vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Today is the birthday of Tammy Grimes who had a unique, sort of quirky voice that intrigued me from the first time I heard it.
Known for a speaking voice compared to a buzz saw, a "lyric baritone" singing voice that one critic called "a low, throaty quiver, a hum that takes wings", and "the stage personality of a daffy but endearing pseudo-English eccentric".
Tammy Grimes was a Broadway theatre actress, who was catapulted to stardom with The Unsinkable Molly Brown.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown is a 1960 musical with music and lyrics by Meredith Willson whose previous credit was The Music Man. The libretto was by Richard Morris. The plot is a fictionalized account of the life of Margaret Brown and her wealthy miner-husband, who survived the sinking of the RMS Titanic. The Titanic incident is but a small part of the musical.
Margaret (aka Molly) Brown giving Captain Arthur Henry Rostron an award on May 29, 1912 for his service in the rescue of survivors of the Titanic.
Tammy Grimes won a Tony Award for her portrayal of the real life character, Margaret Brown, but was largely unknown in 1960 when she was cast in the title role. The show’s producers considered the music and lyrics by Willson more marketable than Grimes, so, declined to put her name above the title, which meant that (because of the Tony regulations of the time) she could be nominated only in the featured-actress category.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown is a 1960 musical with music and lyrics by Meredith Willson whose previous credit was The Music Man. The libretto was by Richard Morris. The plot is a fictionalized account of the life of Margaret Brown and her wealthy miner-husband, who survived the sinking of the RMS Titanic. The Titanic incident is but a small part of the musical.
Margaret (aka Molly) Brown giving Captain Arthur Henry Rostron an award on May 29, 1912 for his service in the rescue of survivors of the Titanic.
photographer unknown
Tammy Grimes won a Tony Award for her portrayal of the real life character, Margaret Brown, but was largely unknown in 1960 when she was cast in the title role. The show’s producers considered the music and lyrics by Willson more marketable than Grimes, so, declined to put her name above the title, which meant that (because of the Tony regulations of the time) she could be nominated only in the featured-actress category.
vinyl LP front cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Tammy Grimes portrayed the character of Margaret Brown and her rendition of I Ain't Down Yet is the absolutely best version of the tune (link below). Although it sounds nothing like it, the song has the essence of Hey Look Me Over from the musical, Wildcat, which starred Lucille Ball (links below);
both songs proclaim the refusal to admit defeat even at the lowest point in
one's life and they are rousing, inspiring, fight and get-on-with-life
songs.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP front cover
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo of album cover by Styrous®
vinyl LP front cover
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo of album cover by Styrous®
Grimes made her debut on the New York stage at
the Neighborhood Playhouse in May 1955 in Jonah and the Whale.
In 1964 The Unsinkable Molly Brown was made into a movie. Debbie Reynolds (link below) portrayed the role of Molly Brown and did a great interpretation of the role.
In 1964 The Unsinkable Molly Brown was made into a movie. Debbie Reynolds (link below) portrayed the role of Molly Brown and did a great interpretation of the role.
In 1997 Kathy Bates portrayed the Molly Brown character in the film Titanic (link below);
she did not sing but did a marvelous job of projecting a strong-willed
woman who takes everything in her stride but nothing for granted. I've
always liked ANY film Bates has been in. Titanic, directed by James Cameron, won Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Film Editing.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Grimes made her Broadway stage debut as an understudy for Kim Stanley in the starring role in Bus Stop in June 1955.
On May 16, 1960, she acted and sang as Mehitabel in an abridged version of the musical Archy and Mehitabel as part of the syndicated TV anthology series Play of the Week presented by David Susskind, and co-written by Mel Brooks and Joe Darion. The cast included Eddie Bracken, who reprised the role in the 1970 animated feature version Shinbone Alley with Carol Channing (link below) in the Mehitabel role, and Jules Munshin.
On May 16, 1960, she acted and sang as Mehitabel in an abridged version of the musical Archy and Mehitabel as part of the syndicated TV anthology series Play of the Week presented by David Susskind, and co-written by Mel Brooks and Joe Darion. The cast included Eddie Bracken, who reprised the role in the 1970 animated feature version Shinbone Alley with Carol Channing (link below) in the Mehitabel role, and Jules Munshin.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Cleavon Little, Lauren Bacall, Tammy Grimes & Fritz Weaver -1970
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Grimes starred in her second Broadway musical, High Spirits, which opened on Broadway at the Alvin Theatre on April 7, 1964. It is an adaptation of the Noël Coward comic play Blithe Spirit, with
songs by Hugh Martin and Timothy Gray. It ran for 375 performances. The original cast recording of the Broadway cast was released by ABC Records and it made the Top 20.
High Spirits was nominated for eight Tony Awards, but did not win any of them. Other major musical nominees that same year (1964) were Funny Girl with Barbra Streisand (link below), and Hello, Dolly! with Carol Channing (link below); most of the major Tony wins went to Dolly!.
According to the Lyndon Johnson presidential diaries, on Wednesday 26th January, 1966, Grimes sang songs from The Unsinkable Molly Brown in the East Room of the White House.
She starred in her own ABC television series, The Tammy Grimes Show, which aired during the 1966–67 season on the ABC network. It Premiered on September 8, 1966, but was cancelled after only one month (links below).
In 1969 after almost a decade of performing in what The New York Times called "dubious delights", Grimes appeared in a revival of Private Lives by Noël Coward as Amanda, winning the Tony Award for Best Actress the next year.
High Spirits was nominated for eight Tony Awards, but did not win any of them. Other major musical nominees that same year (1964) were Funny Girl with Barbra Streisand (link below), and Hello, Dolly! with Carol Channing (link below); most of the major Tony wins went to Dolly!.
According to the Lyndon Johnson presidential diaries, on Wednesday 26th January, 1966, Grimes sang songs from The Unsinkable Molly Brown in the East Room of the White House.
She starred in her own ABC television series, The Tammy Grimes Show, which aired during the 1966–67 season on the ABC network. It Premiered on September 8, 1966, but was cancelled after only one month (links below).
In 1969 after almost a decade of performing in what The New York Times called "dubious delights", Grimes appeared in a revival of Private Lives by Noël Coward as Amanda, winning the Tony Award for Best Actress the next year.
photo: AP/REX/Shutterstock
The The Unsinkable Molly Brown record album came with a Souvenir Programme that had images from the stage production as well as bios of all the performers (link below).
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP back cover w/Souvenir Programme
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo of album cover by Styrous®
vinyl LP back cover w/Souvenir Programme
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo of album cover by Styrous®
vinyl LP back cover
photo by Styrous®
There are videos of her that demonstrate her bizarre voice on YouTube (links below) one, I Can't Remember Ever Loving You, was written by Randy Newman (link below).
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Grimes was born in Lynn, Massachusetts, on January 30, 1934. Her mother was Eola Willard (née Niles), a naturalist and spiritualist, and Luther Nichols Grimes, an innkeeper, country-club manager, and farmer. She studied singing with Beverley Peck Johnson.
Grimes married Christopher Plummer on August 16, 1956. She married Jeremy Slate in 1966 and divorced him a year later. She married composer Richard Bell in 1971 and the couple remained wed until Bell's death in 2005.
In 1965, Grimes made headlines after she had been beaten and injured twice in four days in New York City, by what were described as "white racists". According to a report, she believed the attacks were related to her association with several black entertainers and recent appearances in public with Sammy Davis Jr., who was said to be staging a nightclub act for her.
Grimes married Christopher Plummer on August 16, 1956. She married Jeremy Slate in 1966 and divorced him a year later. She married composer Richard Bell in 1971 and the couple remained wed until Bell's death in 2005.
In 1965, Grimes made headlines after she had been beaten and injured twice in four days in New York City, by what were described as "white racists". According to a report, she believed the attacks were related to her association with several black entertainers and recent appearances in public with Sammy Davis Jr., who was said to be staging a nightclub act for her.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Tammy Grimes died from natural causes on October 30, 2016, in Englewood, New Jersey. She was 82 years old.
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Tammy Grimes died from natural causes on October 30, 2016, in Englewood, New Jersey. She was 82 years old.
Side 1:
A1 - Overture
A2 - I Ain't Down Yet
A3 - Belly Up To The Bar, Boys
A4 - I've A'ready Started In
A5 - I'll Never Say No
A6 - My Own Brass Bed
A7 - The Denver Police
A8 - Bea-U-Ti-Ful People Of Denver
A9 - Are You Sure
Side 2:
B1 - I Ain't Down Yet (Reprise)
B2 - Happy Birthday, Mrs. J. J. Brown
B3 - Bon Jour (The Language Song)
B4 - If I Knew
B5 - Chick-A-Pen
B6 - Keep-A-Hoppin' And Leadville Johnny Brown
B7 - Up Where The People Are
B8 - Dolce Far Niente And I May Never Fall In Love With You
B9 - I Ain't Down Yet (Finale)
Credits:
Illustration – Tom Morrow*
Viewfinder links:
archy, mehitabel & Carol
Lucille Ball
Eddie Bracken
Carol Channing
Noël Coward
Tammy Grimes
Debbie Reynolds
Titanic subjects: archy, mehitabel & Carol
Lucille Ball
Eddie Bracken
Carol Channing
Noël Coward
Tammy Grimes
Debbie Reynolds
Gavin Bryars ~ The Sinkinig of the Titanic
RMS Titanic images
Titanic (1997 film
Net links:
Tammy Grimes Filmography Tammy Grimes Stage work
NY Times ~ obit
Playbill ~ obit
Variety ~ obit
YouTube link:
Tammy Grimes ~ Dolce Far Niente
~ I Can't Remember Ever Loving You
~ Limehouse Blues
~ Quest-ce Que C'est
~ Sophisticated Lady
The Tammy Grimes Show ~
Part 1 (9 min., 50 sec.)
Part 2 (9 min., 44 sec.)
Part 3 (9 min., 24 sec.)
Tammy Grimes ~ Dolce Far Niente
~ I Can't Remember Ever Loving You
~ Limehouse Blues
~ Quest-ce Que C'est
~ Sophisticated Lady
The Tammy Grimes Show ~
Part 1 (9 min., 50 sec.)
Part 2 (9 min., 44 sec.)
Part 3 (9 min., 24 sec.)
photo by Leo Friedman
Styrous® ~ Wednesday, January 30, 2019
