Died On This Date (February 14, 2012) Dory Previn / Renowned Songwriter

Dory Previn
October 22, 1925 – February 14, 2012

Dory Previn was an American singer-songwriter and lyricist who counted several Academy Award nominations to her credit.  Beginning in the late ’50s, Previn, along with her then-husband and songwriting partner, Andre Previn, wrote numerous songs for such films as Pepe, Two for the Seesaw, and Valley of the Dolls.  Their songs have been recorded by such music luminaries as Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Bobby Darin, Dionne Warwick, and Sammy Davis, Jr., to name just a handful.  After parting ways with her husband in 1969, Previn launched a successful career as a singer-songwriter.  Over the next decade, she released a half-dozen albums, including 1972’s Reflections in a Mud Puddle, which Newsweek magazine named one of the best albums of the year, while the New York Times lauded it as one of the best singer-songwriters of 1972.   She went on to win two Emmys for music she created for television, and wrote two autobiographies as well as a one-woman play.  Dory Previn passed away on February 14, 2012.  She was 86.

Thanks to Harold Lepidus for the assist.

 

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Dory Previn

Died On This Date (January 8, 2009) Irving Bush / Big Band Trumpeter

Irving Bush
April 7, 1930 – January 8, 2009

irving-bush1Irving Bush was a respected big band trumpeter who, over the course of his lengthy career played with the likes of Nelson Riddle, Harry James, Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole and Ella Fitzgerald, to name a few.  During those early days, he worked as part of the studio orchestras at Warner Bros., MGM, 20th Century Fox and others.  During the early ’60s, he successfully auditioned for the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra where he stayed as either a performer or in management over the next three decades.  Irving Bush was 78 when he died of effects from myeloma on January 8, 2009.


Died On This Date (December 28, 2011) Kaye Stevens / Popular Singer & Actress During The ’60s

Kaye Stevens
July 21, 1933 – December 28, 2011

Kaye Stevens was a popular entertainer who initially found her audience during the 1960s.  Stevens’ big break came one night when Debbie Reynolds, who was headlining the Riviera in Las Vegas, fell ill.  Stevens was called in at the last-minute, and club bookers quickly took notice.  Before she knew it, Stevens was playing up and down the Las Vegas Strip and at clubs in New York City, Miami, Los Angeles, and beyond.  She even secured an opening slot on dates with the Rat Pack,  Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, and Sammy Davis, Jr. During the mid ’60s, Stevens visited Vietnam as part of one of Bob Hope’s popular USO Tours.  She released a handful of albums during her career as well.  Stevens was also a familiar face on television throughout the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s, appearing on numerous game shows and guest starring on several series programs.  Kaye Stevens was 79 when she passed away on December 28, 2011.  She had reportedly been suffering from breast cancer.

Thanks to Henk de Bruin at 2+ Printing for the assist.

 

Died On This Date (December 5, 2011) Violetta Villas / Polish Torch Singer; ’60s Las Vegas Star

Violetta Villas (Born Czesława Cieślak)
June 10, 1938 – December 5, 2011

Violetta Villas was a Polish soprano singer who, instead of taking the obvious route of opera, chose a career in pop music.  Known as much for her magnificent head of blond curls as her four-octave voice, Villas starred in six films and recorded nearly 300 songs in ten different languages.  In 1966, Villas was hired by the Dunes Hotel in Las Vegas to perform in their Casino de Paris.  Her run lasted until 1971, and along the way she was joined on stage by the likes of Frank Sinatra, Eartha Kitt, Barbra Streisand, and Paul Anka.  During the late ’70s, Villas returned to Poland to care for her dying mother, and was forced to hand her passport over to the Communist regime who forbade her from leaving the country for more than ten years.  She was able to return to the world stage in 1987 so she toured the United States and Canada one last time.  Violetta Villas was 73 when she passed away on December 5, 2011.  Cause of death was not immediately released.

Thanks to Henk de Bruin at 2+ Printing for the assist.



Died On This Date (September 19, 2011) Hal Roach / Chicago Jazz Musician

Hal Roach (Born Rochester Coleman)
1929 – September 19, 2011

Hal Roach was a jazz pianist who, for the better part of 36 years, held court at the popular Eli’s The Place For Steak in Chicago.  Roach was just a young child living in Mississippi when he learned to play the piano on a piece of cardboard.  He eventually moved to Chicago with his family, and after serving in the US Army in Korea, Roach focused on his music and soon landed the gig at The Place For Steak.  In 1994, Roach was at the piano when in walked President Bill Clinton who was in town for a fundraiser.  Despite being forewarned by the Secret Service to keep it on the down-low, Roach immediately kicked into “Hail To The Chief.”  Over the course of his career, Roach also entertained the likes of Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, and Liza Minnelli. As reported in the Chicago Tribune, Hal Roach was 82 when he passed away on September 19, 2011.

Thanks to Gary Case for the assist.