Betty Wright started singing as a child. She performed with her family gospel vocal group, Echoes of Joy, before switching to rhythm & blues. She was spotted by a Miami record label owner who signed 12 year-old Betty to a contract. She released a few songs that gained local recognition. In 1972, Betty released her …
Slim Galliard’s early life is sketchy, as he offered different origin stories to different people. He did, however, serve in World War II as a bomber pilot, briefly interrupting his successful music career. He insisted that he worked as a hat maker in Greece and a hearse driver turned rum-runner in Detroit, but these are …
Oh boy! Did I love Pearl Bailey! She was a terrific singer and actress with a delightful personality. Pearl was deservedly honored with a number of awards during her lifetime, including a special Tony Award, a Daytime Emmy, the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 1976 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which she …
Abandoned by his parents and shuffled around from family member to family member, Winston McIntosh never lost his sense of determination. Living in the Trenchtown section of Kingston, Jamaica, teenage Winston was fascinated by a street musician. He watched the man play his guitar for endless hours every day. Winston concentrated on the man’s intricate …
In 1963, music impresario Richie Barrett was looking for the next “big thing.” He was responsible for discovering and promoting such popular and, more importantly, top-selling musical acts like Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers and Little Anthony & The Imperials. Barrett assembled a trio of Philadelphia teenagers and dubbed his new group The Three Degrees. …
I saw Lilies of the Field when I was a kid. I watched it with my mom, who ignited my love of movies. She was also a big fan of Sidney Poitier’s. I remember loving the film and being just riveted — captivated — every moment that Sidney Poitier was on the screen. He was …
This is how I choose to remember Meat Loaf. It’s 1978 and he’s pointing an accusatory finger at an overly-cosmeticed Karla DeVito. His ruffled tuxedo shirt is untucked and sweaty and he’s praying for the end of time. No politics. No pandemics. Just paradise… and a light from the dashboard.
Just after her graduation from high school, a talent scout from Warner Brothers signed Lynn Baggett to a contract. The studio made up a backstory for Lynn, claiming wins in a number of beauty pageants. The fiery redhead was cast in a number of uncredited roles in films, including The Adventures of Mark Twain, Mildred …
There’s this phenomena called “Jewish Geography.” I don’t know how far it reaches or if it is known by other names in other parts of the country, but in the great I-95 Corridor that runs from New York City to roughly just north of Baltimore (including a big geographical leap to the many tribesman transplants …
She was a singer, an icon, a pioneer, an inspiration and a fighter. Ronnie Spector passed away in January 2022. A fighter to the end.
