Jayne Walton Rosen (August 28, 1917 – January 10, 2010) was an American entertainer, singer and actress, who worked as Lawrence Welk's

Champagne Lady Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...

from 1940 until 1945. Rosen was born Jayne Flanagan in San Antonio, Texas, on August 28, 1917. However, she was largely raised in Torreón,

Coahuila Coahuila (), formally Coahuila de Zaragoza (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza), is one of the 32 states of Mexico. Coahuila borders the Mexican states of N ...

, where her father worked for a silver mining company. Her mother was a pianist and her sister was a dancer. Rosen was influenced by Mexican culture early in life, learning Spanish and noting the country's sharp class divisions. She attended

Brackenridge High School G.W. Brackenridge High School is a public high school located in central San Antonio, Texas, United States, and classified as a 5A school by the University Interscholastic League (UIL). This school is one of 12 high school schools in the San Anto ...

in San Antonio, Texas. Flanagan performed at talent shows around San Antonio, including the Majestic Theatre, under the stage name, Jayne Walton. She began singing at local radio stations in San Antonio, beforing moving on to stations in Oklahoma City, Dallas and Chicago. One of her radio performances was heard by musician Lawrence Welk, who asked Walton to join his band, the

Lawrence Welk Orchestra Lawrence may refer to: Education Colleges and universities * Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States * Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States Preparator ...

. Welk named Walton as his Champagne Lady in the early 1940s during World War II. Walton, who could sing in Spanish due to her childhood in Coahuila, recorded the song '' Maria Elena'' with Welk, which was certified gold. Walton left the Lawrence Welk Orchestra in the mid-1940s to pursue a solo singing career. She enjoyed success in Chicago and New York City. She largely retired from the professional entertainment circuit in 1952, when she married her husband and adopted the name Jayne Walton Rosen. She continued to make guest appearances on Welk's long-running television show, '' The Lawrence Welk Show''. Rosen later worked as a salesperson at the Rhodes department store and

Dillard's Dillard's, Inc. is an upscale American department store chain with approximately 282 stores in 29 states and headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. Currently, the largest number of stores are located in Texas with 57 and Florida with 42. The ...

at the Central Park Mall. She retired circa 1990. Rosen remained in good health throughout most of her life. However, she suffered from failing health during her later years, including

heart disease Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, hea ...

and kidney disease, which required

dialysis Dialysis may refer to: *Dialysis (chemistry), a process of separating molecules in solution **Electrodialysis, used to transport salt ions from one solution to another through an ion-exchange membrane under the influence of an applied electric pote ...

. She also broke her

hip In vertebrate anatomy, hip (or "coxa"Latin ''coxa'' was used by Celsus in the sense "hip", but by Pliny the Elder in the sense "hip bone" (Diab, p 77) in medical terminology) refers to either an anatomical region or a joint. The hip region is ...

in a fall. Jayne Walton Rosen died in San Antonio on January 10, 2010, at the age of 92. She was survived by her son, Daniel Rosen, a law professor in Tokyo; grandchildren, Daniel Rosen Jr. and Allison Rosen; and former daughter-in-law, Sheri Rosen. She was buried in San Fernando Cemetery No. 3.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Walton Rosen, Jayne 1917 births 2010 deaths American women singers Musicians from San Antonio People from Torreón Singers from Texas Lawrence Welk Actresses from San Antonio Brackenridge High School alumni