourt

''Texas'' (1994) - Jim Bowie

''Ernest Goes to School'' (1994) - Squint Westwood

''Till the End of the Night'' (1995) - Garrett Hill

''Deadly Sins'' (1995) - Jack Gales

''The Indian in the Cupboard'' (1995) - Boo-hoo Boone

''Gold Diggers: The Secret of Bear Mountain'' (1995) - Ray Karnisak

''If Looks Could Kill'' (television film) (1996) - Det. Peter Stanford

''A Family Thing'' (1996) - Sonny

''Judge and Jury'' (1996) - Joseph Meeker

''Overblood'' (Video game) (1996) - Raz (voice only)

''Invasion of Privacy'' (1996) - Sgt. Rutherford

''High Incident'' (TV series) (1996–1997) - Jim Marsh

''Red-Blooded American Girl II'' (1997) - Mr. Colbert

''Ambushed'' (1998) - Deputy Lawrence

''The Outer Limits'' (TV series) (1998) - Major Jason Mercer

''Perfect Prey'' (television film) (1998) - Dwayne Alan Clay

''Poodle Springs'' (television film) (1998) - Larry Victor/Charles Nichols

''A Memory in My Heart'' (television film) (1999) - Matt

''Question of Privilege'' (1999) - Carter Roberts

''Secret of the Andes'' (1999) - Brooks Willings

''One Last Score'' (1999) - Parole Officer Gilmore

''Walker, Texas Ranger'' (TV series) (2000) - Cliff Eagleton

''Martial Law'' (TV series) (2000) - Cliff Eagleton

''U-571'' (2000) - Maj. Matthew Coonan

''Arli$$'' (TV series) (2000) - Archie Michaels

''Men of Honor'' (2000) - Captain Hartigan

''Clover Bend'' (2001) - Mcgrary

''Cahoots'' (2001) - Harley

''Burning Down the House'' (2001) - Carolina

''Love and Treason'' (television film) (2001) - Eli Dixon

''Epoch'' (television film) (2001) - Mason Rand

''World Traveler'' (2001) - Richard

''Anthrax'' (2001) - Adam Stewart

''Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' (TV series) (2001) - Detective John 'Hawk' Hawkins

''Behind Enemy Lines'' (2001) - Master Chief Tom O'Malley

''Constant Payne'' (unaired TV pilot) (2001) - Alexander "Doc" Payne

''The Stickup'' (2002) - Ray DeCarlo

''Mother Ghost'' (2002) - Carey

''Carrie'' (television film) (2002) - Detective John Mulchaey

''Sabretooth'' (television film) (2002) - Bob Thatcher

''Daredevil'' (2003) - Jack Murdock

''Hangman's Curse'' (2003) - Nate Springfield

''Deep Shock'' (television film) (2003) - Capt. Andy Raines

''Epoch: Evolution'' (television film) (2003) - Mason Rand

''NCIS'' (TV series) (2004) - Capt. Mike Watson

''Raise Your Voice'' (2004) - Simon Fletcher

''All Souls Day'' (2005) - Sheriff Blanco

''Come Away Home'' (2005) - Sheriff Jantz

''Path of Destruction'' (television film) (2005) - Roy Stark

''Law & Order: Criminal Intent'' (TV series) (2005) - Detective Mark Virgini

''Locusts: The 8th Plague'' (television film) (2005) - Gary

''Miracle Dogs Too'' (2006) - Mr. Mulvaney

''In Her Line of Fire'' (2006) - Vice President Walker

''Expiration Date'' (2006) - Wild William

''Bottoms Up'' (2006) - Uncle Earl

''The Class'' (TV series) (2006–2007) - Yonk Allen

''Succubus: Hell Bent'' (2007) - Wallace

''Boys of Summerville'' (2008) - Joe

''CSI: Miami'' (TV series) (2008) - Evan Caldwell

''Beneath the Blue'' (2010) - Hawk

''Unrequited'' (2010) - Nate Grissom

''Lone Star'' (TV series) (2010) - John Allen

As director

''The Curse'' (1987)

''The Further Adventures of Tennessee Buck'' (1988)

References

External links

Biography at CBS's ''The Class''

Category:1954 births Category:American film actors Category:American film directors Category:Living people Category:People from Knoxville, Tennessee Category:Actors from Tennessee Category:American Methodists

da:David Keith de:David Keith fr:David Keith it:David Keith he:דיוויד קית' no:David Keith pl:David Keith pt:David Keith ru:Кит, Дэвид fi:David Keith sv:David Keith

Name	Lena Horne
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Lena Mary Calhoun Horne
Birth date	June 30, 1917Brooklyn, New York,
Death date	May 09, 2010New York City, New York,
Instrument	Vocals
Genre	Broadway, traditional pop, vocal jazz
Occupation	Singer, dancer, actress
Years active	1933–2000
Label	MGM, RCA Victor, United Artists, Blue Note, Qwest/Warner Bros. Records
Associated acts	Harry Belafonte, Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, Billie Holiday, Sammy Davis, Jr., Teddy Wilson}}

Lena Mary Calhoun Horne (June 30, 1917 – May 9, 2010) was an American singer, actress, civil rights activist and dancer.

Horne joined the chorus of the Cotton Club at the age of sixteen and became a nightclub performer before moving to Hollywood, where she had small parts in numerous movies, and more substantial parts in the films ''Cabin in the Sky'' and ''Stormy Weather''. Due to the Red Scare and her left-leaning political views, Horne found herself blacklisted and unable to get work in Hollywood.

Returning to her roots as a nightclub performer, Horne took part in the March on Washington in August 1963, and continued to work as a performer, both in nightclubs and on television, while releasing well-received record albums. She announced her retirement in March 1980, but the next year starred in a one-woman show, ''Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music'', which ran for more than three hundred performances on Broadway and earned her numerous awards and accolades. She continued recording and performing sporadically into the 1990s, disappearing from the public eye in 2000.

Early life

Horne was born in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City. Reported to be descended from the John C. Calhoun family, both sides of her family were a mixture of African American, Native American, notably, Blackfoot and European American descent and each belonged to what W. E. B. Du Bois called "The Talented Tenth", the upper stratum of middle-class, well-educated African Americans.

Her father, Edwin "Teddy" Horne (died April 18, 1970 at age 78), a numbers kingpin in the gambling trade, left the family when she was three and moved to an upper-middle-class black community in the Hill District community of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her mother, Edna Scottron, daughter of inventor Samuel R. Scottron, was an actress with a black theatre troupe and traveled extensively. Scottron's maternal grandmother, Amelie Louise Ashton, was a Senegalese slave. The young Horne was mainly raised by her grandparents, Cora Calhoun and Edwin Horne.

When Horne was five, she was sent to live in Georgia. For several years, she traveled with her mother. From 1927 to 1929 she lived with her uncle, Frank S. Horne, who was the dean of students at Fort Valley Junior Industrial Institute in Fort Valley, Georgia and who would later become an adviser to Franklin Delano Roosevelt. From Fort Valley, southwest of Macon, Horne briefly moved to Atlanta with her mother; they returned to New York when Horne was 12 years old. She then attended Girls High School, an all-girls public high school in Brooklyn which has since become Boys and Girls High School; she dropped out without earning a diploma.

Career

Road to Hollywood

In the fall of 1933, Horne joined the chorus line of the Cotton Club in New York City. In the spring of 1934, she had a featured role in the Cotton Club Parade starring Adelaide Hall who took Lena under her wing. A few years later she joined Noble Sissle's Orchestra, with which she toured and with whom she recorded her first record release, a 78rpm single issued by Decca Records. After she separated from her first husband, Horne toured with bandleader Charlie Barnet in 1940–41, but disliked the travel and left the band to work at the Café Society in New York. She replaced Dinah Shore as the featured vocalist on NBC's popular jazz series ''The Chamber Music Society of Lower Basin Street''. The show's resident maestros, Henry Levine and Paul Laval, recorded with Horne in June 1941 for RCA Victor. Horne left the show after only six months to headline a nightclub revue on the west coast; she was replaced by Linda Keene.

Horne already had two low-budget movies to her credit: a 1938 musical feature called ''The Duke is Tops'' (later reissued with Horne's name above the title as ''The Bronze Venus''); and a 1941 two-reel short subject, ''Boogie Woogie Dream'', featuring pianists Pete Johnson and Albert Ammons. Horne's songs from ''Boogie Woogie Dream'' were later released individually as soundies. Horne was primarily a nightclub performer during this period, and it was during a 1943 club engagement in Hollywood that talent scouts approached Horne to work in pictures. She chose Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and became the first black performer to sign a long-term contract with a major Hollywood studio. November 1944 she was featured in an episode of the popular radio series, Suspense, as a fictional nightclub singer, with a large speaking role along with her singing. In 1945 and 1946 she sang with Billy Eckstine's Orchestra.

She made her debut with MGM in ''Panama Hattie'' (1942) and performed the title song of ''Stormy Weather'' based loosely on the life of Adelaide Hall, (1943), which she made at 20th Century Fox, on loan from MGM. She appeared in a number of MGM musicals, most notably ''Cabin in the Sky'' (also 1943), but was never featured in a leading role because of her race and the fact that films featuring her had to be re-edited for showing in states where theaters could not show films with black performers. As a result, most of Horne's film appearances were stand-alone sequences that had no bearing on the rest of the film, so editing caused no disruption to the storyline; a notable exception was the all-black musical ''Cabin in the Sky'', although one number was cut because it was considered too suggestive by the censors. "Ain't it the Truth" was the song (and scene) cut before the release of the film ''Cabin in the Sky''. It featured Horne singing "Ain't it the Truth", while taking a bubble bath (considered too "risqué" by the film's executives). This scene and song are featured in the film ''That's Entertainment! III'' (1994) which also featured commentary from Horne on why the scene was deleted prior to the film's release.

In ''Ziegfeld Follies'' (1946) she performed "Love" by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane. Horne wanted to be considered for the role of Julie LaVerne in MGM's 1951 version of ''Show Boat'' (having already played the role when a segment of ''Show Boat'' was performed in ''Till the Clouds Roll By'') but lost the part to Ava Gardner, a personal friend in real life, due to the Production Code's ban on interracial relationships in films. In the documentary ''That's Entertainment! III'' Horne stated that MGM executives required Gardner to practice her singing using Horne's recordings, which offended both actresses. Ultimately, Gardner's voice was overdubbed by actress Annette Warren (Smith) for the theatrical release, though her voice was heard on the soundtrack album.

Changes of direction

By the mid-1950s, Horne was disenchanted with Hollywood and increasingly focused on her nightclub career. She only made two major appearances in MGM films during the decade, 1950's ''Duchess of Idaho'' (which was also Eleanor Powell's film swan song), and the 1956 musical ''Meet Me in Las Vegas''. She was blacklisted during the 1950s for her political views. She returned to the screen three more times, playing chanteuse Claire Quintana in the 1969 film ''Death of a Gunfighter'', Glinda in ''The Wiz (film)'' (1978), and co-hosting the 1994 MGM retrospective ''That's Entertainment! III'', in which she was candid about her treatment by the studio.

After leaving Hollywood, Horne established herself as one of the premiere nightclub performers of the post-war era. She headlined at clubs and hotels throughout the U.S., Canada, and Europe, including the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas, the Cocoanut Grove in Los Angeles, and the Waldorf-Astoria in New York. In 1957, a live album entitled, ''Lena Horne at the Waldorf-Astoria,'' became the biggest selling record by a female artist in the history of the RCA-Victor label. In 1958, Horne was nominated for a Tony Award for "Best Actress in a Musical" (for her part in the "Calypso" musical ''Jamaica'') which, at Lena's request featured her longtime friend Adelaide Hall.

From the late 1950s through the 1960s, Horne was a staple of TV variety shows, appearing multiple times on Perry Como's ''Kraft Music Hall'', ''The Ed Sullivan Show'', ''The Dean Martin Show'', and ''The Bell Telephone Hour''. Other programs she appeared on included ''The Judy Garland Show'', ''The Hollywood Palace'', and ''The Andy Williams Show''. Besides two television specials for the BBC (later syndicated in the U.S.), Horne starred in her own U.S. television special in 1969, ''Monsanto Night Presents Lena Horne''. During this decade, the artist Pete Hawley painted her portrait for RCA Victor, capturing the mood of her performance style.

In 1970, she co-starred with Harry Belafonte in the hour-long ''Harry & Lena'' for ABC; in 1973, she co-starred with Tony Bennett in ''Tony and Lena''. Horne and Bennett subsequently toured the U.S. and U.K. in a show together. In the 1976 program ''America Salutes Richard Rodgers'', she sang a lengthy medley of Rodgers songs with Peggy Lee and Vic Damone. Horne also made several appearances on ''The Flip Wilson Show''.

Additionally, Horne played herself on television programs such as ''The Muppet Show'', ''Sesame Street'', and ''Sanford and Son'' in the 1970s, as well as a 1985 performance on ''The Cosby Show'' and a 1993-appearance on ''A Different World''. In the summer of 1980, Horne, 63 years old and intent on retiring from show business, embarked on a two month series of benefit concerts sponsored by Delta Sigma Theta. These concerts were represented as Horne's farewell tour, yet her retirement lasted less than a year.

On April 13, 1980, Horne, Luciano Pavarotti, and host Gene Kelly were all scheduled to appear at a Gala performance at the Metropolitan Opera House to salute the N Y City Center's Joffrey Ballet Company. However, Pavarotti's plane was diverted over the Atlantic and he was unable to appear. James Nederlander was an invited Honored Guest and noted that only three people at the sold out Metropolitan Opera House asked for their money back. He asked to be introduced to Lena following her performance. In May 1981, The Nederlander Organization, Michael Frazier, and Fred Walker went on to book Horne for a four-week engagement at the newly named Nederlander Theatre (formerly the Trafalgar, the Billy Rose, and the National) on West 41st Street in New York City. The show was an instant success and was extended to a full year run, garnering Horne a special Tony award, and two Grammy Awards for the cast recording of her show ''Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music''. The 333-performance Broadway run closed on Horne's 65th birthday, June 30, 1982. Later that same week, the entire show was performed again and videotaped for television broadcast and home video release. The tour began a few days later at Tanglewood (Massachusetts) during the July 4, 1982 weekend. ''The Lady and Her Music'' toured 41 cities in the U.S. and Canada through June 17, 1984. It played in London for a month in August and ended its run in Stockholm, Sweden, September 14, 1984.

In 1981, she received a Special Tony Award for her one-woman show, ''Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music'', which also played to acclaim at the Adelphi Theatre in London in 1984. Despite the show's considerable success (Horne still holds the record for the longest-running solo performance in Broadway history), she did not capitalize on the renewed interest in her career by undertaking many new musical projects. A proposed 1983 joint recording project between Horne and Frank Sinatra (to be produced by Quincy Jones) was ultimately abandoned, and her sole studio recording of the decade was 1988's ''The Men in My Life'', featuring duets with Sammy Davis, Jr. and Joe Williams. In 1989, she received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

The 1990s found Horne considerably more active in the recording studio - all the more remarkable considering she was approaching her 80th year. Following her 1993 performance at a tribute to the musical legacy of her good friend Billy Strayhorn (Duke Ellington's longtime collaborator), she decided to record an album composed largely of Strayhorn's and Ellington's songs the following year, ''We'll Be Together Again''. To coincide with the release of the album, Horne made what would be her final concert performances at New York's Supper Club and Carnegie Hall. That same year, Horne also lent her vocals to a recording of "Embraceable You" on Sinatra's ''Duets II'' album. Though the album was largely derided by critics, the Sinatra-Horne pairing was generally regarded as its highlight. In 1995, a 'live' album capturing her Supper Club performance was released (subsequently winning a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album). In 1998, Horne released another studio album, entitled ''Being Myself''. Thereafter, Horne essentially retired from performing and largely retreated from public view, though she did return to the recording studio in 2000 to contribute vocal tracks on Simon Rattle's ''Classic Ellington'' album.;

Civil rights activism

Horne was long involved with the Civil Rights movement. In 1941, she sang at Cafe Society and worked with Paul Robeson. During World War II, when entertaining the troops for the USO, she refused to perform "for segregated audiences or for groups in which German POWs were seated in front of African American servicemen", according to her Kennedy Center biography. Because the U.S. Army refused to allow integrated audiences, she wound up putting on a show for a mixed audience of black U.S. soldiers and white German POWs. Seeing the black soldiers had been forced to sit in the back seats, she walked off the stage to the first row where the black troops were seated and performed with the Germans behind her. She was at an NAACP rally with Medgar Evers in Jackson, Mississippi, the weekend before Evers was assassinated. She also met President John F. Kennedy at the White House two days before he was assassinated. She was at the March on Washington and spoke and performed on behalf of the NAACP, SNCC, and the National Council of Negro Women. She also worked with Eleanor Roosevelt to pass anti-lynching laws. She was a member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority.

Tom Lehrer mentions her in his song "National Brotherhood Week" in the line "Lena Horne and Sheriff Clark are dancing cheek to cheek" referring (wryly) to her and to Sheriff Jim Clark, of Selma, Alabama, who was responsible for a violent attack on civil rights marchers in 1965.

Personal life

Horne married Louis Jordan Jones in January 1937 and lived in Pittsburgh. On December 21, 1937 they had a daughter, Gail (later known as Gail Lumet Buckley, a best-selling author) and a son, Edwin Jones, born on February 7, 1940, and died on September 12, 1970 of kidney disease). Horne and Jones separated in 1940 and divorced in 1944.

Horne's second marriage was to Lennie Hayton, one of the premier musical conductors and arrangers at MGM, in December 1947 in Paris. They separated in the early 1960s, but never divorced; he died in 1971.

In her as-told-to autobiography ''Lena'' by Richard Schickel, Horne recounts the enormous pressures she and her husband faced as an interracial couple. She later admitted in an ''Ebony, May 1980'' interview she had married Hayton to advance her career and cross the "color-line" in show business, but had learned to love him in a way.

Screenwriter Jenny Lumet, known for her award-winning screenplay ''Rachel Getting Married'', is Horne's granddaughter, the daughter of filmmaker Sidney Lumet and Horne's daughter Gail. Horne's other grandchildren include Gail's other daughter, Amy Lumet, and her son's three children, Thomas, William, and Lena.

Death

Horne died on Mothers Day, May 9, 2010, in New York City of heart failure. Horne's funeral took place at St. Ignatius Loyola Church on Park Avenue in New York City. Thousands gathered to mourn her, including singers Leontyne Price, Dionne Warwick, Jessye Norman, Chita Rivera and actresses Cicely Tyson, Diahann Carroll, Leslie Uggams, Lauren Bacall, Audra McDonald and Vanessa L. Williams.

Legacy

In 2003, ABC announced that Janet Jackson would star as Horne in a television biopic. In the weeks following Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction" debacle during the 2004 Super Bowl, however, ''Variety'' reported that Horne demanded Jackson be dropped from the project. "ABC executives resisted Horne's demand," according to the Associated Press report, "but Jackson representatives told the trade newspaper that she left willingly after Horne and her daughter, Gail Lumet Buckley, asked that she not take part." Oprah Winfrey stated to Alicia Keys during a 2005 interview on ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'' that she might possibly consider producing the biopic herself, casting Keys as Horne.

In January 2005, Blue Note Records, her label for more than a decade, announced that "the finishing touches have been put on a collection of rare and unreleased recordings by the legendary Horne made during her time on Blue Note." Remixed by her longtime producer Rodney Jones, the recordings featured Horne in remarkably secure voice for a woman of her years, and include versions of such signature songs as "Something to Live For", "Chelsea Bridge", and "Stormy Weather". The album, originally titled ''Soul'' but renamed ''Seasons of a Life'', was released on January 24, 2006.

In 2007, Horne was portrayed by Leslie Uggams as the older Lena and Nikki Crawford as the younger Lena in the stage musical ''Stormy Weather'' staged at the Pasadena Playhouse in California (January through March 2009).

The 83rd Academy Awards presented a tribute to Horne by actress Halle Berry at the ceremony held February 27, 2011.

Awards and recognition

Grammy Awards

{| class=wikitable |+Lena Horne Grammy Award History''' |- ! Year ! Category ! Title ! Genre ! Label ! Result |- align=center | 1995 | Best Jazz Vocal Performance | ''An Evening with Lena Horne'' | Jazz | Blue Note | Winner |- align=center | 1989 | Lifetime Achievement Award | | | | Winner |- align=center | 1988 | Best Jazz Vocal Performance – Female | ''The Men in My Life'' | Jazz | Three Cherries | Nominee |- align=center | 1988 | Best Jazz Vocal Performance – Duo or Group | "I Won't Leave You Again" | Jazz | Three Cherries | Nominee |- align=center | 1981 | Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female | ''Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music'' | Pop | Qwest | Winner |- align=center | 1981 | Best Cast Show Album | ''Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music'' | Pop | Qwest | Winner |- align=center | 1962 | Best Female Vocal Performance | ''Porgy and Bess'' | Pop | RCA | Nominee |- align=center | 1961 | Female Solo Vocal Performance | ''Lena at the Sands'' | Pop | RCA | Nominee |- align=center |}

Other awards

{| class=wikitable |- ! Year ! Organization ! Category ! Result ! Notes |- align=center | 2006 | Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site | International Civil Rights Walk of Fame | Inducted |- align=center | 1999 | NAACP Image Award | Outstanding Jazz Artist | Winner |- align=center | 1994 | Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award | Songwriters Hall of Fame | Winner |- align=center | ? | Hollywood Chamber of Commerce | Hollywood Walk of Fame | Star at 6282 Hollywood Blvd | Honor (motion pictures) |- align=center | ? | Hollywood Chamber of Commerce | Hollywood Walk of Fame | Star at 6250 Hollywood Blvd | Honor (recordings) |- align=center | 1987 | American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers | The ASCAP Pied Piper Award | Winner | Given to entertainers who have made significant contributions to words and music |- align=center | 1985 | Emmy Award | ''Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music'' | Nominee |- align=center | 1984 | John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts | Kennedy Center Honors | Winner | For extraordinary talent, creativity, and perseverance |- align=center | 1980 | Howard University | Honorary doctorate | Honored |- align=center | 1980 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actress – Musical | Winner | ''Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music'' |- align=center | 1980 | New York Drama Critics Circle Awards | Special Citation | Winner | ''Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music'' |- align=center | 1981 | Tony Awards | Special Citation | Winner | ''Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music'' |- align=center | 1957 | Tony Awards | Best Actress | Nominee | "Jamaica" |- align=center |}

Filmography

Film

''The Duke Is Tops'' (1938)

''Panama Hattie'' (1942)

''Cabin in the Sky'' (1943)

''Stormy Weather'' (1943)

''Thousands Cheer'' (1943)

''I Dood It'' (1943)

''Swing Fever'' (1943)

''Boogie-Woogie Dream'' (1944)

''Broadway Rhythm'' (1944)

''Two Girls and a Sailor'' (1944)

''Studio Visit'' (1946)

''Till the Clouds Roll By'' (1946)

''Ziegfeld Follies'' (1946)

''Words and Music'' (1948)

''Some of the Best'' (1949)

''Duchess of Idaho'' (1950)

''Meet Me in Las Vegas'' (1956)

''The Heart of Show Business'' (1957)

''Now'' (1965) (includes Horne's performance of the song "Now!")

''Death of a Gunfighter'' (1969) (includes Lena Horne's vocals on the song "Sweet Apple Wine")

''The Wiz'' (1978)

''That's Entertainment! III'' (1994)

Television

''What's My Line?'' (as Mystery Guest, September 27, 1953)

''The Judy Garland Show'' (as herself, October 13, 1963)

''Sesame Street'' (as herself, 1971)

''Sanford & Son'' ("A Visit from Lena Horne" as herself, #2. January 12, 1973)

''The Muppet Show'' (as herself, 1976)

''Sesame Street'' (as herself, Episode 11, November 1, 1976)

''The Cosby Show'' ("Cliff's Birthday" as herself, May 9, 1985)

''A Different World'' ("A Rock, a River, a Lena" as herself, July 1993)

Discography

Albums

''Moanin' Low'' (1942; A Victor Musical Smart Set)

''Little Girl Blue'' (1947; Black & White)

''Classics in Blue'' (1947; Black & White)

''It's Love'' (1955; RCA)

''Lena Horne at the Waldorf Astoria'' (1957; RCA) - Live

''Stormy Weather'' (1956–1957; RCA)

''Lena Horne at the Cocoanut Grove'' (1957; RCA) - Live

''Jamaica [Original Cast Recording]'' (1957; RCA)

''Give the Lady What She Wants'' (1958; RCA)

''Porgy & Bess'' (1959; RCA) - with Harry Belafonte

''Songs by Burke and Van Heusen'' (1960; RCA)

''Lena Horne at the Sands'' (1961; RCA) - Live

''Lena on the Blue Side'' (1962; RCA)

''Lena...Lovely and Alive'' (1962; RCA)

''Lena Horne Sings Your Requests'' (1963; Charter)

''Lena Like Latin'' (later retitled ''Lena Goes Latin'') (1963; Charter)

''Here's Lena Now!'' (1964; 20th Century)

''Feelin' Good'' (1965; United Artists)

''Lena in Hollywood'' (1966; United Artists)

''Merry from Lena'' (1966; United Artists)

''Soul'' (1966; United Artists)

''Lena and Gabor'' (1970; Skye) - with Gábor Szabó

''Harry & Lena'' (1970; RCA) - with Harry Belafonte

''Nature's Baby'' (1971; Buddha)

''Lena & Michel'' (1975; RCA) - with Michel Legrand

''Lena: A New Album'' (1976; RCA)

''Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music'' (1981; Qwest) - Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance

''The Men in My Life'' (1988; Three Cherries) - with Joe Williams and Sammy Davis, Jr.

''We'll Be Together Again'' (1994; Blue Note)

''An Evening with Lena Horne'' (1995; Blue Note) - Live, Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album

''Being Myself'' (1998; Blue Note)

''Seasons of a Life'' (2006; Blue Note; recorded 1994-2000)

''Lena Horne Sings - The MGM Singles'' (2010; Verve; recorded 1946-1947)

Singles

As featured vocalist

A:"That's What Love Did To Me" ''(Sammy Cahn, Saul Chaplin)'' / B:"I Take To You" ''(Mack Gordon, Harry Warren)''

Issued in 1936 on 78rpm 10" vinyl by Decca Records on Decca 778B. Credits Noble Sissle and His Orchestra, Lena Horne was credited as Helena Horne for this recording. Recorded on the 3rd of November 1936 in New York.

"Stormy Weather" (1943)

"Love Me or Leave Me" (1955) #19 U.S. Pop

References

Bibliography

Horne, Lena and Schickel, Richard, ''Lena'', Doubleday, 1965 ISBN 9780385080347

Haskins, James and Benson, Kathleen ''Lena'', Stein and Day, 1984 ISBN 0812828534

Gavin, James, ''Stormy Weather, The Life of Lena Horne,'' Atria 2009 ISBN 9780743271431

External links

Lena-Horne Tribute Site

Entry in the New Georgia Encyclopedia

Biography

Remembering Lena Horne - slideshow by ''Life magazine''

Lena Mary Calhoun Horne

Lena Horne turns 80

Remembering the great Lena Horne

Pioneering African American Actress, Singer and Civil Rights Activist Lena Horne, 92, Dies - video report by ''Democracy Now!''

Category:1917 births Category:2010 deaths Category:20th-century actors Category:African American female singers Category:African American film actors Category:African American singers Category:African Americans' rights activists Category:American female singers Category:American jazz singers Category:American people of Native American descent Category:American people of Senegalese descent Category:American singers of Native American descent Category:Calhoun family Category:Qwest Records artists Category:Drama Desk Award winners Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners Category:Hollywood blacklist Category:Kennedy Center honorees Category:Musicians from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Category:People from Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn Category:People with multiple sclerosis Category:Skye Records artists Category:Spingarn Medal winners Category:Tony Award winners Category:Torch singers Category:Traditional pop music singers Category:Women in jazz

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