Hollace Shaw (July 24, 1913 – March 2, 1976) was a

coloratura soprano A coloratura soprano is a type of operatic soprano voice that specializes in music that is distinguished by agile runs, leaps and trills. The term '' coloratura'' refers to the elaborate ornamentation of a melody, which is a typical component o ...

who performed on

old-time radio The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the early ...

and on the stage.

Early years

Shaw was born in

Fresno, California Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, makin ...

.DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 240. Her father, Rev. Shirley R. Shaw, was a minister, and her mother was a concert singer. She was the oldest of five children, one of whom was Robert Shaw, who founded the

Robert Shaw Chorale The Robert Shaw Chorale was a renowned professional choir founded in New York City in 1948 by Robert Shaw, a Californian who had been drafted out of college a decade earlier by Fred Waring to conduct his glee club in radio broadcasts. History ...

and directed symphony orchestras in Atlanta, Georgia, and Cleveland, Ohio.

Radio

Shaw was a featured soloist on ''Blue Velvet Music'', ''

Saturday Night Serenade ''Saturday Night Serenade'' is an American old-time radio program that featured popular music. The 30-minute program was broadcast on CBS on Saturday nights from October 3, 1936, until September 25, 1948, sponsored by Pet Milk. In 1948, the show ...

'' and the featured female soloist on ''Song Time'' and was a member of the cast of ''

The Hour of Charm ''The Hour of Charm'' is an American old-time radio music program. It debuted on CBS on May 18, 1934, and had its final broadcast on CBS on May 2, 1948. The program also was broadcast on Armed Forces Radio, and after its network broadcasts ended, ...

'',Terrace, Vincent (1999). ''Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 157. on which she was known as "Vivian." She also had her own weekly program on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

Stage

Shaw's

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

credits include '' Higher and Higher'' (1939) and ''

Very Warm for May ''Very Warm for May'' is a musical composed by Jerome Kern, with a libretto by Oscar Hammerstein II. It was the team's final score for Broadway, following their hits ''Show Boat'', '' Sweet Adeline'', and '' Music in the Air''. It marked a return ...

'' (1939). The latter production included her introduction of the song ''

All the Things You Are "All the Things You Are" is a song composed by Jerome Kern with lyrics written by Oscar Hammerstein II. The song was written for the musical ''Very Warm for May'' (1939)

''.

Personal appearances

Shaw sang frequently with symphony orchestras around the United States and at Radio City Music Hall, in New York City. She also performed in night clubs. Eugene Burr wrote about Shaw in a review in

Billboard's ''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music ...

October 12, 1940, issue: "She has an outstanding voice, one of the few real voices that have been developed in recent years..."

Personal life

On April 12, 1944, Shaw married Clarence Turner Foster, a major in the

Air Transport Command Air Transport Command (ATC) was a United States Air Force unit that was created during World War II as the strategic airlift component of the United States Army Air Forces. It had two main missions, the first being the delivery of supplies and ...

, in New York, New York. She later married Dr. Frederick C. Schlumberger, a surgeon.

Death

Shaw died March 2, 1976 in Los Angeles, California, at age 62. She was survived by her husband, two stepchildren, a sister and two brothers.

References

{{authority control 1913 births 1976 deaths 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers Musicians from Fresno, California Singers from California Pomona College alumni