Lovelace Watkins (March 6, 1933– June 11, 1995) was an American,

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

-based singer and performer (also nicknamed "The Black Sinatra"), who achieved prominence in

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

as well as in Europe and Australia.

Biography

Watkins was born in

New Brunswick, New Jersey New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat, seat of government of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.microbiology Microbiology () is the scientific study of microorganisms, those being unicellular (single cell), multicellular (cell colony), or acellular (lacking cells). Microbiology encompasses numerous sub-disciplines including virology, bacteriology, prot ...

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's ...

, and trained as a boxer. His operatically trained and signature booming voice took him to

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

where he was invited to entertain at the

Royal Command Performance A Royal Command Performance is any performance by actors or musicians that occurs at the direction or request of a reigning monarch of the United Kingdom. Although English monarchs have long sponsored their own theatrical companies and commis ...

for the Queen of the United Kingdom. ''

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'' called him “the best entertainer on earth.” In

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, he received two gold albums, and a public parade was held in his honor which was unprecedented for a black entertainer at the height of

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

. He appeared on ''

The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television program, television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in Septembe ...

'' in 1961 while promoting his album, "The Big, Big Voice of Lovelace Watkins", music arranged and conducted by

Ray Ellis Ray Ellis (July 28, 1923 – October 27, 2008) was an American record producer, arranger, conductor, and saxophonist. He was responsible for the orchestration in Billie Holiday's ''Lady in Satin'' (1958). Biography Raymond Spencer Ellis wa ...

. In addition to appearing on ''The Ed Sullivan Show'', Lovelace also appeared on the

Johnny Carson John William Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American television host, comedian, writer and producer. He is best known as the host of ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (1962–1992). Carson received six Pr ...

and

Mike Douglas Michael Delaney Dowd Jr. (August 11, 1920 – August 11, 2006),Cook County Birth Certificates, file number 6053268, borAugust 11, 1920Social Security Death Index, Michael D. Dowd Jr., Birth: 11 Aug 1920, death: 11 Aug 2006 residing in North ...

shows. Lovelace became popular in northern England, and the Liverpool public helped make his debut at their Wookey Hollow's night club an overnight sensation, and he was recalled for a second show one week later. He performed at the

London Palladium The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in the famous area of Soho. The theatre holds 2,286 seats. Of the roster of stars who have played there, many have televised performances. Between 1955 an ...

on 15th November 1971 in front of Her Majesty the Queen. His third Wookey Hollow cabaret appearance was recorded and televised on BBC1 at 11.35pm on 8 May 1974. Following this, Lovelace Watkins at one time held the attendance record at the "Talk Of The Town" in London, England, at the height of its prominence, and attended by such stars as Roger Moore and Australia's Barry Crocker, who went on to become a great friend of Lovelace. Watkins did a "Command Performance" for

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

, and appeared on the British religious variety series "

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". After his last reappearance at the Wookey Hollow when he introduced his new wife, Lovelace disappeared into obscurity as far as his UK fan base was concerned. In 1974, Lovelace did a ten week long summer season at The ABC Theatre in Blackpool. The shows were sold out.

Australia

Watkins had a long association with Australia's Gold Coast. He helped raise money for the city following the devastating floods in 1974. He was named "Ambassador at large" by Gold Coast Mayor, Keith Hunt. Watkins recorded two songs that beat more than 250 entries to be selected. They were "We Love The Gold Coast" by Clyde Collins, and "On The Gold Coast" by Tom Louch from Victoria. The single was released on the Finooks Folly label.

South Africa

Performing for newly installed President

In apartheid South Africa, Watkins was the guest of honor at a woman's banquet. He was pictured in ''The Sunday Express'' dancing with a white woman, which wasn't good for the hotel where it was taken as it nearly lost its license.

Personal life and death

In March 1972, he married Anna Marie Fitzsimmons of Salford, Lancashire, and their baby son was born in 1972; the marriage later ended. Nearing the end of his music career, Watkins started a successful company that prepared apartments and commercial buildings for rental companies in the Las Vegas area, and continued singing at various functions in Las Vegas. He died of leukemia in 1995.Weatherford, Mike
Lure of obscure performer
Las Vegas Review-Journal, June 15, 2003. Retrieved December 1, 2006.

Releases

Notes

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Watkins, Lovelace 1933 births 1995 deaths Sue Records artists 20th-century American singers 20th-century American male singers MGM Records artists Groove Records artists Uni Records artists