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Anita Ellis

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Anita Ellis
Ellis in c. 1945
Born
Anita Kert[1]

April 12, 1920 (1920-04-12)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
DiedOctober 28, 2015 (aged 95)
Manhattan, New York, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Alma materCollege of Music, Cincinnati, Ohio
Occupation(s)Singer, actress
Known forDubbing singing voices for famous actresses
Spouse(s)Frank Ellis (1943-1946; divorce)
Mortimer Fromberg Shapiro (1960-1995; his death)
Parent(s)Harry and Lillian (née Libbie Pearson) Kert

Anita Ellis (née Kert; April 12, 1920 – October 28, 2015) was a Canadian-born American singer and actress.

Early years

Anita Kert[2] was born in Montreal, Quebec, the eldest of four children born to Orthodox Jewish parents, Harry and Lillian "Libbie" Kert (née Pearson; originally Perec).[3][4] She had a younger sister and two younger brothers, one of whom, Lawrence Frederick Kert, became actor/singer Larry Kert (1930–1991).[5] The family moved to Hollywood when she was nine years old. She graduated from Hollywood High School in 1938[6] and attended the College of Music in Cincinnati, Ohio.[7]

Ellis became a naturalized United States citizen in 1950.[6]

Voice doubling

Ellis dubbed the singing voices of such actresses as Rita Hayworth (notably in Gilda, 1946), Vera-Ellen and Jeanne Crain.[8] Twenty-eight years after Gilda was released, entertainment writer Rex Reed reminisced in print about Ellis's voice: "I fell in love with Anita Ellis when I was 8 years old. ... Only I didn't know she was Anita Ellis, I thought she was Rita Hayworth. ... That was the sexiest voice in 1946, and it kept turning people on for years ..."[9]

Radio

In 1941, she joined WLW in Cincinnati, Ohio, as a singer.[7] Billed as Anita Kurt, she was a regular on Open House (also known as The Ona Munson Show),[10] The New Jack Carson Show,[11] Tommy Riggs and Betty Lou.[12]

Billed as Anita Ellis, she was also a regular on The Charlie McCarthy Show[12]: 72  and The Jack Carson Show.[12]: 169  She was a regular guest on The Red Skelton Show. [citation needed] (Two sources list Ellis as one of the vocalists on Skelton's show, without the "guest" modifier.)[12]: 282 [10]: 545 

Personal life

Ellis married U.S. Army Lt. Frank Ellis (1916-1957) on January 23, 1943, in Tucson, Arizona.[13] They divorced in 1946.[7] She remarried, to neurologist Mortimer Fromberg Shapiro (1915-1995), on July 31, 1960; the couple remained together until Shapiro's death at age 80 on June 6, 1995. Both unions were childless.[5]

She "traveled through the wilderness of Africa and the Himalayas, and taught nature studies at the American Museum of Natural History."[9] In the 1950s, Ellis stopped performing while she underwent psychoanalysis. She returned to professional singing with performances in nightclubs and a recording contract with Epic Records.[14] In 1957, columnist Dorothy Kilgallen wrote: "Anita Ellis ... has surprised everyone with her new jazz singer style. She gives her analyst credit for the New Sound."[15]

Later years

A newspaper article in 1979 reported that Ellis had suffered from stage fright for more than 25 years. Ellis described her condition as "not just stage fright. It's more than that."[7] She added: "It's really crippling. It's kept me from my own gifts. It just stops me cold. I don't sing."[7]

She eventually ended her career in 1987 due to that stage fright. A widow, she lived in Manhattan and had suffered from Alzheimer's disease since 2000;[16][17] she died on October 28, 2015, aged 95, from the disease.[18][19]

Other

Ellis had a pilot's license and flew her own plane for pleasure.[20]

Filmography

She performed in the following films:

References

  1. ^ Some sources cite her surname as Kurt
  2. ^ Some sources her surname as Kurt
  3. ^ Montreal Marriage records 1 June 1919
  4. ^ Who's Who in Entertainment, Volume 1. Marquis Who's Who. April 14, 2017. p. 181.
  5. ^ a b Family Tree of Anita Kert, cousinsconnection.com; accessed May 4, 2016.
  6. ^ a b "Radio Mirror". MacFadden Publications. 1946. Retrieved August 8, 2014.
  7. ^ a b c d e "Stage fright has plagued singer for over 25 years". The Kokomo Tribune. Kokomo, Indiana. Associated Press. March 18, 1979. p. 35. Retrieved May 6, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  8. ^ O'Brien, Gerard W. (July 25, 2006). "The Heat is On... Quinn Lemley's Musical Journey as Rita Hayworth". jazzreview.com. Archived from the original on August 27, 2006. Retrieved August 8, 2014.
  9. ^ a b Reed, Rex (December 11, 1974). "Royal Entertainment: Rex Reed". Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph. Colorado Springs, Colorado. p. 58. Retrieved May 4, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  10. ^ a b Sies, Luther F. (2014). Encyclopedia of American Radio, 1920-1960, 2nd Edition. McFarland & Company, Inc.; ISBN 978-0-7864-5149-4, pg. 498.
  11. ^ "Air Ya Listenin?". The Mason City Globe-Gazette. Mason City, Iowa. June 2, 1943. p. 2. Retrieved May 5, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  12. ^ a b c d Terrace, Vincent (1999). Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows. McFarland & Company, Inc.; ISBN 978-0-7864-4513-4, pg. 337.
  13. ^ "Miss Kurt wed secretly". The Lincoln Star. Lincoln, Nebraska. International News Service. March 14, 1943. p. 1. Retrieved May 5, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  14. ^ "Anita Stops 'Ghosting'". The Courier News. Blytheville, Arkansas. NEA. February 18, 1957. p. 7. Retrieved May 4, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  15. ^ Kilgallen, Dorothy (August 6, 1957). "The Voice of Broadway". Pottstown Mercury. Pottstown, Pennsylvania. p. 4. Retrieved May 5, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  16. ^ Profile Archived 2010-01-14 at the Wayback Machine, Nysocialdiary.com; accessed April 14, 2016.
  17. ^ Profile, Oldies.com; accessed April 14, 2016.
  18. ^ NY Probate information for Estate of Anita Kert Ellis Shapiro
  19. ^ Getting Colder
  20. ^ Emery, Fred (January 15, 1946). "On the Air: Skelton Vocalist". Delphos Daily Herald. Ohio, Delphos. p. 5. Retrieved May 6, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
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