Luba Lisa Gootnick (March 10, 1941 – December 15, 1972) was an American actress, singer and television presenter. She received a

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...

nomination and won a

Theatre World Award The Theatre World Award is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway theatre, Broadway or Off-Broadway. It was first awarded for the 1945� ...

for her performance in the 1964 musical ''

I Had a Ball ''I Had a Ball'' is a musical with a book by Jerome Chodorov and music and lyrics by Jack Lawrence and Stan Freeman. It starred Buddy Hackett, and featured Richard Kiley and Karen Morrow. Plot overview Set on the Coney Island Boardwalk, it foc ...

''.

Personal life

Luba Lisa Gootnick was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, New York, the daughter of Jewish parents Esther (née Diamant 1908–1999) and Louis Gootnick (1910–2005), a former New York City police officer. Her brother is Dr. David Gootnick.

Theatre

Her Broadway credits include ''

Carnival Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival typi ...

'' as Princess Olga in 1961, and ''

I Can Get It for You Wholesale ''I Can Get It for You Wholesale'' is a musical, produced by David Merrick, music and lyrics by Harold Rome, and book by Jerome Weidman, based on his 1937 novel of the same title. It marked the Broadway debut of 19-year-old Barbra Streisand, wh ...

'' in 1962 with a cast that included

Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers List ...

. In 1964 she starred in a Broadway revival of ''

West Side Story ''West Side Story'' is a musical conceived by Jerome Robbins with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Inspired by William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo and Juliet'', the story is set in the mid-1 ...

'' as Anita. The show closed after 31 performances. Luba received rave reviews for her role as the floozy Addie in the musical ''

'' in which she sang the song called 'Addie's at it Again'. The song was added into the show by the producers before the show opened on Broadway, once they realized her talent. A New York Times Critic said of her,'' "Luba Lisa, as Addie, the girl of easy virtue, gets to demonstrate her talents as a seductive babe and a lively dancer in a number called 'Addie's at It Again' and in another with a group of lifeguards called 'Boys, Boys, Boys'".'' For her role as Addie she was nominated for a

Tony Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...

Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical and received a

. Luba danced with

Maurice Chevalier Maurice Auguste Chevalier (; 12 September 1888 – 1 January 1972) was a French singer, actor and entertainer. He is perhaps best known for his signature songs, including " Livin' In The Sunlight", " Valentine", "Louise", " Mimi", and "Thank Hea ...

in the film ''

Pepe Pepe is a pet form of the Spanish name José (Josep). It is also a surname. * People Mononyms * Pepe (footballer, born 1935), real name José Macia, Brazilian footballer *Pepe (footballer, born 1983), real name Képler Laveran Lima Ferreira ...

''. She was also a television personality. In 1972 Lisa starred in the

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

musical revue ''They Don't Make Em Like That Anymore'' at the Plaza 9 Music Hall with Arthur Blake. The show was built around Blake's impersonations of celebrities like

Marlene Dietrich Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...

and

Jimmy Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military pilot. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morality h ...

Death

Luba Lisa died on December 15, 1972, in a plane crash near Colchester, Vermont. The plane was on its way to an airport in Burlington, Vermont. Winter weather hazards during night travel were thought to have caused the crash. All four on board (the pilot, Lisa, and two others) perished. She is interred with her parents at Mount Ararat Jewish Cemetery in

Farmingdale, New York Farmingdale is an incorporated Political subdivisions of New York#Village, village on Long Island within the Oyster Bay (town), New York, Town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, New York (state), New York. The population was ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lisa, Luba 1972 deaths 1941 births 20th-century American actresses American musical theatre actresses Actresses from New York City 20th-century American singers Singers from New York City Musicians from Brooklyn Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1972 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Accidental deaths in Vermont 20th-century American women singers