Carol Bruce

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Carol Bruce (born November 15, 1919 as Shirley Levi in Great Neck , New York , † October 9, 2007 in Woodland Hills , Los Angeles ) was an American singer, stage and film actress. In the US, she is remembered primarily as a Broadway star. Her career spanning seven decades from the 1930s also included film roles, numerous appearances in clubs, radio shows and television series.

Career

Bruce began her career as a live and radio singer in Montreal when she was 17. It has been described as a discovery by Lloyd Hunter, with whose orchestra she performed for some time in the exclusive Normandie Roof, which at the time was considered the "high-end dinner club" of Montreal nightlife. Soon afterwards she conquered the stages of Broadway , not only because of her singing qualities, because she also made a good figure as an actress in the truest sense of the word (she became "Miss Cocoa" and "Miss Marina "was chosen).

She was particularly popular for her role in the musical "Louisiana Purchase" (1940) with the hit "The Lord Done Fixed Up My Soul". Further stage appearances followed mainly until the end of the 1960s (" Show Boat ", "Bloomer Girl", "Do I Hear a Waltz?"). From 1979 to 1982 she played in the sitcom "WKRP in Cincinnati" (and later in its sequel "The New WKRP in Cincinnati" from 1991 to 1993) the role of Mama Carlson, a resolute and enterprising owner of a radio station, which was popular in the USA . She made her way into German-speaking living rooms through guest appearances in series such as " Drei Engel für Charlie " or " Golden Girls ".

She was seen in the cinema both at the beginning and at the end of her career: In 1941 and 1942 she appeared in front of the camera three times for Universal: "Keep 'Em Flying" (1941), " This Woman Is Mine " (1941) and "Behind the Eight Ball" (1942). " A man for certain hours " (1980) and " A ticket for two " (1987) followed almost four decades later .

Bruce died of complications from COPD at the age of 87 .

Film and discography

Films and guest appearances in television series (selection)

Records (selection)

  • 1938: My Best Wishes (Te Deseo Bien) (Victor 25875-A)
  • 1938: S'Good Enough for Me (Màs Que Bueno Para Mi) (Victor 25870-A)
  • 1940: Louisiana Purchase / The Lord Done Fixed Up My Soul (Schirmer Record - 507)
  • 1940: A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square / Wish Me Luck (As You Wave Me Goodbye) Decca (3557)
  • 1941: Red Moon of the "Caribbees" (Cancion Del Mar) / Misirlou (Decca 18185)
  • 1941: The Boy With the Wistful Eyes / You Don't Know What Love Is (Columbia 36471)
  • 1941: The Lamp of Memory (Incertidumbre) / Adios (Decca 18238)
  • 1941: Carol Bruce souvenir album (Decca 18430 A / 18430 B / 18431 A / 18431 B)

Web links

Commons : Carol Bruce  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Kinkle, Roger D .: The complete encyclopedia of popular music and jazz, 1900-1950. A through K . tape 2 . Arlington House Publ, New Rochelle, NY 1974, ISBN 0-87000-229-5 , pp. 635 .
  2. ^ Cardy Inaugurating New Normandy Roof . In: The Gazette (Montreal, Quebec, Quebec, Canada). June 17, 1937, p. 3. There: "(...) Carol Bruce, the vocalist recently discovered by Lloyd Huntley."
  3. ↑ Rebecca Meloche: nightlife Montreal. In: The City. April 3, 2019, Retrieved March 11, 2020 (American English).
  4. ^ Leonhard Lyon: Our New York Columne . In: The Minneapolis Star. January 2, 1939, p. 6
  5. ↑ Motorboat Queen. In: Star-Phoenix (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada) .18. January 1939, p. 5
  6. ^ A b Alison J. Peterson: Carol Bruce, Actress on Film, Stage and TV, Dies at 87 . In: The New York Times . October 16, 2007, ISSN  0362-4331 ( nytimes.com [accessed March 11, 2020]).
personal data
SURNAME Bruce, Carol
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Levi, Shirley (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American singer, stage and film actress
DATE OF BIRTH November 15, 1919
PLACE OF BIRTH Great Neck , New York
DATE OF DEATH October 9, 2007
Place of death Woodland Hills , Los Angeles