Eugenie Baird
Eugenie Baird | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Born | Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania, U.S. | November 19, 1923
Died | June 12, 1988 Brewster, New York, U.S. | (aged 64)
Occupation(s) | Singer |
Eugenie Baird (November 19, 1923 – June 12, 1988) was an American big-band, jazz, and radio singer.[1][2]
Career
Baird was from Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania.[3] She was the daughter of Eugene Baird, whose obituary described him as a construction foreman,[4] but another source said that she came "from a theatrical family."[5] She sang in choral groups in grammar school.[6]
Radio
Baird's early experiences in radio included a thrice-weekly program of her own on KDKA in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She gained that spot via audition as a high school student.[3][6]
For a year, Baird was Bing Crosby's singing partner on Kraft Music Hall on NBC.[7] She hosted the radio program Eugenie Baird Sings on ABC in 1946 and she "was selected from more than 50 girls to sing the top tunes of all time."[8] on Paul Whiteman's Forever Tops weekly program (also on ABC) that same year[9] For the job, she moved from New York to Hollywood. The show debuted on January 21, 1946[10] and continued into 1947.[1] She sang on The Jack Smith Show on NBC[11] on The Alec Templeton Show (1947–1948), and Don McNeill's Breakfast Club.[12]
Beginning February 12, 1949, she became the "featured female singer" on
Baird signed with Lang–Worth in 1950 and was part of the Remember When series of transcriptions.[14] In 1954, she sang with Earl Wrightson on Musicland U.S.A. on CBS.[15]
Big bands
In a 1944 review, jazz writer George T. Simon described Baird as "the prettiest girl I've ever seen in front of a band, and, in addition, the possessor of one of the prettiest voices I've ever heard in back of a microphone."[16] Baird "got her start...with Maurice Spitalny and Benny Burton"[17] and sang with Jan Savitt before joining Tony Pastor for 1942-1943.[1] In 1943 she became the vocalist for the Casa Loma Orchestra
Vaudeville and night clubs
In 1947, Baird was the featured vocalist with Henny Youngman's vaudeville show, "making her N.Y. vaude[ville] debut."[18] She also appeared with Ray Eberle at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in August and September 1947.[19] In September 1948, she was the headliner at the Copa nightclub in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[3]
Stage and film
Baird had the ingenue role[15] in the Broadway production Angel in the Wings (1947–1948).[20]
With
Jingles and commercial recordings
In 1950, Baird was active in making radio jingles that an article in Billboard magazine described as "songs which entertain."[22] She and others worked for George R. Nelson to record jingles and (in the case of the Pepsi-Cola Company) records that the company could "distribute for home use" on phonographs.[22]
In October 1981, Baird sang at a jazz festival in New York City. An article in The New York Times reported that Baird, "who sang with Glen Gray's Casa Loma Orchestra and who has been inactive for a number of years, will be making a return appearance."[23]
Discography
- The Bells of San Raquel with Tony Pastor (Bluebird, 1941)[24]
- So Near and Yet so Far with Tony Pastor (Bluebird, 1941)[25]
- My Heart Tells Me with Glen Gray (Decca, 1943)
- Suddenly It's Spring with Glen Gray (Decca, 1944)
- Mel-Tones (Decca, 1945)[26]
- Baby, It's Cold Outside/The Hucklebuck with Cab Calloway (Hi-Tone, 1949)
- Blue Room with Bob Curtis Quartet (Hi-Tone, 1949)
- Candy Kisses with Bob Curtis Quartet (Hi-Tone, 1949)
- How It Lies, How It Lies (Hi-Tone, 1949)
- Hurry, Hurry, Hurry (Hi-Tone, 1949)
- Eugene Baird Sings, Duke's Boys Play Ellington (Design, 1959)[27]
References
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8108-8204-1. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
- ISBN 978-0-7864-2834-2.
- ^ a b c "Eugenie Baird Comes to Copa". Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh Post Gazette. September 20, 1948. p. 16. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
- ^ "Father of Singer Dead". Pennsylvania, Hazleton. The Plain Speaker. January 19, 1951. p. 31. Retrieved November 9, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Radio Roundup from KEI" (PDF). Radio Life. December 17, 1944. p. 9. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
- ^ a b "KECA mike memos" (PDF). Radio Life. March 31, 1946. p. 10. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
- ^ "They Sing While Templeton Plays". Connecticut, Naugatuck. Naugatuck Daily News. July 19, 1947. p. 1.
- ^ Vale, Virginia (September 25, 1946). "Star Dust". New Jersey, Hopewell. The Hopewell Herald. p. 3. Retrieved November 8, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
- ISBN 978-0-7864-4513-4.
- ^ "Eugenie Baird Pacted For New Whiteman Show". Variety. January 16, 1946. p. 30. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- ^ Jose (June 11, 1947). "Radio Reviews: Jack Smith". Variety. p. 38. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- ISBN 978-0-7864-5149-4.
- ^ "Inside Stuff-Radio". Variety. January 26, 1949. p. 43. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- ^ "Magical Fifth". Broadcasting. April 24, 1950. p. 52. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- ^ a b Herman, Pinky (July 8, 1952). "Television -- Radio". Motion Picture Daily. p. 4. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
- ISBN 978-0028724300.
- ^ Cohen (October 8, 1941). "Stanley, Pitt". Variety. p. 46. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- ^ "House Reviews: State, N.Y." Variety. August 20, 1947. p. 49. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- ^ "Atlantic City Readies for Swan Song; Race Meet Under '46, Nitery Biz Dived". Variety. August 27, 1947. p. 46. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- ^ "Eugenie Baird". Playbill Vault. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
- ^ "Smoke Rings (Univ.)". Motion Picture Herald. August 7, 1943. p. 1472. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- ^ a b "Pepsi-Cola" (PDF). Billboard. February 13, 1950. p. 74. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- ^ Palmer, Robert (October 9, 1981). "Jazz Swings Through Night at St. Peter's Marathon". The New York Times. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
- ^ Idol, W. Chase Jr. (October 19, 1941). "Records". North Carolina, High Point. The High Point Enterprise. p. 7. Retrieved November 9, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Idol, W. Chase Jr. (September 14, 1941). "Records". North Carolina, High Point. The High Point Enterprise. p. 12. Retrieved November 9, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Music Popularity Chart". Billboard. September 1, 1945. p. 23. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- ^ "Big Design April Issue". Billboard. April 25, 1960. p. 14. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
External links
- Eugenie Baird discography at Discogs
- Eugenie Baird at IMDb