Doris Day was born Doris Mary Ann Kappelhoff in Cincinnati on April 3, 1924. She was named after the silent film actress, Doris Kenyon. She is of German ancestry and her parents both had a great love and appreciation for music. Her father was a music teacher and church organist. She began Read More
Profile of a Performer: George M. Cohan
George M. Cohan was a popular vaudeville and Broadway act. He was born July 3, 1878 in Rhode Island. He and his parents always insisted he was born on the 4th of July, 1878. He began performing with his parents and sister at a young age. Before he was able to walk, he was used Read More
Behind the Song: Turn! Turn! Turn!
Pete Seeger wrote the 1950s hit, “Turn! Turn! Turn! (to Everything There Is a Season)”. Most of the lyrics are adapted word for word from Ecclesiastes 3, which begins “for everything there is a season.” Seegar used the King James Version of the Bible when writing the song. The Biblical text was written by King Read More
Behind the Musical: West Side Story
The American musical, West Side Story, is based on Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. The story is set in the 1950s Upper West Side neighborhood in New York City. At that time, the area was an ethnic, blue-collar neighborhood. The musical, which was conceived and choreographed by Jerome Robbins, explores the rivalry and tension between the Read More
The Untold Story: Tutti Frutti
The invention of Rock n’ Roll has no definite founder. We all know that Elvis was the King of Rock n’Roll, but others such as Bill Haley and Little Richard also form the foundation of Rock n’Roll. Little Richard has gone so far as to call himself the “Architect of Rock and Roll.” On September Read More
Behind the Song: Puppy Love
Puppy Love was my parents favorite love song. My mom even has the song as her ringtone. Paul Anka wrote the song in 1960. At the time he was dating Annette Funicello and he wrote the song for her. The song hit number 2 on the Billboard 100 charts in the United States. The song Read More
Profile of a Performer: Gene Autry
Gene Autry gained fame as a singing cowboy, when his career began in the 1930s. He was born Orvon Grover Autry on September 29, 1907 in north Texas. He would work on his father’s ranch while he was still in school. After leaving school, his talents singing and playing the guitar led to the opportunity Read More
The Untold Story: Earth Angel
Earth Angel became a hit for Frankie Avalon, but how he was far from the first to record the song. The demo was recorded in a garage studio in 1954 and released on the B-side to “Hey Señorita.” The song quickly outshined “Hey Señorita.” One of the more popular recordings is by The Penguins. Their Read More
The Untold Story: The Dance
The Dance is Garth Brook’s signature song. The song was written by Tony Arata. Arata says on his website the inspiration for the song was a scene from the movie Peggy Sue Got Married. He writes, “Kathleen Turner discovers she can’t alter one aspect of her past without affecting the rest. No one gets to Read More
Frank Sinatra—The Early Years
Frank Sinatra was the biggest star of his day. He suffered numerous ups and downs throughout his career. Yet, how did it all begin? Francis Albert Sinatra was born on December 12, 1915. From all accounts his birth was extremely traumatic and he almost did not survive. He had a scar on his left ear, Read More