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Rosemary
Clooney
1928-2002
Recording
Artist, Film
Rosemary Clooney was one of the most popular
singers in the 1950's. Her lengthy career and her personal
life were full of ups and downs. She was loved not only for
her talent but for her energy and perseverance. Rosemary was
born on May 23, 1928 in Maysville,  Kentucky
to Andy & Frances Clooney. Both of her parents were Irish-Americans
with her mother's maternal family being the Guilfoyles. She
would have two younger siblings Betty & Nick. Nick also
made a career in entertainment as a talk-show host on radio
and TV and also as a journalist. Rosemary loved her Irish
heritage. She named her autobiography "This for Remembrance:
The Autobiography of Rosemary Clooney, an Irish-American Singer."
But her early years were tough. The kids
were shuttled between their alcoholic father and their mother
who, as a dressmaker, travelled constantly for a chain of
dress shops. When Rosemary was 13 her mother left to marry
a sailor in California and when World War II ended her father
left to celebrate, taking all of the household money, and
never returned. From then on Rosemary vowed to keep her family
together and although she would go through many hardships,
her family still praises her for all she did to keep them
together.
She began her career in 1945 singing duets
with her sister Betty for WLW Radio in Cincinnati, Ohio, followed
by appearances with local bands. This brought them to the
attention of Tony Pastor who was passing through Ohio. In
1947, they joined the Pastor band as the Clooney Sisters,
making their debut at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City. After
two years on the road with its one-night stands, Betty decided
to return to Cincinnati.
Rosemary struck out on her own and headed
for New York. Almost immediately she was signed to a recording
contract by Columbia Records. Her timing was perfect. In 1949,
the big band era was coming to a close and the "girl
singers," such as Doris Day, Kay Starr and Peggy Lee
were beginning to emerge as recording stars.
In 1951, Mitch Miller, the reigning monarch
of Columbia, convinced Rosemary to record a novelty song,
"Come On-A My House". She felt the song was demeaning.
Much to her surprise it was an immediate success. This one
song catapulted her to stardom, and the next few years became
an incredible whirlwind of professional activity.
Between 1951 and 1960 Rosemary had 31 charted
hits. Four of them went to #1; Come On-A My House in 1951;
Half as Much in 1952; Hey There and This Ole House in 1954.
Four other songs reached the top ten.
In 1968 she was present at the assassination
of Robert F. Kennedy. This event along with her troubled marriage
to Hollywood actor Jose Ferrer, and her addiction to drugs
led to nervous breakdown. For years Rosemary had been trying
to hide her addiction.
The rock revolution and a decision to spend
more time with her family resulted in Clooney going into semi-retirement.
She returned in the late 1970's, singing with renewed power
and confidence while making swing-influenced dates and combo
sessions for the Concord record label (jazz). Her now famous
nephew, George Clooney used to be Rosemary's chauffeur in
Hollywood. In between driving Rosemary and her Hollywood friends
around, George would audition for movie roles and commercials.
She continued singing through the 1980-1990's,
doing standards, repertory albums, and demonstrating a resiliency
and energy that validates her position among the greatest jazz-based
vocalists in American history. In 2001 Rosemary toured through
England, Ireland, Hawaii, New York City and many other cities
in-between. On December 15, 2001 she gave her last concert and
she died of cancer on June 29, 2002
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