Eileen Rodgers (July 10, 1930 – July 13, 2003) was an American singer and Broadway performer.

Career

Born in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

, in 1930, she began her career as a nightclub performer, later singing as lead vocalist with

Charlie Spivak Charlie Spivak (c. February 17, 1904 – March 1, 1982) was an American trumpeter and bandleader, best known for his big band in the 1940s. Early life According to his immigration record, Sender Spivakovsky was born around 1904 in the village ...

's orchestra. She later recorded more than 30 singles and two LPs for

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

, her most successful single being " Miracle of Love" in 1956, which reached number 18 and 24 respectively, on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' and ''

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'' pop charts. Her Broadway debut was in 1959's ''

Fiorello! ''Fiorello!'' is a musical about New York City mayor Fiorello La Guardia, a reform Republican, which debuted on Broadway in 1959, and tells the story of how La Guardia took on the Tammany Hall political machine. The book is by Jerome Weidman ...

'', where she sang the show-stopping "Gentleman Jimmy". In 1960, she appeared in '' Tenderloin''. Two years later, in 1962, she headed the off-Broadway revival cast of

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

's ''

Anything Goes ''Anything Goes'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The original book was a collaborative effort by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse, revised considerably by the team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. The story concerns madc ...

'' in the role of Reno Sweeney, a recording of which is currently available on CD. The show won the New York Outer Circle Critics' Award as Best Revival of 1962. In 1965, Rodgers appeared in the infamous musical flop ''

Kelly Kelly may refer to: Art and entertainment * ''Kelly'' (Kelly Price album), 2011 * ''Kelly'' (Andrea Faustini album) * ''Kelly'' (musical), by Mark Charlap, 1965 * "Kelly" (song), by Kelly Rowland, 2018 * ''Kelly'' (film), Canada, 1981 * ...

'' which closed on Broadway after one performance. The ''

Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine published six times a year. It was published weekly from 1897 until 1963, and then every other week until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely circulated and influ ...

'' reported that Rodgers had burst into tears after a performance during the show's

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

tryout, remarking, "I wish I was back in ''Tenderloin''. It was a flop, but at least people were friendly." She served as a standby for

Ethel Merman Ethel Merman (born Ethel Agnes Zimmermann; January 16, 1908 – February 15, 1984) was an American singer and actress. Known for her distinctive, powerful voice, and her leading roles in musical theatre, musical theater,Obituary ''Variety Obitua ...

in the 1966 revival of ''

Annie Get Your Gun Annie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Annie (given name), a given name and a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Annie (Malayalam actress) (born 1975), Indian actress who works in Malayalam-language films * ...

''. Rodgers made frequent appearances on television variety shows and starred with

Art Carney Arthur William Matthew Carney (November 4, 1918 – November 9, 2003) was an American actor and comedian. A recipient of an Academy Awards, Academy Award, a Golden Globe Awards, Golden Globe Award, and six Primetime Emmy Awards, he was best kn ...

in a Chevrolet 50th Anniversary special.Eileen Rodgers Obituary at TheaterMania.com
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Death

Eileen Rodgers Thompson died of lung cancer on July 13, 2003, in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 United ...

, three days after her 73rd birthday. She was survived by her husband William Thompson, two sons, and three grandchildren.

References

External links

* *
Eileen Rodgers Thompson
at Findagrave.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Rodgers, Eileen 1930 births 2003 deaths Actresses from Pittsburgh American musical theatre actresses Deaths from lung cancer in North Carolina Musicians from Charlotte, North Carolina 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers 21st-century American women