Dorothy Shay
This article needs additional citations for verification. (September 2010) |
Dorothy Shay | |
---|---|
Actress | |
Instrument(s) | Vocals |
Years active | 1945–1978 |
Labels | Columbia, Capitol, Imperial |
Dorothy Shay (April 11, 1921 – October 22, 1978) was an American popular comedic recording artist in the late 1940s and early 1950s, who later became a character actress. She was known as the "
Early life
Shay was born Dorothy Sims in
"The Park Avenue Hillbillie"
She signed with
In her singing engagements, she performed dressed as a sophisticated urbanite while talking like a rural Southerner. She was popular in nightclubs, radio, and television. The 1951
Shay was the musical guest on the second (television) season premiere of The Jack Benny Program in November 1951. She performed at Dwight D. Eisenhower's Inaugural Ball in 1953. She recorded for Capitol Records and Imperial Records where she recorded a rockabilly song titled "Hunky Dory".[6] In 1970 she appeared as Widow Krebs in the TV Western The Virginian in the episode titled "You Can Lead a Horse to Water."
Personal life
She was married briefly to Dick Looman from 1958 to 1959. After a period of inactivity in the 1960s, she returned to show business as a character actress in the 1970s. She had a recurring role as Thelma, first owner of the Dew Drop Inn, in the TV series The Waltons.[7]
Death
Shay died of a heart attack on October 22, 1978, in Santa Monica, California. Upon her death, the writers of The Waltons wrote her character off, with the mention that she sold the Dew Drop Inn and moved to California.[8]
Discography
Title | Details | Peak |
---|---|---|
US [9][10] | ||
Dorothy Shay Sings |
|
1 |
Dorothy Shay Goes to Town |
|
1 |
References
- ^ "Dorothy Shay". IMDb.com. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ "Pop Chronicles 1940s Program #17".
- ^ "Best-Selling Popular Record Albums". Billboard. October 25, 1947. Retrieved March 19, 2015.
- ^ "Columbia's Initial 101 LPS Catalog".
- ^ "First solo female to reach No.1 on the US albums chart".
- ^ "dorothy shay records and CDs". MusicStack.com. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ Dorothy Shay profile, imdb.com; accessed March 19, 2015.
- ^ Profile[permanent dead link], tv.com; accessed March 19, 2015.
- ^ "The Billboard – The world's foremost amusement weekly: Best-Selling Popular Record Albums" (PDF). Billboard. August 2, 1947. p. 30. Retrieved March 21, 2019 – via AmericanRadioHistory.
- ^ "The Billboard – The world's foremost amusement weekly: Best-Selling Popular Record Albums" (PDF). Billboard. January 24, 1948. p. 54. Retrieved October 29, 2019 – via AmericanRadioHistory.
External links
- The Dorothy Shay Fan Pages Archived October 27, 2009, at the Wayback Machine; no longer functional Nov 23, 2019.
- Big Bands and Big Names: Dorothy Shay, Bigbandsandbignames.com; accessed March 19, 2015.