Pauline Byrns (May 6, 1917 – September 18, 1990) was an American singer who recorded successfully in the

swing Swing or swinging may refer to: Apparatus * Swing (seat), a hanging seat that swings back and forth * Pendulum, an object that swings * Russian swing, a swing-like circus apparatus * Sex swing, a type of harness for sexual intercourse * Swing ri ...

era of the late 1930s and 1940s, notably with

Artie Shaw Artie Shaw (born Arthur Jacob Arshawsky; May 23, 1910 – December 30, 2004) was an American clarinetist, composer, bandleader, actor and author of both fiction and non-fiction. Widely regarded as "one of jazz's finest clarinetists", Shaw led ...

and the vocal groups

Six Hits and a Miss Six Hits and a Miss was an American swing-era singing group. The group consisted of six male singers and one female (thus the word "miss" in their name has a double meaning – the converse of the word "hit", and denotation of a young woman). T ...

and

The Starlighters The Starlighters were an American singing group of the mid 20th century. The group was formed in 1946, the members being Pauline Byrns, Vince Degen, Tony Paris, Howard Hudson, and future star Andy Williams, all alumni of Six Hits and a Miss. Wi ...

. She was often credited as Pauline Byrne or Pauline Byrnes. Singer

Mel Tormé Melvin Howard Tormé (September 13, 1925 – June 5, 1999), nicknamed "The Velvet Fog", was an American musician, singer, composer, arranger, drummer, actor, and author. He composed the music for " The Christmas Song" ("Chestnuts Roasting on an ...

said of her: "Oh, what a singer.... I admired her so much". She was born in

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

. At the age of 17 she won a talent contest in

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, and began singing and touring with big bands. In 1937 she moved to

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

and joined the singing group Three Hits and a Miss to replace

Martha Tilton Martha Tilton (November 14, 1915 – December 8, 2006) was an American popular singer during America's swing era and traditional pop period. She is best known for her 1939 recording of " And the Angels Sing" with Benny Goodman. Tilton was born ...

. As the group changed personnel, so its name changed, later recording as Six Hits and a Miss; the group's other members included Vince Degen, her husband Jerry Preshaw, Howard Hudson - later her second husband - and Tony Paris. In 1938, Byrne was described by the magazine ''Records and Recording'' as "one of the finest vocalists to grace a bit of waxed jazz in some years. Her voice is a rich contralto, best in the lower register..." The group recorded with

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

, appeared in several movies in the early 1940s, including the

Marx Brothers The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act that was successful in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in motion pictures from 1905 to 1949. Five of the Marx Brothers' thirteen feature films were selected by the American Film Institute (AFI) ...

film '' The Big Store'', and performed regularly on the

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with ...

Show on radio. LA Times, ''Obituary: Pauline Byrns Hudson; Retired Singer'', September 20, 1990
/ref> The version of

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

's " You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To" by Six Hits and a Miss made no. 11 on the US charts in 1943. She also recorded " Lullaby of Broadway" as a featured vocalist with the

David Rose David Rose may refer to: Business * David Rose (real estate developer) (1892–1986), American real estate developer and philanthropist * David L. Rose (born 1967), American business executive and scientist at MIT Media Lab * David S. Rose (bor ...

Orchestra, and in 1940 recorded "

Gloomy Sunday "Gloomy Sunday" ( Hungarian: ''Szomorú vasárnap''), also known as the "Hungarian Suicide Song", is a popular song composed by Hungarian pianist and composer Rezső Seress and published in 1933. The original lyrics were titled "Vége a vilá ...

" and "Don't Fall Asleep" with the Artie Shaw Orchestra. She formed another vocal group, The Starlighters, with Hudson, Degen and Paris, in 1946; an early member of the group was

Andy Williams Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer. He recorded 43 albums in his career, of which 15 have been gold certified and three platinum certified. He was also nominated for six Grammy Awards. He hos ...

. Andy Williams, ''Moon River And Me: The Autobiography'', Hachette UK, 2009
/ref> The Starlighters (unconnected to other groups of that name) recorded successfully for several labels in the late 1940s and early 1950s, including some records with

Jo Stafford Jo Elizabeth Stafford (November 12, 1917July 16, 2008) was an American traditional pop music singer, whose career spanned five decades from the late 1930s to the early 1980s. Admired for the purity of her voice, she originally underwent classi ...

. However, Byrns left the group in 1947, after giving birth to her first child. Thereafter she retired from the music business. In later years she lived in Encino and then Tarzana with her husband, Howard G. Hudson. She died of cancer in

Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles Sherman Oaks is a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California located in the San Fernando Valley, founded in 1927. The neighborhood includes a portion of the Santa Monica Mountains, which gives Sherman Oaks a lower population density tha ...

at the age of 73.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Byrns, Pauline 1917 births 1990 deaths Singers from Missouri 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers