Helen O'Connell
Helen O'Connell was born in Lima, Ohio, United States on May 23rd, 1920 and is the Rock Singer. At the age of 73, Helen O'Connell biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, and networth are available.
At 73 years old, Helen O'Connell physical status not available right now. We will update Helen O'Connell's height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, and measurements.
Helen O'Connell (May 23, 1920 – September 9, 1993) was an American singer, actress, and hostess described as "the quintessential big band singer of the 1940s."
Early life
O'Connell, a native of Lima, Ohio, grew up in Toledo, Ohio. By the time she was 15, she and her older sister, Alice, were singing duets in clubs and hotels, as well as on radio stations in Toledo.
Personal life and death
From 1941 to 1960, O'Connell was married to wealthy playboy Clifford Smith, Jr., and he had four children. She died in 1991 to arranger-conductor-composer Frank De Vol. Following a battle with cancer, it came to an end with her death in San Diego, California, on September 9, 1993. Her funeral took place at St. Paul's Catholic Church in Westwood, California, where she was a member.
Career
O'Connell began her career as a big-band singer with Larry Funk and his Band of a Thousand Melodies. Jimmy Dorsey's manager discovered her while playing with Funk's band in Greenwich Village.
With "Green Eyes," "Amapola," "You," and "Yours," O'Connell joined the Dorsey band in 1939 and had one of her best selling hits in the early 1940s. Bob Eberly crooned the song, which Helen later revived in an up-tempo style in each of these Latin-influenced numbers. O'Connell was voted by Down Beat readers as the best female singer in 1940 and 1941, and the 1940 Metronome magazine award for best female vocalist was won by O'Connell. The Associated Press referred to O'Connell as "the darling of GIs during World War II" in a 1993 obituary column.
After her first marriage in 1943, O'Connell retired from show business. When her marriage ended in 1951, she resurrectened her career, winning some chart success and making regular appearances on television. Top Tunes, a summer replacement service for Perry Como's CBS television show, was produced in 1953 by O'Connell and Bob Eberly. Ray Anthony and his orchestra appeared on the show as well. O'Connell, a support act on the historic tour headlined by singer Johnnie Ray's 1954 tour of Australia, set a new box office record for Australia that stood up to The Beatles' 1964 visit (and during which local media announced that O'Connell was romantically linked to Ray). In 1956, O'Connell appeared on CBS television as the featured singer on The Russ Morgan Show. Helen O'Connell Show, a 15-minute program on NBC, appeared twice a week.
Helen was one of the first "girls" on NBC's The Today Show, a teen protester who said, "I wasn't hired as a singer, I was hired as a consultant, a pleasant change." She appeared in that capacity from 1956 to 1958.
Helen co-hosted Here's Hollywood, a Desilu-NBC show aimed at celebrities, much in their own homes. Bob Barker, a veteran of the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants, was nominated for an Emmy in 1976 for her coverage of the Miss Universe pageant. With Bing Crosby, Johnny Mercer, and Dean Martin, O'Connell performed duets. In 1981, she also sang the National Anthem for Super Bowl XV. The Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra's 1942 recording of Brazil was a 2009 addition to the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Helen was on display in the KCET's "Those Fabulous 40s" interview in 1992, along with The Andrews Sisters and Kay Starr. On August 14, 1993, she appeared at the Valley Forge Music Festival in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.