Norman Brooks (August 19, 1928 – September 14, 2006) was a Canadian

singer Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

, best known for his ability to sound like

Al Jolson Al Jolson (born Eizer Yoelson; June 9, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian-American Jews, Jewish singer, comedian, actor, and vaudevillian. He was one of the United States' most famous and highest-paid stars of the 1920s, and was self-bi ...

. He was born Norman Joseph Arie, the son of Lebanese parents, in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada in 1928. He played Jolson in the 1956 film, ''

The Best Things in Life Are Free "The Best Things in Life Are Free" is a duet between American singers Luther Vandross and Janet Jackson, recorded for the Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis-produced soundtrack to the 1992 American film '' Mo' Money'', starring Damon Wayans. The song was ...

''. Brooks performed in

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

s and on television in the United States and Canada during the 1950s and 1960s. He played himself in the 1960 film ''

Ocean's Eleven ''Ocean's Eleven'' is a 2001 American heist comedy film directed by Steven Soderbergh from a screenplay by Ted Griffin. The first installment in the ''Ocean's'' film trilogy, it is a remake of the 1960 Rat Pack film of the same name. The fil ...

''. His records "Hello Sunshine" and "You Shouldn't Have Kissed Me The First Time" for the Zodiac Records label were national hits in 1953. His song "A Sky-Blue Shirt and a Rainbow Tie" reached No. 17 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in November 1954.

Partial discography

*1953 – Zodiac 101 – "Hello Sunshine" / "You're My Baby" *1953 – Zodiac 102 – "You Shouldn't Have Kissed Me The First Time" / "Somebody Wonderful" *1953 – Zodiac 103 – "A Sky-Blue Shirt and a Rainbow Tie" / "This Waltz With You" *1953 – Zodiac 104 – "I'd Like To Be in Your Shoes Baby" / "I'm Kinda Crazy" *1953 – Zodiac 106 – "I Can't Give You Anything But Love" / "Johnny's Tune" *1954 – Zodiac 107 – "My 3-D Sweetie" / "Candy Moon" *1954 – Zodiac 109 – "Back in Circulation" / "Lou Lou Louisiana" *195? – Logan 111 – "Lover's Recipe" / "Easy"

References

External links

*
Canadian encyclopedia entry
1928 births 2006 deaths Canadian male film actors 20th-century Canadian male singers Canadian male television actors Deaths from emphysema Canadian people of Lebanese descent Male actors from Montreal Singers from Montreal Apex Records artists X Records artists Canadian pop singers 20th-century Canadian male actors {{Canada-singer-stub