Lou Fine
Lou Fine by Michael Netzer
Born	(1914-11-26)November 26, 1914 New York City
Died	July 24, 1971(1971-07-24) (aged 56)
Nationality	American
Area(s)	Penciller, Inker
Pseudonym(s)	Fred Sande, Curt Davis, Basil Berold, Kenneth Lewis, E. Lectron

Louis Kenneth Fine (November 26, 1914^[1] – July 24, 1971)^[1][2] was an American comic book artist known for his work during the 1940s Golden Age of comic books, where his quality draftsmanship became an influential model to a generation of fellow comics artists.

Biography[link]

Early life and career[link]

Lou Fine was born in either the Manhattan^[3] or Brooklyn^[4] boroughs of New York City, the son of a house painter, Meyer, who was possibly a Russian immigrant.^[4] Fine's mother died while Fine was attending Cooper Union college, studying engineering.^[4] He had an older brother, Sam, who died in October 2000, at age 86, and a sister.^[4] According to Fine's son Elliot, Lou Fine's family lived in the Brooklyn neighborhood of "East New York, which was called Brownsville in those days.... It was a tenement Jewish neighborhood back then".^[4]

Either at about age two^[4] or in his early teens,^[3] Fine's left leg became crippled by polio.^[3] Developing a talent for art, and influenced by such commercial illustrators and other artists as Dean Cornwell, Heinrich Kley, and J.C. Leyendecker,^[3] Fine went on to study at Manhattan's Grand Central Art School and Brooklyn's Pratt Institute.^[3] In 1938, Fine, like many other comics artists of the time, found work at Eisner & Iger, a prominent "packager" that supplied complete comic books to publishers testing the waters of the emerging medium. Fine's first published comics art was the strip "Wilton of the West" in Fiction House's Jumbo Comics #4 (Dec. 1938), signed with the house pen name Fred Sande^[5] (which strip originator Jack Kirby had used in previous issues). Other early pseudonyms Fine employed (reflecting the fledgling Eisner & Iger's attempts to convince publishers they had a large stable of artists) were Curt Davis and Basil Berold. Eisner would later say, "I had respect for his towering kind of draftsmanship. He was the epitome of the honest draftsman. No fakery, no razzle-dazzle — very direct, very honest in his approach".^[5]

Fine went on to do exquisite and acclaimed work for Fox Feature Syndicate, where he supplied the cover of 1939's Blue Beetle #1 and drew such features as "The Flame" in Wonderworld Comics and the later eponymous series. For publisher Everett M. "Busy" Arnold's Quality Comics, he drew features including "The Black Condor" (initially under the pseudonym Kenneth Lewis) in Crack Comics; "Doll Man" (under the pseudonym William Erwin Maxwell) in Feature Comics; "The Ray" (initially under the jokey pseudonym E. Lectron) in Smash Comics; "Uncle Sam" (for which Eisner & Iger co-founder Will Eisner received credit) in National Comics; and "Stormy Foster" in Hit Comics. Fine became particularly prominent as a cover artist.

Fine, along with Plastic Man creator Jack Cole, was a ghost-artist on Will Eisner's celebrated Sunday-supplement newspaper comic book The Spirit during Eisner's World War II military service, Fine inking over Cole's pencil work. Some of these were reprinted in Quality's Police Comics and The Spirit comic book, where Fine's work continued to appear through 1949, five years after Fine had left comics.

Joe Simon, an artist and the first editor of Marvel Comics, called Fine his "favorite artist.... He was also Jack Kirby's favorite artist. I know that Jack was a fan of and greatly influenced by Fine’s work".^[5]

Advertising and comic strips[link]

Leaving comic books in 1944, Fine segued into newspapers by drawing Sunday advertising comics. He later drew the comic strips The Throp Family for Liberty Magazine (1946), Taylor Woe (1949), Adam Ames (1959) and Peter Scratch (1965). In a single return to comic books, he contributed to a toy company's custom one-shot, Wham-O Giant Comics (1967), illustrating a two-page story, "The Man From Aeons", starring a prehistoric man who, though named "Tor", was not the same-name caveman character created in the 1950s by Joe Kubert.

Fine also worked on the strip Space Conquerors in the magazine Boys' Life from the late 1960s until his death. He and writer Gill Fox, whom he had met during his time with Eisner & Iger and remained in contact with, were developing new comic strips when Fine was found dead of a heart attack at the threshold of his studio.^[6]

Later life[link]

By the late 1960s, Fine lived in affluent Lido Beach, New York, on Long Island, owning two houses there. Friend and collaborator Gill Fox described them as, "One for his wife and one for himself. He lived alone [by then]".^[6]

Critical assessment[link]

Atlas Comics (retailer), "The Top 100 Artists of American Comic Books": #10 - Lou Fine: "By God, Lou Fine could draw. One of comics' first illustrative stars, he influenced and astounded such later greats as Alex Toth, Jim Steranko, and Gil Kane. His covers alone during the ' 40s stand as some of the best-designed and most exciting work ever produced for any comic book publisher".^[7]

Collections[link]

Fine's Spirit work has been reprinted in DC Comics' hardcover collections The Spirit Archives vols. 5 to 9 (2001–2003), spanning July 1942 to December 1944.

Selections of Fine's other comics works, including the Flame, Doll Man, Uncle Sam, the Ray, and Black Condor, have been reprinted in Pure Imagination's Lou Fine Reader, by Greg Theakston, vols. 1 (2003, ISBN 1-56685-025-8) and 2.

Footnotes[link]

References[link]

• Vance, Michael, & Jon Suter. "Comics Legend - Lou Fine", Suspended Animation September 18, 1998. WebCitation archive.
• Thrilling Detective: "Peter Scratch", created by Elliot Caplin and Lou Fine. WebCitation archive.
• Alter Ego vol. 3, #17 (Sept. 2002): Interviews with Fine family-members

Dianne Reeves
Dianne Reeves with the Boston Pops on June 1, 2007
Born	(1956-10-23) October 23, 1956 (age 55) Detroit, Michigan
Occupation	Jazz singer
Years active	1983–present

Dianne Reeves (born October 23, 1956) is an American jazz singer. She currently lives in Denver, Colorado.

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Reeves was born in Detroit, Michigan, to a very musical family. Her father, who died when she was two years old, was also a singer. Her mother, Vada Swanson, played trumpet. A cousin, George Duke, is a well-known piano and keyboard player and producer. Dianne and her sister Sharon were raised by their mother in Denver, Colorado. As a child, Dianne took piano lessons and sang at every opportunity. When she was 11 years old, her interest in music was enhanced by an inspiring teacher who thought that music was the best way to bring students together. Dianne discovered a love of music and that she wanted to be a singer.

Her uncle, Charles Burrell, a bass player with the Denver Symphony Orchestra, introduced her to the music of jazz singers, from Ella Fitzgerald to Billie Holiday. She was especially impressed by Sarah Vaughan.

Career[link]

Reeves in April 2011

At the age of 16, Reeves was singing at the George Washington High School (Denver) in Denver, in a high school big-band. That same year, the band played at a music festival (Convention of the National Association of Jazz Educators). Her band won first place, and it was there she met the trumpeter Clark Terry, who became her mentor.

A year later, Reeves began studying music at the University of Colorado before she moved in 1976 to Los Angeles. While there, her interest in Latin-American music grew. She began experimenting with different kinds of vocal music and finally decided to pursue a career as a singer. She met Eduardo del Barrio, toured with his group Caldera, and sang in Billy Childs' jazz band Night Flight. Later, she toured with Sérgio Mendes.

From 1983 until 1986, Reeves toured with Harry Belafonte as a lead singer. This period saw her first experiences with world music.

In 1987, Reeves was the first vocalist signed to the reactivated Blue Note/EMI label.^[1] Reeves moved back to Denver from Los Angeles in 1992. Reeves sang at the closing ceremony of the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City.

Reeves' musical director, Peter Martin, tours regularly with her.

Grammy Awards[link]

She has to date won four Grammy Awards for Best Jazz Vocal Performance for her albums

• 2001 In the Moment - Live In Concert
• 2002 The Calling: Celebrating Sarah Vaughan
• 2003 A Little Moonlight
• 2006 Good Night, and Good Luck (Soundtrack)

She is the only singer to have won this Grammy three consecutive times.

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

• 1982: Welcome to My Love
• 1984: For Every Heart
• 1986: Jazzvisions: Echoes of Ellington
• 1987: Dianne Reeves
• 1990: Never Too Far
• 1991: I Remember
• 1993: Art & Survival
• 1994: Quiet After the Storm
• 1996: The Grand Encounter
• 1996: Palo Alto Sessions
• 1997: That Day...
• 1997: New Morning (live)
• 1999: Bridges
• 2000: In the Moment – Live in Concert
• 2001: The Calling: Celebrating Sarah Vaughan
• 2003: A Little Moonlight
• 2004: Christmas Time is Here
• 2005: Good Night, and Good Luck (Soundtrack)
• 2008: When You Know

Sideman[link]

• 1975 Best of Ronnie Laws (Ronnie Laws)
• 1976 Yesterday's Dreams (Alphonso Johnson)
• 1977 Comin' Through (Eddie Henderson); From Me to You (George Duke); Sky Islands (Caldera)
• 1978 Black Forest (Luis Conte); Kinsman Dazz (Kinsman Dazz); Steamline (Lenny White)(bckgr); Time and Chance (Caldera)
• 1979 Splendor (Splendor)
• 1981 Seduzir (Djavan)
• 1984 Fiesta (Victor Feldman)
• 1985 Ebony Rain (Mark Winkler); Magnetic (Steps Ahead); Streetshadows (David Diggs)
• 1986 This Side Up (David Benoit)
• 1988 Joy Rider (Wayne Shorter)
• 1989 At Last (Lou Rawls); Ballads (Lou Rawls); Best of Feldman and the Generation Band (Victor Feldman's Generation Band); Straight to My Heart: The Music of Sting (Bob Belden Ensemble)
• 1990 Nova Collection '90 (Various); Yule Struttin' (Various)
• 1991 Continuing the Legacy of Black Music... (Various); Free Play (Eduardo Del Barrio); Keys to Life (Ben Tankard)
• 1992 Christmas Carols & Sacred Songs (The Boys Choir of Harlem); Handel's Messiah: A Soulful Celebration (Various); Legendary Lou Rawls (Lou Rawls); Moonlight Love: Soft Sounds for a Summer Night (Various)
• 1993 Journey (McCoy Tyner Big Band); Let Your Love Flow (Solomon Burke)(bckgr); When the Time is Right (Javon Jackson)
• 1994 Blue Note Now! (Various); For the Love of Music (Lionel Hampton); I've Known Rivers (Billy Childs); Shades of Blue (Bob Belden)
• 1995 Esquire Jazz Collection: Crosstown Traffic (Various); Jazz to the World (Various); Rhythm & Blues Christmas [Cema] (Various); Today's Stars Sing Holiday Classics (Various)
• 1996 Bob Beldon Presents Strawberry Fields (Various); Doky Brothers, Vol. 2 (Niels Lan Doky & Chris Minh Doky); Never Ending Game, Vol. 1 (Dreadformation); New Groove: The Blue Note Remix Project, Vol. 1 (Various); Panasonic Village Jazz Festival 1996 (Various); Place of Hope (Various); Soulful Sounds of Christmas [One Way] (Various); Strawberry Fields (Bob Belden); World Christmas (Various)
• 1997 1997 Panasonic Village Jazz Festival (Various); Best of George Duke: The Elektra Years (George Duke)(bckgr); Fiesta & More (Victor Feldman); Is Love Enough? (George Duke) (bckgr); Last Time I Committed Suicide (Original Soundtrack); Monk on Monk (T.S. Monk); Sample This (Joe Sample); Sleep Warm (Various); Slow Jams: On the Jazz Tip, Vol. 1 (Various); Soul Control (Gerald Veasley); That Old Feeling (Original Soundtrack); Yule Be Boppin' (Various); Great Jazz Vocalists Sing Strayhorn & Ellington (Various); Ultimate Nina Simone (Nina Simone)
• 1998 Afro-Cuban Fantasy (Cabildo) (Poncho Sanchez); Blue Box, Vol. 2: Finest Jazz Vocalists (Various); Blue Note Salutes Motown (Various); Blue Note Years 1939-1999 (Various); Chez Toots (Toots Thielemans); Colors of a Band (Peter Herbolzheimer); Minh Chris (Minh Doky); Seasons 4 U (Lou Rawls); Soulful Divas, Vol. 3: Softly with a Song (Various); Soulful Divas, Vol. 5: Ladies of Jazz N Soul (Various); Ultimate Divas [Box] (Various); We've Got What You Need (James Williams & ICU)
• 1999 Afro Blue (Various); Art & Soul (Renee Rosnes); Beach Music Anthology, Vol. 2 (Various); Best Blue Note Album in the World Ever (Various); Billboard Top Contemporary Jazz (Various); Blue Movies: Scoring for the Studio (Various); Blue Note Years, Vol. 6: New Era 1975-1998 (Various); Blue Note Years, Vol. 7: Blue Note Now & Then (Various); Blue Valentines (Various); Down Here Below (Jeffery Smith); Edge (Lenny White); Jazznavour (Charles Aznavour); Just the Ticket (Original Soundtrack) (bckgr); Live at the Blue Note: 75th Birthday Celebration (Chico & Von Freeman); Live in Swing City: Swingin with the Duke (Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra & Wynton Marsalis); Manhattan Melodies (Eric Reed); Native Voices (Various); R 'N' Browne (Tom Browne); Tribute to Ellington (Daniel Barenboim)
• 2000 30 Years of Montreux Jazz Festival (Various); Anthology (Eddie Henderson) (bckgr); Going Home: Tribute To Duke Ellington (Various); Love Affair: The Music of Ivan Lins (Jason Miles/Various); Never Gonna Give Up (Lorrich); Pure Cool (Various); Sci-Fi (Christian McBride); Smooth and Straight (Various); Smooth Grooves: Jazzy Soul, Vol. 2 (Various); Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow (Rodney Whitaker)
• 2001 Dear Louis (Nicholas Payton); Identity Crisis (Affirmation); Let's Get Lost: The Songs of Jimmy McHugh (Terence Blanchard); Phonography (DJ Smash); With a Little Help From My Friends (Renee Rosnes)
• 2002 At His Best (Solomon Burke) (bckgr); Café (Trio da Paz); I Heard It on NPR: Jazz for Blue Nights (Various); Incredible Solomon Burke at His Best (Solomon Burke)(bckgr); Lenny White Collection (Lenny White); Pump It Up (Les McCann); Tom Browne Collection (Tom Browne)
• 2003 I Heard It on NPR CD Box Set: Jazz for Blue Nights (Various); Midnight Music (Various); Wise Children (Tom Harrell)
• 2004 Blue Note Plays the Beatles (Various); Colors of Latin Jazz: Música Romántica (Various): The Magic Hour (Wynton Marsalis)
• 2006 The Phat Pack (Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band)

Filmography[link]

• 2005 played the jazz singer in "Good Night and Good Luck"
• 2005 Dianne Reeves "Live in Montreal" (Montreal International Jazz Festival 2000)
• 2008 Dianne Reeves: The Early Years with Billy Childs and Snooky Young

References[link]

External links[link]

• Dianne Reeves Official Website
• INTERVIEW VIDEO Dianne Reeves on Bamboo-music.com - English & French versions
• "In Conversation with Dianne Reeves" by Thierry Quénum (Jazz.com)

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2007)

Louis Allen "Lou" Rawls (December 1, 1935^[1] – January 6, 2006) was an American soul, jazz, and blues singer. He was known for his smooth vocal style: Frank Sinatra once said that Rawls had "the classiest singing and silkiest chops in the singing game".^[2] Rawls released more than 60 albums, sold more than 40 million records,^{[citation needed]} appeared as an actor in motion pictures and on television, and voiced-over many cartoons. He was also known for his frequently used expression,"Yeah buddy!"

Career[link]

Rawls was born on December 1, 1933 in Chicago and raised by his grandmother in the Ida B. Wells projects on the city's South Side. He began singing in the Greater Mount Olive Baptist Church choir at the age of seven and later sang with local groups through which he met future music stars Sam Cooke, who was nearly three years older than Rawls, and Curtis Mayfield.^[3]

After graduating from Chicago's Dunbar Vocational High School, he sang briefly with Cooke in the Teenage Kings of Harmony, a local gospel group, and then with the Holy Wonders. In 1951, Rawls replaced Cooke in the Highway QC's after Cooke departed to join The Soul Stirrers in Los Angeles. Rawls was soon recruited by the Chosen Gospel Singers and himself moved to Los Angeles, where he subsequently joined the Pilgrim Travelers.^[4]

In 1955, Rawls enlisted in the U.S. Army as a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division. He left the "All-Americans" three years later as a sergeant and rejoined the Pilgrim Travelers (then known as the Travelers). In 1958, while touring the South with the Travelers and Sam Cooke, Rawls was in a serious car crash. Rawls was pronounced dead before arriving at the hospital, where he stayed in a coma for five and a half days. It took him months to regain his memory, and a year to fully recuperate. Rawls considered the event to be life-changing.^[4]

Alongside Dick Clark as master of ceremonies, Rawls was recovered enough by 1959 to be able to perform at the Hollywood Bowl. He was signed to Capitol Records in 1962, the same year he sang the soulful background vocals on the Sam Cooke recording of "Bring It On Home to Me" and "That's Where It's At," both written by Cooke. Rawls himself charted with a cover of "Bring It On Home to Me" in 1970 (with the title shortened to "Bring It On Home").

Rawls' first Capitol solo release was Stormy Monday (a.k.a. I'd Rather Drink Muddy Water), a jazz album, in 1962. On August 21, 1966, he opened for The Beatles at Crosley Field in Cincinnati.

Though his 1966 album Live! went gold, Rawls would not have a star-making hit until he made a proper soul album, appropriately named Soulin', later that same year. The album contained his first R&B #1 single, "Love Is a Hurtin' Thing". In 1967 Rawls won his first Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance, for the single "Dead End Street." In 1967, Rawls also performed at the first evening of the Monterey International Pop Music Festival.^[6]

Rawls performing with Frank Gorshin in 1977

In 1969, the singer was co-host of NBC's summer replacement series for the Dean Martin Show along with Martin's daughter, singer Barbara Gail Martin.

After leaving Capitol in 1971, Rawls joined MGM, at which juncture he released his Grammy-winning single "Natural Man" written for him by comedian Sandy Baron and singer Bobby Hebb. He had a brief stint with Bell Records in 1974, where he recorded a cover of Hall & Oates' "She's Gone." In 1976, Rawls signed with Philadelphia International Records, where he had his greatest album success with the million-selling All Things in Time. The album produced his most successful single, "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine", which topped the R&B and Adult Contemporary charts and went to number two on the pop side, becoming Rawls' only certified million-selling single in the process.

Subsequent albums, such as 1977's When You Hear Lou, You've Heard It All yielded such hit singles as "Lady Love". Other releases in the 1970s included the classic album Sit Down And Talk To Me.

Rawls' 1977 Grammy Awards performance of "You'll Never Find" was disrupted by a coughing fit.

In 1982, Rawls received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Sang the lyrics to WGN-TV's 1983 "Chicago's Very Own" ad campaign, a slogan that the station still uses to this day.

On January 19, 1985, he sang Wind Beneath My Wings at the nationally-televised 50th Presidential Inaugural Gala the day before the second inauguration of Ronald Reagan. He was introduced by Patricia Neal.

In 1989, he performed vocals for "The Music and Heroes of America" segment in the animated television miniseries This is America, Charlie Brown.

"The Star Spangled Banner"[link]

On the night of September 29, 1977, Rawls performed the national anthem of the United States prior to the Earnie Shavers-Muhammad Ali title fight at Madison Square Garden. He would be requested to sing the anthem many times over the next 28 years, and his final performance of it came on October 23, 2005. The crowd at that performance may not have known that Rawls was extremely ill with cancer, but he reportedly delivered a well received performance to kick off Game Two of the 2005 World Series between the Chicago White Sox and Houston Astros at U.S. Cellular Field in his hometown of Chicago. He had also sung the National Anthem at two previous World Series games: the 1982 World Series opener between the St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers and Game Three of the 1985 World Series between the Cardinals and the Kansas City Royals, both at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis.

Honors and charity work[link]

Lou Rawls at Baltimore's Inner Harbor (1980) being interviewed by local news anchor Curt Anderson, promoting the "Lou Rawls Parade of Stars Telethon"

In 1980, Rawls began the "Lou Rawls Parade of Stars Telethon" which benefits the United Negro College Fund. The annual event, known since 1998 as "An Evening of Stars: A Celebration of Educational Excellence", consists of stories of successful African-American students who have benefited from and/or graduated from one of the many historically black colleges and universities who receive support from the UNCF, along with musical performances from various recording artists in support of the UNCF's and Rawls' efforts. The event has raised over US$200 million in 27 shows for the fund through 2006.

In January 2004, Rawls was honored by the United Negro College Fund for his more than 25 years of charity work with the organization. Instead of hosting and performing as he usually did, Rawls was given the seat of honor and celebrated by his performing colleagues, including Stevie Wonder, The O'Jays, Gerald Levert, Ashanti, and many others. His final television performance occurred during the 2005-2006 edition of the telethon, honoring Stevie Wonder in September 2005, just months before entering the hospital and after having been diagnosed with cancer earlier in the year. This program, aired in January 2006, contains his final public television performance, where he performed two classics, "You Are the Sunshine of My Life," and a final ode to Frank Sinatra with, "It Was A Very Good Year."

At the time of Rawls' death, news and UNCF figures noted the significance of Rawls' final performance, "It Was a Very Good Year." The song is a retrospective of one's life and its lyrics include, "When I was seventeen, it was a very good year. It was a very good year for small town girls and soft summer nights...And now those days grow short, it is the autumn of years, and now I think about life as vintage wine from fine old kegs, from the brim to the dregs, it pours sweet and clear, it was a very good year."

Acting career[link]

Rawls appeared in a segment of the first season of Sesame Street, to sing the alphabet. He dismissed the concept of using cue cards for the performance, but reversed such decision when he forgot the order of the letters.^[7]

Throughout Rawls' singing career, he had the opportunity to appear in many films, television shows, and commercials. He can be seen in such films as Leaving Las Vegas, Blues Brothers 2000, and Angel, Angel, Down We Go. He had a supporting role in the Baywatch spin-off, Baywatch Nights. He also appeared in the western television series, The Big Valley, (starring legend Barbara Stanwyck, along with Lee Majors and Linda Evans) where he played a hired hand. Here, he delivered the memorable line: "Ain't a horse that can't be rode; ain't a man that can't be throwed".

Rawls lent his rich baritone voice to many cartoons, including Hey Arnold! as the voice of Harvey The Mailman, Garfield, and The Proud Family (also appearing in animation form in one episode). For many of the Film Roman Garfield specials, Rawls would often compose songs for them, which he would then sing usually doing a duet with Desiree Goyette, as well as the singing voice of the title character himself.

For many years, he was a spokesperson for the Colonial Penn Life Insurance Company, helping promote the brand on radio and TV to African-American markets much as Ed McMahon did for the white audience (and Alex Trebek continues to do to this day). He was also a spokesman for brewing companies. First appearing in television and radio commercials in the mid-to-late 1960s for Spur Malt Liquor. A Rainier Brewing Company product out of Seattle.^[8] He later appeared in a number of Budweiser advertisements. Budweiser was a key sponsor for the Rawls telethon and UNCF. There was no attempt to avoid the similarity between the title of the 1977 album When You've Heard Lou, You've Heard It All and his corporate sponsor's slogan "When You Say Budweiser, You've Said It All". A track on the 1978 album Lou Rawls Live, features Rawls singing the commercial slogan. Anheuser-Busch, the brewers of Budweiser, also suggested his telethon work to him.

Rawls was also a regular guest host on "Jazz Central", a program aired on the BET Jazz cable channel.

He appears as "Dr. Rawls" in a dream on an episode My Wife and Kids, where he breaks into a parody version of "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine", which a frightened Damon Wayans is afraid of having a colonoscopy the following day. Rawls uses the scope as a microphone in the scene. Rawls appears as a commentator in the second half of both the rated and unrated versions of the commentary for Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy DVD commentary track, despite having nothing to do with the film itself. During the track, he indulges the commentators' request, participating in a scatting contest with Will Ferrell.

Rawls also appeared in an episode of Baywatch as a bookie.

Rawls was also a guest star during the second season of The Muppet Show. He also made a brief appearance on the series finale of Martin.

Billboard Top 50 hit singles[link]

The following is a list of Rawls singles that made the top 50 on the Billboard Hot 100. His first Hot 100 entry was "Three O'Clock in the Morning" in 1965, and his final was "Wind Beneath My Wings" in 1983. In addition to those two, nine other singles peaked at positions below the top 50 on the Hot 100, and additional singles reached the R&B, Adult Contemporary and Bubbling Under charts.

• "Love Is a Hurtin' Thing" - 1966, #13 (also #1 R&B)
• "Dead End Street" - 1967, #29
• "Show Business" - 1967, #45
• "Your Good Thing (Is About to End)" - 1969, #18 (sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc)^[9]
• "A Natural Man" - 1971, #17
• "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine" - 1976, #2 (also #1 R&B and #1 Easy Listening); another certified gold for sales of one million copies
• "Lady Love" - 1978, #24

Personal life[link]

In January 2003, Rawls was arrested in Albuquerque, New Mexico, after getting into an argument with his then-girlfriend, Nina Malek Inman. During the course of the argument, he reportedly shoved her resulting in one charge of battery on a household member. The charge was later dropped. Rawls and Inman married later that same year.

On December 19, 2005, the Associated Press reported that Rawls tried to annul his two-year marriage to wife Inman Rawls, who had been acting as his business manager, after it was discovered she had made unauthorized transfers amounting to nearly $350,000 from his bank account into an account solely controlled by her. She later stated that she had transferred the funds to protect them from one of Rawls' daughters from a previous relationship.

It was also announced in December 2005 that Rawls was being treated for cancer in both his lungs and brain. With his wife by his side, Lou Rawls succumbed to his illness on January 6, 2006, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California.

In addition to his wife of two years and their young son, Aiden Allen Rawls; Rawls left behind adult daughter Louanna Rawls (a wardrobe stylist and future Launch My Line contestant); adult daughter Kendra Smith; adult son Lou Rawls, Jr.; and three granddaughters: Brianna, Katrina, and Chayil.

Lou Rawls's tomb at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)

Rawls is the subject of an upcoming biopic, tentatively titled Love Is a Hurtin' Thing: The Lou Rawls Story. Rawls' son, Lou Rawls Jr., is the author of the script. Rawls will reportedly be portrayed by the actor Isaiah Washington.^[10]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• 1962 Stormy Monday (Blue Note)
• 1962 Black and Blue (Capitol)
• 1963 Tobacco Road (Capitol)
• 1964 For You My Love (Capitol)
• 1965 Lou Rawls and Strings (Capitol)
• 1965 Nobody But Lou (Capitol)
• 1966 Live! (Capitol)
• 1966 The Soul-Stirring Gospel Sounds of the Pilgrim Travelers (Capitol)
• 1966 Soulin' (Capitol)
• 1966 Carryin' On (Capitol)
• 1967 Too Much! (Capitol)
• 1967 That's Lou (Capitol)
• 1967 Merry Christmas Ho! Ho! Ho! (Capitol)
• 1968 Feelin' Good (Capitol)
• 1968 You're Good for Me (Capitol)
• 1969 The Way It Was: The Way It Is (Capitol)
• 1969 Your Good Thing (Capitol)
• 1969 Close-Up (Capitol)
• 1970 You've Made Me So Very Happy (Capitol)
• 1970 Bring It On Home (Capitol)
• 1971 Down Here on the Ground/I'd Rather Drink Muddy Water (Capitol)
• 1971 Natural Man (MGM)
• 1972 Silk & Soul (MGM)
• 1972 A Man of Value (MGM)
• 1973 Live at the Century Plaza (Rebound)
• 1975 She's Gone (Bell)
• 1976 All Things in Time (Philadelphia International)
• 1976 Naturally (Polydor)
• 1977 Unmistakably Lou (Philadelphia International)
• 1977 When You Hear Lou, You've Heard It All (Philadelphia International)
• 1978 Lou Rawls Live (Philadelphia International)
• 1979 Let Me Be Good to You (Philadelphia International)
• 1979 In Concert: Recorded with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra [live] (Dep Entertainment)
• 1980 Sit Down and Talk to Me (Philadelphia International)
• 1981 Shades of Blue (Philadelphia International)
• 1982 Now Is the Time (Epic)
• 1983 When the Night Comes ( Epic)
• 1984 Close Company (Epic)
• 1986 Love All Your Blues Away (Epic)
• 1988 Family Reunion (Gamble-Huff)
• 1989 At Last (Blue Note)
• 1990 It's Supposed to Be Fun (Blue Note)
• 1992 Portrait of the Blues (Capitol)
• 1993 Christmas Is the Time (Manhattan)
• 1995 Holiday Cheer (Cema Special Markets)
• 1995 Merry Little Christmas (EMI Special Products)
• 1998 Unforgettable (Going For)
• 1998 Seasons 4 U (Rawls & Brokaw)
• 1999 A Legendary Night Before Christmas (Platinum Disc)
• 2000 Swingin' Christmas (EMI-Capitol Special Markets)
• 2001 I'm Blesseseek (Malaco)
• 2001 Christmas Will Be Christmas (Capitol)
• 2002 Oh Happy Day (601)
• 2003 Rawls Sings Sinatra (Savoy Jazz)
• 2003 Trying as Hard as I Can (Allegiance)

^[11]

Chart singles[link]

Filmography[link]

• 2000 Jazz Channel Presents Lou Rawls (Image)
• 2003 In Concert (BMG/Image)
• 2005 Prime Concerts: In Concert with Edmonton Symphony (Amalgamated)
• 2006 The Lou Rawls Show: With Duke Ellington & Freda Payne
• 2007 Live in Concert: North Sea Jazz. 1992-1995 (E-M-S)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Lou Rawls at Find a Grave
• Official Lou Rawls Website
• Lou Rawls Biography
• AllTogether - Navy recruiting video ("Tell 'em Lou Rawls sent ya")
• Lou Rawls interviewed on the Pop Chronicles (1969).
• Obituary in the Star Gazette
• "Lou Rawls talks to Spencer Leigh", 21 February 1990. Conducted when Rawls was promoting ‘At Last’ in England.

Mary Lou McDonald TD
Teachta Dála
Incumbent
Assumed office 26 February 2011
Constituency	Dublin Central
Vice President of Sinn Féin
Incumbent
Assumed office 2009
Preceded by	Pat Doherty
Member of the European Parliament
In office June 2004 – June 2009
Constituency	Dublin
Personal details
Born	(1969-05-01) 1 May 1969 (age 43) Dublin
Nationality	Irish
Political party	Sinn Féin
Spouse(s)	Martin McDonald
Children	2
Alma mater	Trinity College, Dublin, University of Limerick, Dublin City University

Mary Lou McDonald (born 1 May 1969 in Dublin) is an Irish politician, the current Vice President of Sinn Féin and a Teachta Dála (TD) for Dublin Central.^[1] McDonald was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP), from 2004–2009 representing the Dublin constituency.

Background[link]

Mary Lou McDonald was educated in Trinity College, Dublin, the University of Limerick and Dublin City University studying English Literature, European Integration Studies and Human Resource Management.^[2] Her career to date has her involved in diverse roles, including consultant for the Irish Productivity Centre, Institute of European Affairs researcher and trainer in the Partnership Unit of the Educational and Training Services Trust.^[2]

Originally a member of Fianna Fáil, she left the party in 1998 in opposition to its economic and social policies. Her sister, Joanne, is a member of the republican group éirígí.^[3]

Dáil Éireann[link]

McDonald first ran for office when she unsuccessfully contested the Dublin West constituency for Sinn Féin at the 2002 general election polling 8.02% of first preference votes. She was an unsuccessful candidate in the Dublin Central constituency at the 2007 general election. She contested the Dublin Central again in the 2011 general election this time picking up 13.1% of first preference; she was successful in picking up the last seat in the constituency ahead of the Fianna Fáil candidate Mary Fitzpatrick.^[4]

European Parliament[link]

In 2004 McDonald became Sinn Féin's first Member of the European Parliament in the Republic of Ireland when she was elected at the 2004 European Parliament election for the Dublin constituency, receiving over 60,000 first preference votes.^[5] She served as one of two Sinn Féin MEPs (the other being Bairbre de Brún representing Northern Ireland). During her time in office she led the Sinn Féin "No" campaign against the Treaty of Lisbon, which was rejected in Ireland 2008. McDonald sat as a member of the European Parliament's Employment and Social Affairs Committee, and as a substitute of the Civil Liberties Committee.

For the 2009 European Parliament election, the number of seats for Dublin in the European Parliament were reduced from four to three. McDonald was in a tight race for the last seat against Fianna Fáil's Eoin Ryan and the Socialist Party leader Joe Higgins. McDonald lost her seat to the Socialist Party candidate, being eliminated at the fifth count. Her first preference vote had declined to nearly 48,000.^[6] It was announced that she would be running in Dublin Central in the 2011 General Election, and she was elected as a TD on the eighth count.^[7]

Party activity[link]

She is a member of the Sinn Féin Ard Chomhairle (party leadership), as of 2001,^[8] and is the party's Vice President, replacing Pat Doherty following the Sinn Féin Ard Fheis on 22 February 2009.^[9]

In September 2003, Mary Lou McDonald attracted criticism when she spoke at a rally in Dublin to commemorate Seán Russell, an IRA leader during World War II.^[10][11][12]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Mary Lou McDonald

• Mary Lou McDonald's page on the Sinn Féin website

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (January 2010)

Mary Lou (born March 15, 1992) is an American actress. She is known for playing Mary Ferry on the Nickelodeon television series Unfabulous.

Career[link]

At age 8, she chose to pursue a career in television and film.

Mary Lou’s show business career started at age six when she entertained as a member of Singing Solo (a children's singing group located in La Mesa, CA) at a local street fair with a rendition of The Good Ship Lollipop. After this performance, she chose acting as her career. Over the next few years, Lou went on to sing at over two dozen venues throughout Southern California, Texas and Tennessee, winning multiple local, state, regional, national and world championship titles.

Mary Lou also filmed a guest-starring role on Phil of the Future, as a math-nerd named Alex, in Good Phil Hunting. Mary also appeared on Future Girls: Adventures in Marine Biology and Bad Mother's Handbook and guest starred on What should you do?. More recently Mary was on Glee. She continues to audition daily for feature films, television and voiceover.

Personal life[link]

She is the cousin of actress Danneel Harris. Mary Lou was born in California.

Today, Mary Lou is a featured artist at charity events with her live country-western show^{[citation needed]}.

Filmography[link]

External links[link]

• Mary Lou at the Internet Movie Database
• Unfabulous Official Site

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