Dominic Nicholas Anthony Lucanese (August 22, 1897 – July 28, 1982), known professionally as Nick Lucas, was an American jazz guitarist and singer. Known as the Crooning Troubadour, he was the first jazz guitarist to record as a soloist. His popularity during his lifetime came from his signature song "
Tiptoe Through the Tulips
"Tiptoe Through the Tulips", also known as "Tip Toe Through the Tulips with Me", is a popular song published in 1929. The song was written by Al Dubin (lyrics) and Joe Burke (music) and made popular by guitarist Nick Lucas. On February 5, 1968, ...
".
Career
Lucas was born into an Italian family in
Newark, New Jersey
Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area. In 1922, at the age of 25, he gained renown with his hit renditions of "Pickin' the Guitar" and "Teasin' the Frets" for
Pathé
Pathé or Pathé Frères (, styled as PATHÉ!) is the name of various French people, French businesses that were founded and originally run by the Pathé Brothers of France starting in 1896. In the early 1900s, Pathé became the world's largest ...
. In 1923,
Gibson Guitars
Gibson may refer to:
People
* Gibson (surname)
Businesses
* Gibson Brands, Inc., an American manufacturer of guitars, other musical instruments, and audio equipment
* Gibson Technology, and English automotive and motorsport company based
* G ...
proposed to build him a concert guitar with a deeper body. Known as the "Nick Lucas Special," it became a popular model with guitarists such as
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
. It was this guitar's outline that was later used as the basis for the
Gibson Les Paul
The Gibson Les Paul is a solid body electric guitar that was first sold by the Gibson Guitar Corporation in 1952. The guitar was designed by factory manager John Huis and his team with input from and endorsement by guitarist Les Paul. Its typi ...
solid body electric guitar. Also in 1923, he began recording for Brunswick and remained one of their exclusive artists until 1932.
In 1929, Lucas co-starred in the
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
Gold Diggers of Broadway
''Gold Diggers of Broadway'' is a 1929 American pre-Code musical comedy film directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring Winnie Lightner and Nick Lucas. Distributed by Warner Bros., the film is the second all-talking, all-Technicolor feature-length fi ...
'', in which he introduced the two hit songs "
Painting the Clouds with Sunshine
"Painting the Clouds with Sunshine" is a popular song published in 1929. The music was written by Joe Burke and the lyrics by Al Dubin for the 1929 musical film ''Gold Diggers of Broadway'' when it was sung by Nick Lucas. ''Gold Diggers of Broa ...
" and "
Tiptoe Through the Tulips
"Tiptoe Through the Tulips", also known as "Tip Toe Through the Tulips with Me", is a popular song published in 1929. The song was written by Al Dubin (lyrics) and Joe Burke (music) and made popular by guitarist Nick Lucas. On February 5, 1968, ...
", which survives in a fully synchronized and preserved
Vitaphone
Vitaphone was a sound film system used for feature films and nearly 1,000 short subjects made by Warner Bros. and its sister studio First National from 1926 to 1931. Vitaphone was the last major analog sound-on-disc system and the only one th ...
disc. The same year, Lucas was featured in the studio's all-star revue, ''
The Show of Shows
''The Show of Shows'' is a 1929 American pre-Code musical revue film directed by John G. Adolfi and distributed by Warner Bros. The all-talking Vitaphone production cost $850,000 and was shot almost entirely in Technicolor.
''The Show of Sho ...
''. Lucas turned down Warner Bros. seven-year contract offer, which went instead to fellow crooner
Dick Powell
Richard Ewing Powell (November 14, 1904 – January 2, 1963) was an American actor, musician, producer, director, and studio head. Though he came to stardom as a musical comedy performer, he showed versatility, and successfully transformed into ...
.
In April 1930, Warner bought Brunswick and gave him his own orchestra, billed on his records as "The Crooning Troubadours". This arrangement lasted until December 1931, when Warner licensed Brunswick to the American Record Corporation ( ARC). The new owners were not as extravagant as Warner Bros. had previously been and Lucas lost his orchestra and eventually left Brunswick in 1932. He made two recordings for
Durium
Durium is a highly durable synthetic resin developed in 1929. It was used in phonograph records, as well as in the casting process for metallic type and in the aeronautics industry.
Origin
It is a resorcinol-formaldehyde resin, the result of ...
in 1932 for their Hit of the Week series. These would prove to be his last major recordings.
Lucas spent the rest of his career performing on radio, in night clubs and dance halls. He made a number of recordings for small or independent labels, including
Cavalier
The term Cavalier () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of King Charles I and his son Charles II of England during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration (1642 – ). It ...
, where he was billed as the "Cavalier Troubadour." In 1944, he reprised some of his old hits in
soundies
Soundies are three-minute American musical films, and each short displays a performance. The shorts were produced between 1940 and 1946 and have been referred to as "precursors to music videos" by UCLA. Soundies exhibited a variety of musical gen ...
movie musicals and filmed another group of songs for
Snader Telescriptions
Snader Telescriptions, produced for television from 1950 to 1952, were film versions of popular and classical music performances. Singers, dancers, orchestras, and novelty acts appeared in the Snader musicals. They were produced by Louis D. Snader, ...
in 1951, including his hit of " Walkin' My Baby Back Home". He signed with Accent in 1955 and remained with the label for 25 years. He once made an extended eight-month tour of Australia when he was on the road. As of 2023, Nick Lucas has one of the longest singing careers, spanning 66 years.
Personal life
Nick Lucas enjoyed a long marriage of 53 years to Catherine Cifrodelli, but he toured so much that he was only there for 26 of those years.
Later Years and Death
Lucas became friends with Tiny Tim, who considered him an inspiration and who borrowed "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" as his own theme song. Most people believe that Tiny Tim was the original singer of "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" Lucas sang the song to him when he married Miss Vicki on ''
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' was an American late-night talk show hosted by Johnny Carson on NBC, the third iteration of the ''Tonight Show'' franchise. The show debuted on October 1, 1962, and aired its final episode on May 22, ...
'' on December 17, 1969. Nick Lucas was interviewed all throughout the 1970's and the early 1980's.
In 1974, his renditions of the songs, "I'm Gonna Charleston Back to Charleston", "When You and I Were Seventeen" and " Five Foot Two, Eyes of Blue" were featured on the soundtrack of ''
The Great Gatsby
''The Great Gatsby'' is a 1925 novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. Set in the Jazz Age on Long Island, near New York City, the novel depicts First-person narrative, first-person narrator Nick Carraway's interactions with mysterious mil ...
'' (1974), selected by the film’s musical director
Nelson Riddle
Nelson Smock Riddle Jr. (June 1, 1921 – October 6, 1985) was an American arranger, composer, bandleader and orchestrator whose career stretched from the late 1940s to the mid-1980s. He worked with many world-famous vocalists at Capitol Records ...
.
In 1975, Nick Lucas performed a sold-out show at Mayfair Music Hall in
Santa Monica
Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...
. In 1977, he celebrated his 80th birthday. This footage is available on
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
. In 1980, Lucas rode in the Rose Bowl Parade on his float 'Tiptoe Through the Tulips. In 1981, Lucas collaborated with Riddle one last time to sing 4 minutes of his best-selling hits. This was one of his last public appearances.
On July 28, 1982, less than a month before his 85th birthday, Nick Lucas died in
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...
, of double pneumonia. He was interred with his wife Catherine in the "Shrine of Remembrance" in
Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...
,
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
Filmography
These are all the films Nick Lucas Started
Here Are the
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 ...
Plays Nick Lucas Starred In
Here are the TV Shows Nick Lucas Was In
Discography
* ''Painting the Clouds with Sunshine'' (Decca, 1957)
* ''Tip-Toe Thru' The Tulips'' (ASV Living Era, 2000)
Discography of American Historical Recordings
The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The DAHR provides some of these original recordings, free of charge, via audio streaming, along with ...