Died On This Date (June 30, 2011) Jimmy Roselli / Popular Italian-American Crooner
themusicsover Jimmy Roselli
1925 – June 30, 2011
Jimmy Roselli was an American pop singer who made his mark during the ’50s and ’60s. Considered one of the most important Italian-American singers of the era, Roselli could easily hold court with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Perry Como. He had not even hit his teens when he began singing in local Hoboken, New Jersey clubs, and when Roselli was 14, he got his first break by winning a radio amateur hour. His next one came in 1946 when he was offered a slot on a Jimmy Durante bill. Durante was so impressed by his singing, that he made theater management double Roselli’s pay. And since Durante was one of the most popular performers at the time, Roselli continued to win new fans as he continued to perform with him. What made him so popular was that he had a perfect pitch for the traditional songs of Naples. That endeared him to the immigrants who longed for the music from back home. Over the course of his long career, Roselli released over 30 albums and scored hits with “There Must Be A Way, ” “Mala Femmina,” and “When Your Old Wedding Ring Was New” to name a few. He was also a popular live draw, performing sell-out shows in Atlantic City, and at New York’s Copacabana and Palace Theater. It was at the latter that he and comic Pat Cooper partnered for a popular two-man show. It should be noted that unlike Sinatra, Roselli apparently kept the mob at arm’s reach, by not letting them give his career any assistance. For that, he shared a love/hate relationship with them – they loved his music, but hated the fact that they couldn’t control his career. Roselli retired in 2004, moved to Florida, and on June 30, 2011, passed away at the age of 85.
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Jimmy Durante was a curiously popular singer and actor of the 1920s through the 1970s. Not known for having a traditional singing voice or leading-man good looks, Durante nonetheless became one of entertainments most popular fixtures during his career. After learning to play ragtime piano, Durante dropped out of school while still in his early teens to pursue a career in music. He began by playing in several ragtime and New Orleans jazz bands. He scored his first hit with “Inka Dinka Do” in 1934, and soon went on to become a popular draw on Broadway. Durante started appearing in popular films during the early ’30s, and would do so until 1963’s It’s A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. And of course, Durante also conquered radio and television throughout his career. His face that only a mother could love was very familiar on TV through most of his later career. He was also the narrator for the wildly popular Frosty The Snowman cartoon special that has aired every year since 1969. In ailing health during his final years, Jimmy Durante passed away from pneumonia on January 29, 1980. He was 86 years old.
Billy Hill was a Songwriter Hall of Fame tunesmith who penned several hits throughout the ’30s. Born in the Boston, Hill studied music and played the violin and piano, eventually earning a living at it as part of dance bands. His first hit as a songwriter came with 1933’s “The Last Roundup,” which made that year’s The Hit Parade and lead to him becoming one of Tin Pan Alley’s most successful writers. His most well-known first came to prominence in 1936. “The Glory Of Love” was made into a hit that year by