Dinah Shore (born Fannye Rose Shore; February 29, 1916 â€" February
24, 1994) was an American singer, actress, and television personality,
and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1940s. She rose to
prominence as a recording artist during the Big Band era. She achieved
even greater success a decade later, in television, mainly as the host
of a series of variety programs for the Chevrolet automobile
company.After failing singing auditions for the bands of Benny
Goodman, and both Jimmy and Tommy Dorsey, Shore struck out on her own.
She became the first singer of her era to achieve huge solo success.
She had a string of 80 charted popular hits, spanning 1940â€"1957, and
after appearing in a handful of feature films, she went on to a
four-decade career in American television. She starred in her own
music and variety shows from 1951 through 1963 and hosted two talk
shows in the 1970s. TV Guide ranked her at number 16 on their list of
the top 50 television stars of all time. Stylistically, Shore was
compared to two singers who followed her in the mid-to-late 1940s and
early 1950s, Doris Day and Patti Page.She was born as Fannye Rose
Shore to Russian-Jewish immigrant shopkeepers, Anna (née Stein) and
Solomon Shore, in Winchester, Tennessee. She had an elder sister,
eight years her senior, Elizabeth, known as "Bessie". When Fannye was
eighteen months old, she was stricken with polio (infantile
paralysis). The only known treatment was bed rest and sometimes more
extreme care if the child was severely compromised. (This was before
the polio vaccine had been developed which brought an end to polio in
the United States.) Her mother provided extensive care for her, which
included regular therapeutic massage and a strict exercise program.
She recovered, but sustained a deformed foot and limp. Fannye loved to
sing as a small child; her mother, a contralto with operatic
aspirations, encouraged her. Her father often took her to his store,
where she would perform impromptu songs for the customers.
24, 1994) was an American singer, actress, and television personality,
and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1940s. She rose to
prominence as a recording artist during the Big Band era. She achieved
even greater success a decade later, in television, mainly as the host
of a series of variety programs for the Chevrolet automobile
company.After failing singing auditions for the bands of Benny
Goodman, and both Jimmy and Tommy Dorsey, Shore struck out on her own.
She became the first singer of her era to achieve huge solo success.
She had a string of 80 charted popular hits, spanning 1940â€"1957, and
after appearing in a handful of feature films, she went on to a
four-decade career in American television. She starred in her own
music and variety shows from 1951 through 1963 and hosted two talk
shows in the 1970s. TV Guide ranked her at number 16 on their list of
the top 50 television stars of all time. Stylistically, Shore was
compared to two singers who followed her in the mid-to-late 1940s and
early 1950s, Doris Day and Patti Page.She was born as Fannye Rose
Shore to Russian-Jewish immigrant shopkeepers, Anna (née Stein) and
Solomon Shore, in Winchester, Tennessee. She had an elder sister,
eight years her senior, Elizabeth, known as "Bessie". When Fannye was
eighteen months old, she was stricken with polio (infantile
paralysis). The only known treatment was bed rest and sometimes more
extreme care if the child was severely compromised. (This was before
the polio vaccine had been developed which brought an end to polio in
the United States.) Her mother provided extensive care for her, which
included regular therapeutic massage and a strict exercise program.
She recovered, but sustained a deformed foot and limp. Fannye loved to
sing as a small child; her mother, a contralto with operatic
aspirations, encouraged her. Her father often took her to his store,
where she would perform impromptu songs for the customers.
Share this
SUBSCRIBE OUR NEWSLETTER
SUBSCRIBE OUR NEWSLETTER
Join us for free and get valuable content delivered right through your inbox.