DCS: leonard cohen
I did my best, it wasn’t much I couldn’t feel, so I tried to touch I’ve told the truth, I didn’t come to fool you And even though it all went wrong I’ll stand before the Lord of Song With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah
Archive of posts filed under the dead celebrity spotlight category.
DCS: kay kendall
What was that magical power Rex Harrison had over women? This is the third story I’ve presented about a woman who was obsessed with the late actor. Kay Kendall appeared in both comedies and dramas, including a Golden Globe-winning performance in 1957 musical Les Girls, opposite Gene Kelly. She had a lengthy romance with Charlie …
DCS: lupe vélez
Lupe Velez got her show business start singing and dancing in Mexican vaudeville in the 1920s. She was recommended to American theater director Richard Bennett (father of actress Joan Bennett) by a friend who had seen her perform. Bennett needed an actress to play a Mexican cantina singer for a play he was staging and Lupe fit …
DCS: pete burns
It was pretty apparent that Pete Burns was unique when, at 14, he was sent to the headmaster’s office for arriving at school one morning with no eyebrows, flaming red hair and one gigantic earring. While working as a clerk in a Liverpool record store, Pete formed his first band, the short-lived Mystery Girls. He then …
DCS: lesley gore
Lesley Goldstein was the voice of youth, decades before Kurt Cobain had the moniker thrust upon him by the “grunge” generation. At 16, the young, aspiring singer (now using the surname “Gore”) pored over hundred of demos with her novice producer, Quincy Jones. The pair finally agreed on a melancholy tune about a poor birthday girl …
DCS: phyllis creore
For fifteen minutes, every Friday night, US soldiers fighting in World War II were comforted by the songs and stories of “Phyllis Jeanne, your Canteen Girl.” Broadcast on the NBC network from 1942 until the end of the war, Phyllis Creore was a friendly voice for homesick troops. She used the name “Phyllis Jeanne” because …
DCS: dennis wilson
Dennis Wilson was the self-proclaimed “black sheep” of the Wilson family. At his mother’s insistence, he was admitted to his brother Brian’s fledgling surf band, The Beach Boys, in 1961. Ironically, Dennis was the only member who actually surfed. Playing on the strength of a few school-sanctioned drum lessons, he recognized his own musical limitations and …
DCS: herschell gordon lewis
I have a friend named Sherry who is a writer. Although, she has written a novel, she spent a good portion of her career as a marketing copy writer. Once, in an online conversation, she mentioned a book on marketing techniques by Herschell Gordon Lewis. I questioned her about the author. She said he had …
DCS: lou pearlman
Lou Pearlman wrote a business plan for a class project and soon put his theory into action. He started a helicopter taxi service in New York City, beginning with a single helicopter. He became interested in blimps and trained with a German businessman. He moved to Orlando, Florida and started an advertising business with blimps, securing …
DCS: cilla black
Cilla White took a job as a hat check girl at Liverpool’s Cavern Club in hopes it would advance her chances at being a singer. She eventually got the chance to sing, performing with club regulars Rory Storm and the Hurricanes and other local bands. She also struck up a friendship with a group of guys …