Died On This Date (March 14, 2010) Cherie DeCastro / The DeCastro Sisters
themusicsover Cherie DeCastro
September 1, 1922 – March 14, 2010
Cherie DeCastro was one-third of the original trio of singing siblings, the DeCastro Sisters. Formed while still young schoolgirls, they liked to think of themselves as the Cuban Andrews Sisters. In 1947, the trio sang on the premiere telecast of Los Angeles’ first television station, KTLA, and did it again to celebrate the station’s 50th anniversary in 1997. Their 1947 performance was on the first television broadcast west of the Mississippi River. That same year, the DeCastro Sisters made a memorable appearance in the popular film, Copacabana. During the ’50s, the DeCastro Sisters began making records and became a popular concert draw in Las Vegas. Their 1954 single, “Teach Me Tonight,” sold over 5 million copies. Cherie DeCastro died of pneumonia on March 14, 2010. She was 87 years old.
What You Should Own
Kathryn Grayson was an MGM contract performer who starred in several of their musical films during their golden age of the ’40s and ’50s. Due to her beautiful soprano, she was a featured singer in such films as Show Boat, Kiss Me Kate, and Anchors Aweigh. Grayson also performed in several operas such as La Boheme and Madama Butterfly. She also played Queen Guenevere in the 1962 Broadway version of Camelot, replacing Julie Andrews and then going on the successful U.S. tour of the production. Kathryn Grayson was 88 when she died of natural causes on February 17, 2010.
Nat King Cole was an internationally renowned jazz singer, songwriter and pianist who broke many color barriers for African-American musicians. He is rightfully considered one of America’s musical treasures. Cole learned to play the piano as a child in his father’s church, and by the time he was in his mid teens, he was well on his way with a career in music. He made his first recording with his brother, Eddie, in 1936, and within a year, he moved to Los Angeles to be closer to the recording industry. In 1943, he became one of the first acts to sign with Capitol Records and when the label built its iconic round headquarters in Hollywood in 1956, it was dubbed “the house that Nat built.” Over the course of his career recording for Capitol, Cole released such now-standards as “L-O-V-E,” “Mona Lisa,” “Unforgettable,” and “Route 66.” In November of 1956, NBC caused a stir when it debuted The Nat King Cole Show, the first of its kind to be hosted by an African-American. In 1958, Cole released the widely successful Cole en Espanol, likely the first collection of Spanish songs recorded by an African-American. It spawned three similar Cole collections in the coming years. A heavy smoker through most of his life – he believed the smoking enhanced his voice – Nat King Cole died of cancer on February 15, 1965. He was 45.