Loretta Lee

Loretta Lee
Born Margaret Viegas
or Vieages
June 14, 1913
New Orleans, Louisiana
Died January 21, 1977, age 63
Alma mater Peabody Conservatory of Music
Occupation Singer
Spouse(s) Irvin L. Dussom
Parent(s) Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Vieagas (or Vieages)

Loretta Lee (June 14, 1913[1] - January 21, 1977[2]) was an American singer in the first half of the 20th century.

Early years

Lee was born Margaret Viegas[3] (or Vieages)[4] in New Orleans, the daughter of a juvenile court judge,[3] Joseph Viegas (or Vieages), and his wife.[4] Her ancestry was Spanish on her father's side and Irish on her mother's side.[5] She was educated at a convent in New Orleans,[6] but left that city as a teenager because her parents opposed her romance with a young Frenchman.[7]

She sang with the Boswell Sisters at charity functions when she was a youngster[8] and later studied music at the Peabody Conservatory of Music, winning a Peabody scholarship for four years and a Juilliard scholarship for one year. She was the third Peabody student to graduate as a singer.[9] On June 1, 1927, radio station WBAL in Baltimore, Maryland, broadcast one of her recitals.[9]

Career

A visit to a publishing house during a trip to New York City in 1932,[9] when she was 18,[10] led to a singing engagement for Lee at a New York night club, launching her career.[9] George Hall, leader of the orchestra at the Hotel Taft,[11] heard her singing and invited her to perform with his orchestra,[9] which she did that same evening.[6] A year later, she was also the female singer with Hall and his orchestra on his program on CBS radio.[12]

In the fall of 1935, she became a featured vocalist on Your Hit Parade, as the program's lineup of performers was revamped.[8] Also in 1935, she was the singer on a comedy program that featured Marty May[13] and Carol Deis,[14] and she had her own program on CBS radio.[15] In 1937, she became the main vocalist on a new radio program featuring Werner Janssen and his orchestra.[16]

She also performed in theaters in vaudeville engagements[17] and appeared in the short film Midnight Melodies.[18]

Personal life

Lee was married to Irvin L. Dussom.[19]

References

  1. ↑ "What Do You Want to Know?". Radio Mirror. 6 (6): 56. October 1936. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  2. ↑ "The Times Picayune 1977 Obituary Index Orleans Parish Louisiana". usgwarchives.net. The Times Picayune. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  3. 1 2 "Gallery of Beauty". Radio Mirror. 4 (6): 22. October 1935. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  4. 1 2 "New Orleans". Radio Daily. July 9, 1937. p. 3. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  5. ↑ "Radio Songster Coming Friday". The St. Louis Star and Times. Missouri, St. Louis. January 20, 1937. p. 17. Retrieved January 15, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. 1 2 Bloomfield, Howard (May 12, 1935). "Loretta Rose to Radio Fame in Afternoon". Democrat and Chronicle. New York, Rochester. p. 7C. Retrieved January 16, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "(untitled continuation)". Radio Mirror. 6 (6): 79. October 1936. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  8. 1 2 "'New Hit Parade' Cast Stars Loretta Lee and Willie Morris". The Morning Call. Pennsylvania, Allentown. November 26, 1935. p. 16. Retrieved January 13, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 "WBAL Lists Loretta Lee". The Baltimore Sun. Maryland, Baltimore. May 29, 1927. p. Part 2, Section 1 - Page 12. Retrieved January 13, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ Brown, Harold P. (March 1933). "Twists and Turns". Radio Digest. XXX (2): 4. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  11. ↑ "Woodside Attractions". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. July 23, 1933. p. 47. Retrieved January 13, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ Doran, Dorothy (January 26, 1933). "University Glee Club To Give Air Concert". The Akron Beacon Journal. Ohio, Akron. p. 24. Retrieved January 13, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ Bernes, Robert (August 4, 1935). "The Radio Reporter". Detroit Free Press. Michigan, Detroit. p. 74. Retrieved January 16, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ Melick, Welcon (1935). "The Critic on the Hearth". Radio Mirror. MacFaddenPublications. 4 (6): 70. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  15. ↑ "(photo caption)". Radio Mirror. 3 (5): 11. March 1935. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  16. ↑ "Loretta Lee Signed". Motion Picture Daily. July 9, 1937. p. 10. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  17. ↑ "Coming and Going". Radio Daily. February 2, 1938. p. 2. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  18. ↑ "Midnight Melodies". Motion Picture Herald. April 18, 1936. p. 38. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  19. ↑ "Margaret Vieages Marriage and Divorce Records". MooseRoots. Graphig. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
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