Morgana King

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Morgana King (actually Maria Grazia Morgana Messina DeBerardinis , born June 4, 1930 in Pleasantville , New York - † March 22, 2018 in Palm Springs , California ) was an American actress and singer in the fields of jazz singing and easy listening .

Life

The child of Sicilian and Portuguese parents, Morgana King grew up in a small town near New York City . From the mid-1950s she appeared as a jazz singer; In 1956 she played her debut album For You, For Me, Forevermore with Hank Jones and Al Caiola for Emarcy . One of her greatest successes was the 1964 album A Taste of Honey , which was created in collaboration with Torrie Zito . The Grammys recognized her that same year with a nomination in the category " best new artist ".

Although she recorded a total of thirty albums over the course of her career, she began a second career as an actress in 1969. Her most famous role was the wife of Don Vito Corleone, played by Marlon Brando , in the film The Godfather . She then appeared in the second part of the godfather trilogy . Her work as an actress includes eight roles for film and television.

After being under contract with major labels such as Mercury , Reprise or Verve for many years, King signed a contract with the Muse label in 1976 and recorded a number of albums on which she was written by musicians such as Joe Puma , Jack Wilkins and Ray Mantilla was accompanied.

In 2000 King gave her last concert. After that, she ended her singing career and withdrew into her private life. The author James Gavin found King in Palm Springs, California, on the occasion of an article in the jazz magazine JazzTimes in April 2016. King lived there very secluded.

King was married to jazz trombonist Tony Fruscella and then to jazz trumpeter Willie Dennis . A daughter shared with Fruscella died in 2008.

King died of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (cancer) in March 2018 at the age of 87 .

Discography (selection)

  • Morgana King Sings the Blues (Mercury, 1958) with Barry Galbraith , Harvey Leonard
  • A Taste of Honey (Mainstream, 1964)
  • It's a Quiet Thing (Reprise, 1965)
  • Wild is Love (Reprise, 1966)
  • Gemini Changes (Reprise, 1967)
  • New Beginnings (Paramount, 1973) with Bob James , Idris Muhammad , Bob Cranshaw , Hubert Laws
  • Strechin 'Out (Muse, 1977)
  • Portraits (Muse, 1983)
  • Simply Eloquent (Muse, 1986)
  • This is Always (Muse, 1992)
  • Looking Through the Eyes of Love (Muse, 1998)

Filmography

  • 1972: The Godfather (The Godfather)
  • 1974: The Godfather - Part II (The Godfather: Part II)
  • 1976: Jigsaw John (TV series, an episode)
  • 1978: Nunzio
  • 1985: I was his wife - and was his victim (Deadly Intentions)
  • 1987: A Time to Remember
  • 1993: All My Children (TV series, episode)
  • 1997: In the Streets of Brooklyn (A Brooklyn State of Mind)

Web links

Commons : Morgana King  - Collection of Images

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Matt Schudel: Morgana King, jazz singer who played Brando's wife in 'The Godfather,' dies at 87th Washington Post , August 14, 2018, accessed August 15, 2018 .
  2. ↑ https://www.stern.de/lifestyle/fahrten/morgana-king--jazz-ikone-bereits-im-maerz-verstorben-8212418.html
  3. ↑ https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/morgana-king
  4. ↑ https://jazztimes.com/departments/overdue-ovation/overdue-ovation-morgana-king/
personal data
SURNAME King, Morgana
ALTERNATIVE NAMES DeBerardinis, Maria Grazia Morgana Messina (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American actress and singer
DATE OF BIRTH June 4th 1930
PLACE OF BIRTH Pleasantville , New York , United States
DATE OF DEATH March 22, 2018
Place of death Palm Springs (California)