GREAT ACTRESSES

Janet Blair

2012-01-10T14:37:00.001-08:00

Janet Blair (1921 – 2007) was an American film and television actress and occasionally a singer.

Born as Martha Jane Lafferty (she took her acting surname from Blair County, Pennsylvania) in Altoona, Pennsylvania, she began her acting career on film in 1942, being placed under contract to Columbia Pictures. During World War II, she made a string of successful pictures, although she is today best remembered for playing Rosalind Russell's sister in My Sister Eileen (1942) and Rita Hayworth's best friend in Tonight and Every Night (1945). In the late 1940s, she was dropped by Columbia and did not return to pictures for several years. Instead, she took the lead role of Nellie Forbush in a production of the stage musical South Pacific, making more than 1,200 performances in three years.
She appeared on television on various variety shows and was also a summer replacement for Dinah Shore. She recorded an album entitled Flame Out for the Dico label. It was a collection of late night ballads like "Don't Explain" and "Then You've Never Been Blue".

She made a rare dramatic appearance in the 1962 British horror film Night of the Eagle. Her last performance was on television in a 1991 episode of Murder, She Wrote, starring Angela Lansbury.

Here is a famous dynamic song from a great TV show! Enjoy!

Ursula Andress

2011-11-16T16:01:00.001-08:00

This song, sung by the statuesque Ursula Andress in the 1st Bond movie "Dr. No", was actually performed by the British singer and actress Diana Coupland, who dubbed also Lana Turner.
Ursula Andress (born in 1936) is a Swiss actress who was a major sex symbol of the 1960's. She is best known for her role as the first Bond girl, in "Dr. No" (1962). Andress started her career as an art model in Rome, which led to her first roles in the active Italian movie industry. Her introduction in "Dr. No" became one of the most iconic moments of the franchise. In 1963, she won a Golden Globe for Best Promising Newcomer (Female). Andress co-starred with Elvis Presley in the 1963 film "Fun in Acapulco" and she also appeared in the parody Bond movie "Casino Royale" (1967) as Vesper Lynd. In 1981's "Clash of the Titans", she starred opposite legendary English actor Sir Laurence Olivier. She was married in 1957 to actor/director John Derek. The marriage ended in divorce in 1966 due to her well-publicized love affair with French actor Jean-Paul Belmondo. Andress dated many of Hollywood's leading men including co-stars Sean Connery, Marlon Brando and James Dean. In 1995, Ursula Andress was chosen by Empire magazine as one of the "100 Sexiest Stars in film history".
Enjoy this charming song combined with Ursula's beauty!

Pier Angeli

2011-11-16T15:59:00.000-08:00

Here is another wonderful song by the divine Edda Dell'Orso, chosen to illustrate the beauty of the lovely Italian star Pier Angeli.
Pier Angeli (born Anna Maria Pierangeli) (1932 – 1971) was born in Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy, and made her film debut with Vittorio de Sica in "Domani è troppo tardi" (1950). She was discovered by Hollywood, and MGM launched her in her first American film, "Teresa" (1951). Enthusiastic reviews for her eloquent and understated performance compared her to Garbo. Under contract with MGM throughout the 1950's, she appeared in a series of films. In "The Light Touch" with Stewart Granger, she indeed brought a light touch of innocence to the film. Her next few films were: "The Story of Three Loves" (1953) with Kirk Douglas, "Sombrero", in which she replaced an indisposed Ava Gardner, and "Flame and the Flesh" (1954), where she lost her man to Lana Turner. Meanwhile, MGM having discovered Leslie Caron, Angeli found herself loaned out to other studios. She went to Warner Bros. for "The Silver Chalice", which marked the debut of Paul Newman, and made "Mam'zelle Nitouche" with the great Fernandel. For Paramount, she should have had the role of Anna Magnani's daughter in "The Rose Tattoo", but motherhood having interfered, it went to her twin sister, Marisa Pavan. She was loaned out again, to Columbia, for "Port Afrique" (1956). She showed a return to her old form when she returned to MGM for "Somebody Up There Likes Me" as Paul Newman's long-suffering wife. She still appeared in "The Vintage " (1957) with Mel Ferrer and John Kerr, and in "Merry Andrew", starring Danny Kaye. During the 1960's and until 1970 the actress returned to live and work in Britain and Europe. She made a strong performance opposite Richard Attenborough in "The Angry Silence" (1960). She was reunited with Stewart Granger for "Sodom and Gomorrah" (1963). She played a brief role in the war epic "Battle of the Bulge" (1965). She was picked to play a role in "The Godfather", but she died soon before. Kirk Douglas and Angeli were engaged in 1950's, according to Douglas' autobiography. For a short time Angeli also had a close relationship with James Dean. However, she broke it off suddenly and went on to marry singer/actor Vic Damone (1954-1959). Her second marriage was to Italian composer Armando Trovajoli (1963-1965).
Enjoy Pier's great beauty!

Ann-Margret

2011-11-16T15:58:00.001-08:00

Here is a version of this classic song (already sung, among many others, by Judy Garland, Shani Wallis - in the film "Oliver" - or Shirley Bassey) by the beautiful and sparkling Ann-Margret.
Ann-Margret (born in 1941) is a five-time Golden Globe Award-winning, Academy Award-nominated and Emmy Award-nominated Swedish American actress, singer and dancer who was born Ann-Margret Olsson in Valsjöbyn, Jämtland, Sweden. She moved to the United States when she was young and grew up in Wilmette, Illinois. She attended Northwestern University and was discovered singing in a nightclub by George Burns. She was often referred to as a "sex-kitten" and the "female Elvis". Ann-Margret started recording for RCA in 1961, but her recording career was not as successful as her concurrent movie career. She had a sexy, throaty, singing voice, and RCA attempted to capitalize on the "Female Elvis" comparison by having her record a version of "Heartbreak Hotel" and other songs stylistically similar to Presley's. In 1961, Ann-Margret made her film début in "Pocketful of Miracles", starring Bette Davis, Glenn Ford, and Hope Lange, a remake of the Oscar-winning 1933 film "Lady for a Day"; both versions were directed by the great Frank Capra. She followed that role with the successful 1962 remake of Rodgers' and Hammerstein's musical "State Fair". Her next starring role, as the all-American teenager in "Bye Bye Birdie", made her a major star. When she filmed "Viva Las Vegas" with Elvis Presley the two began an affair that received considerable attention from the gossip columnists. Although he ended the affair, Presley remained a friend and continued to send Ann-Margret flowers at the opening of each of her stage appearances until he died. Of all the Hollywood starlets with whom he had worked or had a relationship, Ann-Margret was the only one to attend his funeral. In 1963, Ann-Margret was featured and guest-starred, in animated form, in an episode of Hanna-Barbera's "The Flintstones" as "Ann-Margrock". Ann also co-starred along with friend Dean Martin in the 2nd 'Matt Helm' film, "Murderer's Row". In March 1966, Ann-Margret and entertainers Chuck Day and Mickey Jones teamed up for a USO tour to entertain U.S. servicemen in remote parts of Vietnam and other parts of Southeast Asia. She still has great affection for the veterans and refers to them as "my gentlemen". In 1971, she starred in Mike Nichols's "Carnal Knowledge", marking a significant change from her sex-kitten musical roles and garnering a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Throughout the 1970's, Ann-Margret balanced her live musical performances with a string of critically-acclaimed dramatic film roles that played against her glamorous image. These included "Tommy" in 1975, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress. In addition, she has been nominated for ten Golden Globe Awards and has won five times, including her Best Actress for "Tommy". She also did a string of successful TV specials, starting with The Ann-Margret Show for NBC in 1968. Now in her mid-60's, she continues to act in films. Ann-Margret has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1995, she was chosen by Empire Magazine as one of the "100 Sexiest Stars in film history".
Enjoy!

Another famous song:

Barbara Bain

2011-11-16T15:57:00.001-08:00

Here is a very good song magnificently performed by the great Lena Horne, chosen to illustrate Barbara Bain's chic and beauty.
Barbara Bain (born in 1931) was born Millicent Fogel, in Chicago, Illinois. She graduated from the University of Illinois in sociology and moved to New York City where she was a dancer and high fashion model. Bain studied with Martha Graham, thus cementing her interest in dancing. After attending Lee Strasberg's Actors Studio, she changed careers to acting. In 1957, she married actor Martin Landau, with whom she would later star on television. Bain is best known for her role in the television series "Mission Impossible" in the role of "Cinnamon Carter" (1966 - 1969), a role she later reprised in one episode of "Diagnosis: Murder". She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for "Actress in a Television Series" for her performance in "Mission: Impossible", 1968. She won three consecutive Emmies for Best Dramatic Actress for that series, in 1967, 1968, 1969. Martin Landau also starred in the series. Later, she starred opposite Landau again in the science fiction television series "Space: 1999" (1975 - 1977), as Dr. Helena Russell. Since then, Bain has worked to further the cause of many charities, including literacy.
Enjoy this blend of vocal and visual beauty and let Barbara fly you to the stars!

Carroll Baker

2011-11-16T15:55:00.000-08:00

Here are two famous songs, lovely performed by the delicate singer Anita Kerr, and chosen to emphasize the beauty of the glamorous Carroll Baker.
Anita Kerr (born Anita Jean Grilli in 1927, in Memphis, Tennessee) is an American singer, composer and music producer. Kerr's career peak was during the 1960's, in a time when women in her field were rare. Among her works were jingles for WLS-AM, a trilogy of albums with poet Rod McKuen titled "The Sea, The Earth, and The Sky", choral music for the first season of "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour" (directing her own group, the Anita Kerr Singers) and several LPs, including one on Burt Bacharach songs.
Carroll Baker (born in 1931) is an American actress who has enjoyed popularity as both a serious dramatic actress and, particularly in the sixties, a movies "sex symbol". Despite being cast in a wide range of roles during her heyday, Baker's beautiful features, blonde hair, and distinctive drawl made her particularly memorable in roles as brash, flamboyant women. Baker's flashy portrayal of a Jean Harlow-type movie star in the 1964 hit "The Carpetbaggers" brought her a second wave of notoriety. Based on her Carpetbaggers performance, Levine began to position Baker to be a movies sex symbol, casting her in the title roles of two 1965 potboilers, "Sylvia" and "Harlow". She then moved to Europe. Eventually settling in Italy, she would spend the next several years starring in giallo thrillers. A lead role in Andy Warhol's "Bad" (1977) brought her back to American shores. The seventies also saw a return to the stage. Film and television work continued sporadically through the nineties, and the 2006 DVD release of "Baby Doll" features a documentary with Baker reflecting on the impact the film had on her career. An apocryphal story has it that a Masai chief offered 150 cows, 200 goats, sheep, and $750 for her while she was on location in Africa for the 1965 movie "Mister Moses". She has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Enjoy this display of sweet music and flamboyant beauty!

Brigitte Bardot

2011-11-16T15:54:00.001-08:00

Here is a beautiful song ("Listen to time") performed by the lovely Brigitte Bardot.
French actress and fashion model Brigitte Bardot was born in 1934 in Paris, France. At an early age her mother encouraged her interest in music and dance, she had modelled for popular magazine "Elle" by the time she was 15 years old. She had her international breakthrough in 1956 for her part in the movie "Et Dieu créa la femme" ("And God Created Woman"), directed by her then husband, Roger Vadim. She has been considered as one of the most beautiful women in the world and the embodiment of the 1950's "sex kitten" and reached a mythical status. She has been one of the few European actresses to receive mass media attention in the United States. She and Marilyn Monroe were the icons of female sexuality in the 1950's and 1960's and whenever she made public appearances in the United States the media hordes covered her every move. In 1958 a French stamp was engraved with her face and in 1970 she was used as the model for a bust of Marianne, the French national emblem. Upon her own decision, after a turbulent public and private life, she stopped her film career in 1973. After appearing in more than fifty motion pictures, and recording several music albums, most notably with Serge Gainsbourg, she chose to use her fame to promote animal rights.
Listen to B.B.'s cool voice and enjoy!

Another great song:

Daniela Bianchi

2011-11-16T15:52:00.000-08:00

Here is the song (performed à la Bassey by Khristy, a regular singer of Ennio Morricone tunes) from the movie "Operation Kid Brother", starring the beautiful Daniela Bianchi.
Daniela Bianchi (born in 1942) is an Italian actress, whose best known part was Tatiana Romanova in the 1963 James Bond movie "From Russia with Love". Born in Rome, she was voted Miss Rome, then the 1st runner-up in the 1960 Miss Universe contest, where she was also voted Miss Photogenic by the press. Just before shooting the Bond film, she had been working as a top model in Moscow. Her film career began in 1958. She made a number of movies after "From Russia with Love", the last being "Scacco Internazionale" ("The Last Chance") in 1968. One of her later films was "Operation Kid Brother" (also known as "OK Connery"), a James Bond spoof starring Sean Connery's brother, Neil Connery. She has made several other Bond-like films (namely "Missione speciale Lady Chaplin" ["Operation Lady Chaplin"] in 1966). She retired from show business in 1970.
Enjoy Daniela's beauty and glamour!

Honor Blackman

2011-11-16T15:51:00.001-08:00

Here is the adaptation of a famous French song ("La Javanaise" by Serge Gainsbourg) performed by the beautiful Honor Blackman.
Honor Blackman was not only one of the most stylish and gorgious British actresses, famous for her characters in the Bond movie "Goldfinger" or in the serial "The Avengers" (1st season), but she was also a fine singer who made one, pretty rare, LP in 1964, entitled "Everything I've got". She made also a funny single with her partner from "The Avengers", Patrick McNee, "Kinky Boots". Her world-weary style recalls Marlene Dietrich or Eartha Kitt.
Enjoy!

Capucine

2011-11-16T15:49:00.000-08:00

Here is the English version of that beautiful song of Françoise Hardy, chosen to illustrate the beauty of another flower, the hieratic Capucine.
Capucine (1933 – 1990) was a French actress. She made several forays into American cinema in addition to her lengthy European film career. Born Germaine Lefebvre in Saint-Raphaël (Var), France, at the age of 17 she became a fashion model, adopting the name Capucine (French for nasturtium), eventually working for Givenchy. She made her film debut at age 18 in "Rendez-vous de juillet". After making several movies for Hollywood, and after ending a two-year romance with the married William Holden, she moved to Europe where she made films in several languages, including French and Italian. However, she is probably best remembered for her role in the first "Pink Panther" film as Inspector Clouseau's wife. Capucine had a close friendship with Dirk Bogarde who seriously considered marrying her. She remained good friends with Audrey Hepburn all her life and indeed, shared an apartment with Hepburn whilst they were both pursuing a career in modelling. Capucine suffered throughout her life from depression and committed suicide at the age of 57 in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Enjoy Capucine's eternal beauty!

And this is Capucine singing in Il Trionfo di Michele Strogoff (1961), with Curd Jürgens!

Cyd Charisse

2011-11-16T15:48:00.001-08:00

Here is a beautiful song, wonderfully sung by the divine Sarah Vaughan and meant to enhance the incredible beauty of the one and unique Cyd Charisse.
Cyd Charisse began her career with Colonel de Basil's "Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo". Her name on the program read Maria Istomina, a name chosen for her by the formidable Colonel himself... a name he thought more suitable for a native born Texan. After the company's season ended in London, Cyd returned to Los Angeles where MGM was conducting a search for a ballerina for the film, "The Ziegfeld Follies". She got the part and was signed to a long term contract and became one of the Industry's brightest dancing stars. "Party Girl", "Bandwagon", "Singin' In The Rain" and "Silk Stockings" are just a few of the many that will not be forgotten. Cyd's grace, her style and her beauty are legendary. More than two dozen films and married for more than five decades to singer Tony Martin, Cyd continued still recently with personal appearances all over the country. She passed on June, the 17th of 2008. RIP.
Enjoy this blend of vocal and visual beauty!

And here are other fantastic examples of her talent!
With Gene Kelly: Broadway Melodies (from Singing in the rain)

New sun in the sky (from The Band Wagon)

With Fred Astaire (from The Band Wagon)

From Party Girl

With James Mitchell: One alone

From Sombrero (1953)

Baby you knock me out (from It's always fair weather)

Mireille Darc

2011-11-16T15:47:00.001-08:00

Here is a funny song ("Helicopter", written by Serge Gainsbourg) performed by one of the most beautiful and talented French stars, Mireille Darc.
Mireille Darc (born Mireille Aigroz in 1938 in Toulon, Var) is an actress, former lover of Alain Delon, whom she met in 1969, during the shooting of "Jeff" by Jean Herman. She studied at the Conservatoire d'art dramatique of Toulon, won the first prize and decided to become an actress. She made her debut in Paris, in 1959, as a model, before acting, first on TV. In 1961 she met the famous director Georges Lautner, who made her a star. She has since then been appearing in many movies and in TV series and remains one of the most famous and beloved French actresses. She has also sung occasionally and made a few EPs.
Enjoy Mireille's glamour and charm!

Yvonne De Carlo

2011-11-16T15:45:00.001-08:00

Here is a song by the beautiful and recently deceased Yvonne De Carlo.
Yvonne De Carlo (born Margaret Yvonne Middleton) (1922 - 2007) was a Canadian-born American film and television actress. Cast in "The Ten Commandments" (1956) in a leading role (as Sephora, Moses' wife), De Carlo was part of a major hit. The film was a huge success and De Carlo was among those to be praised for her restrained work. However, her most famous role that led her to pop culture legacy is of "Lily Munster" in the cult television series "The Munsters" (1964-1966), which allowed De Carlo to demonstrate a comic flair that her films had failed to utilize. She also played Lily in the 1966 feature film "Munster, Go Home" and the 1981 TV movie "The Munsters' Revenge". For her contribution to the motion picture industry and for her contribution to television, Yvonne De Carlo was honored with 2 stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Trained in opera and a former chorister when she was a child in Vancouver, De Carlo possessed a powerful contralto voice and released an LP of standards called "Yvonne De Carlo Sings" in 1957. This album was orchestrated by the movie composer John Williams. From 1967 onward she became increasingly active in musicals, appearing in off-broadway productions of "Pal Joey" and "Catch Me If You Can". In early 1968 she joined Donald O'Connor in a 15 week run of "Little Me" staged between Lake Tahoe and Las Vegas, performing 2 shows per night. But her defining stage role came with her big break on Broadway in the Stephen Sondheim musical "Follies", which ran from February 1971 until July 1, 1972. Notable in the role of Carlotta Campion, she introduced the song "I'm Still Here". She also received recognition for her work in various horror movies, spoofs and thrillers.
Enjoy Yvonne's beauty and very interesting voice!

Another live performance:

Catherine Deneuve

2011-11-16T15:43:00.000-08:00

Here is a famous song performed by the great jazz singer Helen Merrill, chosen to illustrate the beauty of Catherine Deneuve.
Catherine Deneuve (born Catherine Fabienne Dorléac in 1943 in Paris, France) is an Academy Award-nominated French actress. A model of French elegance and one of the best-respected actresses in the French film industry, Catherine Deneuve made her reputation playing a series of beautiful ice maidens for directors such as Luis Buñuel and Roman Polanski. She made her screen debut at the age of 13, with a role in the 1956 film "Les Collégiennes", and went on to make a string of films with directors such as Roger Vadim (with whom she had a boy) before getting her breakthrough role in Jacques Demy's charming musical, "Les Parapluies de Cherbourg" (1964). The burst of stardom that accompanied her portrayal led to two of her archetypal ice maiden roles, first in Roman Polanski's terrifying "Répulsion" in 1965 and then in Buñuel's 1967 "Belle de Jour". Deneuve's startling portrayal of an icy, sexually adventurous housewife in the latter film helped to establish her as one of the most remarkable and compelling actresses of her generation. She further demonstrated her talent that year in Demy's "Umbrellas" musical follow-up, "Les Demoiselles de Rochefort", which she starred in with her sister, Françoise Dorléac. Deneuve continued to work steadily through the 1960's and 1970's in films such as the 1970 "Tristana" (her second collaboration with Buñuel) and "A Slightly Pregnant Man" (1973), in which she starred with her lover at the time, Marcello Mastroianni (with whom she had a girl). Despite or perhaps because of her stardom, Deneuve chose to avoid Hollywood, limiting her appearances in American films to "The April Fools" (1969) and "Hustle" (1975). Deneuve also did prolific work through the 1980's, appearing in such films as François Truffaut's "Le Dernier Métro" (1980) (for which she won the César Award for Best Actress) and Tony Scott's "The Hunger" (1983), in which she plays a vampire alongside David Bowie and Susan Sarandon. In the 1990's, Deneuve garnered further international acclaim for her roles in several films, including the 1992 film "Indochine" (for which she won a César Award and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress). Closing out the final years of the 1990's Deneuve remained consistently working in numerous films continuing to turn in compelling performances. In 2000 Deneuve received much critical attention when cast in the Lars von Trier's musical "Dancer in the Dark", which won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Deneuve was the face of Chanel N° 5 in the seventies and caused sales of the perfume to soar in the United States — so much so that the American press, captivated by her charm, nominated her as the world's most elegant woman. Her visage has also been used to symbolize "Marianne" (from 1985-2000), the national symbol of France, succeeding Brigitte Bardot. In 1995, she has been chosen by Empire (UK) magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history and in 1997 as one of the Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time.
Enjoy Catherine's intemporal beauty!

Angie Dickinson

2011-11-16T15:42:00.001-08:00

Here is a great song performed by the fantastic Della Reese, chosen to enhance the beauty of the sublime actress Angie Dickinson.
Born Angeline Brown in 1931, Angie Dickinson is a famous American television and film actress who is probably best-known for her role as sultry Sgt. Leanne "Pepper" Anderson of the popular 1970's crime drama, "Police Woman", that made her a pop icon of that era. One of the most versatile, popular and younger leading character actors of the 1950's and 1960's, she also co-starred in "Rio Bravo" with John Wayne and in "Point Blank" with Lee Marvin, and she appeared in both the 1960 and 2001 versions of "Ocean's Eleven", with her ex-boyfriend Frank Sinatra and George Clooney, respectively. She would win the Saturn Award for Best Actress in 1981 for her role as Kate Miller in Brian De Palma's thriller "Dressed to Kill". Angie Dickinson had an unusual kind of enigmatic charisma and an ironic, albeit seductive, delivery - both femininely fluttery yet undeniably edgy; visually, she was also armed with a fine physique, great legs, deepset brown eyes that could read as either warmly receptive or aloofly dismissive, and an interesting, strikingly lovely face which photographed as oval from the front but angular in profile, resembling something akin to a Venusian goddess. Eventually, despite her initial resisitance, she would become one of Hollywood's more notable sex symbols...
Enjoy the magic of Angie!

Karin Dor

2011-11-16T15:40:00.000-08:00

Here is a modern version of this popular Bond movie theme, by the contemporary world music star Natacha Atlas, chosen to illustrate the beauty of the flaming red-haired Karin Dor, who played the female villain in that movie ("You Only Live Twice").
Of English and Egyptian origin, Natacha Atlas (born in 1964) aims at bringing together the East and the West through her music, and namely through the subtle orientalization of western standards.
Karin Dor (born in 1938 in Wiesbaden, Germany, as Kätherose Derr) is a German actress who became popular in the 1960's playing heroines in Edgar Wallace movies and the western films by Karl May. She later starred in the British Bond film "You Only Live Twice" and the U.S. film "Topaz" (directed by Alfred Hitchcock).
Enjoy this hot and spicy blend!

Diana Dors

2011-11-16T15:39:00.001-08:00

Here are two funny songs performed by the most glamorous Diana Dors.
Diana Dors (1931 - 1984) was a British actress. She was born in Swindon, England, as Diana Mary Fluck. She was considered the British equivalent of the blonde bombshells of Hollywood, but many consider she also had significant acting ability, which was destined never to be fully utilised.
Dors never had quite the same following in the U.S., but recently has made a comeback due to her films having been shown on classic movie channels. She also worked under the name of Diana d'Ors.
When she died in 1984, she left a mark on popular culture; the "50's blonde bombshell look" popularized by Dors, Jayne Mansfield and Marilyn Monroe had a tremendous impact on current stars such as Madonna or Christina Aguilera.
But Diana Dors was also a fine singer who made one LP ("Swingin' Dors") considered as "lounge".
Listen to this sample of her art and enjoy!

Faye Dunaway

2011-11-16T15:37:00.000-08:00

Here is the song from "The Thomas Crown Affair" (1968) (which won an Academy Award for Best Song), performed by Grady Tate, chosen to enhance the beauty and chic of the wonderful actress Faye Dunaway, who starred in that film with Steve MacQueen.
Grady Tate is a famous drummer and jazz singer. As a drummer, he performed with Quincy Jones, Jimmy Smith, Lionel Hampton, Stan Getz, Pearl Bailey, Tony Bennett, Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin, Lena Horne, Peggy Lee, Della Reese, Sarah Vaughan, Michael Legrand, Lalo Schrifin and André Previn. As a singer, he was discovered by Peggy Lee and described as "the best singer/musician since Nat King Cole".
Faye Dunaway (born in 1941) is an Academy Award-winning American actress. Christened Dorothy Faye Dunaway, she studied at the theater department of Boston University and graduated from the University of Florida. She dropped the "Dorothy" when she began acting. Her first screen role was in 1967 in "Hurry Sundown", but that same year, she got the leading female role in "Bonnie and Clyde" (opposite Warren Beatty) which garnered her an Oscar nomination. It was in the 1970's that she began to stretch her acting muscles in such films as "Three Days of the Condor", "Little Big Man", "Chinatown", "Eyes of Laura Mars" and "Network", for which she won her Oscar. In 1981, she had the leading role in "Mommie Dearest" (1981) as Joan Crawford. She played an alcoholic in "Barfly" (opposite Mickey Rourke). In a later movie, "Don Juan DeMarco" (1995), Dunaway co-starred with Johnny Depp and the late Marlon Brando. She has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Enjoy!

Anita Ekberg

2011-11-16T15:36:00.001-08:00

Here is the song from the famous film "La Dolce Vita" by Federico Fellini - written by Nino Rota and sung in her own classic torch singer style by the great Italian singer Katyna Ranieri - chosen to illustrate the incredible beauty of the sublime Anita Ekberg, who starred in that film.
Katyna Ranieri (born in 1927) had her first hit in 1954 at the Festival di Sanremo with the song "Una canzone da due soldi". She is the wife of the musician Riz Ortolani and the first Italian singer to have performed at the Oscar ceremony in 1964. She has toured in the whole world. Also an actress, she collaborated with Nino Rota on several Federico Fellini movies.
Kerstin Anita Marianne Ekberg (born in 1931 in Malmö) was a Swedish model and actress. A 1951 Miss Sweden — she competed in the Miss Universe pageant — Ekberg is best-known for her role as Sylvia in "La Dolce Vita".
She toured with Bob Hope and William Holden to entertain U.S. troops in 1954 and it led her to a contract with John Wayne's Batjac Productions. He cast her in "Blood Alley" (1955) as a Chinese woman, a role that earned her a Golden Globe award. She appeared in "Screaming Mimi" (1958) directed by Gert Oswald who already used her in "Valérie"; "War and Peace" where she played Henry Fonda's unfaithful wife. She also appeared in 2 Frank Tashlin films with Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin: "Artists and Models" (1955) and "Hollywood or Bust" (1956). In "Back from Eternity" (1956) she was cast as Robert Ryan's leading lady. However it was Federico Fellini who gave Ekberg her greatest role in "La Dolce Vita" in 1960, in which she played the unattainable "dream woman" opposite Marcello Mastroianni; then "Boccaccio '70" in 1960, with Sophia Loren and Romy Schneider. Fellini would call her back for 2 other films: "I Clowns" (1972) and "Intervista" (1987), where she played herself in a reunion scene with Mastroianni. Fellini aside, she was not offered many films in the 60's. "Four for Texas" by Robert Aldrich (1963) with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Ursula Andress, and "Woman Times Seven" by Vittorio de Sica in 1967, with Shirley MacLaine. Then, in 1966, "The Alphabet Murders" again with Frank Tashlin, and "Way...Way Out". Ekberg reportedly was romantically involved with Tyrone Power, Marcello Mastroianni, Errol Flynn, Yul Brynner, Frank Sinatra and Gary Cooper!
Enjoy Katyna's chic and Anita's glamour!

Mia Farrow

2011-11-16T15:35:00.001-08:00

Here is the song from the movie "Rosemary's Baby" (only vocalized in the film) with the lovely Mia Farrow, and performed here by the exquisite Rita Moss.
Mia Farrow (born Maria de Lourdes Villiers-Farrow in 1945 to John Farrow - an Australian film director - and the late Irish actress Maureen O'Sullivan) is an American actress. Farrow has appeared in more than 40 films and won numerous awards, including a Golden Globe award (and seven additional Golden Globe nominations), three BAFTA Film Award nominations, and a win for best actress at the San Sebastian International Film Festival. Farrow is also notable for her extensive humanitarian work as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. Mia Farrow began her acting career by appearing in supporting roles in several 1960's films. However, she achieved stardom on the popular soap opera, "Peyton Place", with co-star Ryan O'Neal. Her first leading film role was in 1968's "Rosemary's Baby", which was a major success at the time and is widely regarded as a classic. Farrow's performance in "Rosemary's Baby" garnered numerous awards and established her as a leading actress. Following "Rosemary's Baby", Farrow starred in "Secret Ceremony", opposite Elizabeth Taylor. Farrow's other late 60's films include "John and Mary", opposite Dustin Hoffman. In the 1970's, Farrow appeared in a number of notable films, including the 1971 thriller "See No Evil", legendary French director Claude Chabrol's 1972 film "Docteur Popaul", and the 1974 version of "The Great Gatsby". She also appeared in director Robert Altman's cult classic "A Wedding" in 1978. Farrow also appeared in a number of made for television films in the 1970's, most notably portraying the title role in a 1976 musical version of "Peter Pan". In 1979, Farrow appeared on Broadway opposite Anthony Perkins in the play "Romantic Comedy" by Bernard Slade. In the 1980's and early 90's, Farrow's relationship with director Woody Allen resulted in numerous film collaborations. She appeared in nearly all of Allen's critically acclaimed films during this period, including leading roles in "Hannah and Her Sisters", "The Purple Rose of Cairo", "Broadway Danny Rose", and 1990's "Alice", again as the title character. Farrow also played in the 1984 movie "Supergirl" and voiced the title role in 1982's animated film "The Last Unicorn". Farrow worked less frequently during the 90's. Nonetheless, she appeared in leading roles in several notable films, included 1994's "Widows' Peak" (an Irish film) and the 1995 films, "Miami Rhapsody" and "Reckless". She also appeared in several independent features and made for television films throughout the late 1990's and early 2000's. Farrow most recently appeared as "Mrs. Baylock", the Satanic nanny, in the 2006 remake of "The Omen". Farrow has completed work on several films slated for release in 2007, including the romantic comedy "Fast Track" and the first part of director Luc Besson's planned trilogy of fantasy films, "Arthur and the Invisibles". In September 2006, she began shooting director Michel Gondry's "Be Kind Rewind", opposite Jack Black and Danny Glover. Farrow was married to singer Frank Sinatra for two years and to German-American pianist André Previn for nine years.
Enjoy Rita's fine voice and Mia's delicate beauty and charm!

Edwige Fenech

2011-11-16T15:34:00.001-08:00

Here is a beautiful song performed by the great Italian soundtrack vocalist Edda Dell'Orso, from the film "Un Modo Di Essere Donna" ("A way of being a woman", 1973), perfectly suited to enhance the beauty of the cult actress Edwige Fenech.
From the mid sixties Edda Dell'Orso has provided haunting wordless vocals to a large number of film scores by Ennio Morricone and other prominent mostly Italian composers of those times. She performed legendary interpretations of themes from movies such as "A Fistful of Dollars", "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly" and "Once Upon a Time in the West", where her dramatic voice was deployed as an instrument for the first time and to revolutionary effect. The singer's sensuous, almost ecclesiastical, often playful vocalisations brought tense atmospheres and dreamy moods to soundtracks. Moving into the seventies and into darker waters still, Edda contributed intensity to two films by Dario Argento including "L'uccello dalle piume di cristallo" which is considered to be amongst the director's best work. She has published solo albums too, like "It's time to sing" and "Al Cinema con Edda Dell'Orso".
Edwige Fenech was born in 1948 as Edwige Sfenek in Annaba, Algeria, of Maltese (daddy) and Sicilian (mom) origins. She began her career very young in a comedy, whose co-star was the amazing Serge Gainsbourg. Edwige's sensual beauty couldn't be forgotten and she soon found herself a major player in an unending list of European films, principally from Italy, France, Spain and West Germany. Generally, these were light comedies and a couple of thrillers, as well. It's no exaggeration to note that between 1968 and 1982, she was one of the world's busiest actress, extremely popular everywhere in Europe.
Enjoy!

Jane Fonda

2011-11-16T15:32:00.000-08:00

Here is the song from the film "Barbarella" performed by Michael Gayle, chosen to illustrate the great beauty of Jane Fonda.
Born (to actor Henry Fonda) Lady Jayne Seymour Fonda in 1937 in New York City, Jane Fonda is an American actress, former fashion model, writer and political activist. Since the 1960's Fonda has appeared in movies, many of which have contained political messages. She has won two Academy Awards and received several other awards and nominations. She initially announced her retirement from acting in 1991, and said for many years that she would never act again, but she returned to film in 2005 with "Monster in Law". Her brother, Peter Fonda (born 1939), and his daughter Bridget Fonda (born 1964), are also actors.
Before starting her acting career, Fonda was a fashion model, gracing the cover of Vogue magazine twice. Fonda became interested in acting in 1954. She was introduced by her father to renowned drama teacher Lee Strasberg in 1958, and subsequently joined his Actors Studio. She started in 1960 with "Tall Story", in which she recreated one of her Broadway roles as a college cheerleader pursuing a basketball star, played by Anthony Perkins. "Period of Adjustment" and "Walk on the Wild Side" followed in 1962. In "Walk on the Wild Side", Fonda earned a Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer. In 1963, she appeared in "Sunday in New York". Newsday called her "the loveliest and most gifted of all our new young actresses". Fonda's career breakthrough came with "Cat Ballou" (1965). This comedy Western received five Oscar nominations and was one of the year's top ten films at the box office. It was considered by many to have been the film that brought Fonda to stardom at the age of twenty-eight. After this came the comedies "Any Wednesday" (1966) and "Barefoot in the Park" (1967), the latter co-starring Robert Redford. In 1968, she played the lead role in the science fiction spoof "Barbarella", which established her status as a sex symbol. In contrast, the tragedy "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" (1969) won her critical acclaim, and she earned her first Oscar nomination for the role. Fonda won her first Academy Award for Best Actress in 1971 in the detective murder mystery "Klute". Her second Award was in 1978 for "Coming Home", the story of a disabled Vietnam War veteran's difficulty in re-entering civilian life. She then appeared in "Fun With Dick and Jane" and "Julia" (both in 1977), "The China Syndrome" and "The Electric Horseman" (both in 1979) with her previous co-star, Robert Redford, "Nine to Five" (1980) with Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton and "On Golden Pond" (1981) as a supporting actress alongside Katharine Hepburn and her father, Henry Fonda, who died five months later.
In the course of her career, Fonda has received seven Oscar nominations, winning twice.
Enjoy Jane's sublime beauty!

Ava Gardner

2011-11-16T15:31:00.001-08:00

Here is a famous song magically performed by the great Barbra Streisand, chosen to illustrate the beauty of the divine Ava Gardner.
Ava Lavinia Gardner (1922 – 1990) was an American actress and one of the greatest Hollywood film stars (everybody remembers "Pandora", "Show Boat", "Mogambo", "The Barefoot Contessa", "The Blue Bird" with Liz Taylor, and so many more). She is listed as one of the American Film Institute's greatest stars of all time. What a biographer of Gardner called "her often desperate joie de vivre" inspired the one-woman riot played by Anita Ekberg in Fellini's "La Dolce Vita".
Enjoy this spicy and mellow blend without restraint!

Mitzi Gaynor

2011-11-16T15:29:00.000-08:00

Here is a famous song performed by the beautiful and talented Mitzi Gaynor.
Mitzi Gaynor (born Francesca Marlene de Charney von Gerber in 1931 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. She trained as a ballerina as a child and began her career as a chorus dancer. She sang, acted and danced in a number of film musicals, often paired with some of the biggest male musical stars. Notable early roles included "There's No Business Like Show Business" (1954) which featured Irving Berlin's music and also starred Ethel Merman, Marilyn Monroe, Donald O'Connor. "Les Girls" (1957, directed by George Cukor) with Gene Kelly and Kay Kendall and "Anything Goes" (1956), co-starring Bing Crosby, Donald O'Connor and Zizi Jeanmaire. Gaynor's biggest international fame came from her starring role in the film version of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II's "South Pacific", one of the most successful musicals of all time. For her performance, she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for best actress. She made films with many other well-known stars, including Ginger Rogers, Frank Sinatra, David Niven, Betty Grable and Oscar Levant. She made her last film in the early 1960's; one of her last films was the United Kingdom production "Surprise Package" (1960), a musical comedy thriller directed by Stanley Donen. Her co-stars were Yul Brynner and Noel Coward and the film had a theme song by Jimmy Van Heusen and Sammy Cahn. After her retirement from films, Gaynor remained a popular favorite; she often performed songs at Academy Awards ceremonies, starred in a series of high-rated TV specials, had a "This Is Your Life" special dedicated to her, and often appeared on television and in local theater. For several years, Mitzi Gaynor was a top Las Vegas attraction. During the 1990's, Gaynor also became a featured columnist for the influential newsmagazine The Hollywood Reporter. On October 14, 2006 the NY Alumni "adopted" Gaynor as an official New Yorker at Beverly Hills High School in California. The mayor issued a proclamation paying tribute to her distinguished career as a singer, dancer, actress and writer.
Enjoy Mitzi's beauty and grace!

Rita Hayworth

2011-11-16T15:27:00.000-08:00

Here is a lovely song ("Love Is A Woman") performed by the famous soundtrack singer Lydia MacDonald, chosen to enhance Rita Hayworth's divine beauty.
Lydia MacDonald is a popular vocalist, and was the preferred vocalist of composers Piero Piccioni, Luis Bacalov and Armando Trovajoli. Her style recalls the great Edda Dell'Orso.
Born Margarita Carmen Cansino, Rita Hayworth (1918 – 1987) was an American actress of Spanish and English descent who reached fame during the 1940's as one of the era's leading sex symbols. She was sometimes called "The Love Goddess" or "The Great American Love Goddess" and was celebrated as an expert dancer and great beauty. During World War II she ranked with Betty Grable, Dorothy Lamour, Hedy Lamarr and Lana Turner as the pinup girls most popular with servicemen. Hayworth's well-known films include the musicals that made her famous: "You'll Never Get Rich" (1941) and "You Were Never Lovelier" (1942) (both with Fred Astaire, who wrote in his autobiography that Rita "danced with trained perfection and individuality"), "My Gal Sal" (1942) with Victor Mature, and her best known musical, "Cover Girl" (1944) with Gene Kelly. Although her singing voice was dubbed in her movies, Rita was one of Hollywood's best dancers, imbued with power, precision, tremendous enthusiasm and an unearthly grace. Her erotic appeal was most notable in "Gilda" (1946), a black-and-white film noir directed by Charles Vidor. This role — in which Hayworth in black satin performed a legendary one-glove striptease — made her into a cultural icon as the ultimate femme fatale. Hayworth was the first dancer to partner both Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly on film - the others being Judy Garland, Cyd Charisse, Vera Ellen, and Leslie Caron. Her last musical, "Pal Joey", was with Frank Sinatra and Kim Novak.
Enjoy Lydia's vocals and Rita's flaming beauty!