Information AboutHelen Kane |
|
EARLY LIFE During her childhood, a young Helen Schroeder attended St. Anselm’s in the Bronx . Her German father's employment was questionable at times and her Irish mother was into laundry. By the time she was 15, Helen was onstage professionally, touring the Orpheum Circuit with the Marx Brothers . Helen spent the early 1920s trouping in Vaudeville as a singer, playing the New York Palace for the first time in 1921 . In the mid-1920s Helen married department store buyer Joseph Kane and took his last name professionally. By 1928 the marriage had ended in divorce. SUCCESS Music The big break of Helen Kane's career came in 1927 , when appearing in a musical called ''A Night in Spain''. Although the musical was considered a flop, closing after only 22 performances, its band conductor Paul Ash put her name forward for a performance at New York's Paramount Theater . Kane's first performance at the Paramount Theater in Times Square proved to be her defining moment and career's launching point. Kane was singing the popular song '' That’s My Weakness Now '', when she interpolated the Scat lyrics “boop-boop-a-doop.” The rather odd gamble paid off, resonating with Flapper culture and, four days later, Helen Kane’s name went up in lights. Overnight, the world changed for Helen. Kane’s agent Harry Besney got her $5,500 a week in Oscar Hammerstein’s 1928 show '' Good Boy '' (where she introduced the hit, '' I Want To Be Loved By You ''). From there it was back to the Palace, but this time as a headliner for $5,000 a week. She had excellent diction, intonation and timing, acquired during her apprenticeship in Vaudeville . These were put to good use, as her songs have a strong word focus; they also capitalise on her pert, coquettish voice. She blended several styles which were fashionable at the end of the 1920s. These included Scat Singing , a kind of vocal improvisation, and also blending singing and speech; Sprechgesang , or "speech-song" was fashionable at this time in the German Weimar Republic in both nightclubs and in serious music. Kane made 22 song recordings during the height of her fame, during 1928-1930. After 1930 and up to 1951 , she made only 5 more, including a re-release of ''I Wanna be Loved by You'' [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/tracks/B0002AYPPY/ref=dp_tracks_all_1/102-9663109-4808929?%5Fencoding=UTF8#disc_1 Discography Release dates on recordings 1 to 22 derived from cover notes of CD ''"Helen Kane - Great Original Performances - 1928 to 1930"'' (RPCD 323). {Link without Title} Cult Following & Betty Boop As she took on the status of a singing sensation, there were Helen Kane dolls and Helen Kane look-alike contests, appearances on radio and in nightclubs. In late 1928 and early 1929 this cult following had reached its peak. Helen Kane's height (about 5 feet tall) and slightly plump figure attracted attention and fans. Her round face with its huge brown eyes was topped by black, curly hair; her voice was a baby squeak with a distinct Bronx accent. Audiences found Helen adorable. The Betty Boop cartoons of the early 1930s (before censorship set in) were brilliant, exhibiting a sexuality and dark surrealism missing from Disney ’s films. Kane took notice, viewing Betty Boop as competition. Acting In mid-1929, Paramount Pictures signed Helen to make a series of musicals, and put her on a salary of $8,000 a year. Her films were
FLEISCHER V. KANE In 1930 , Fleischer Studios decided to cash in on Helen’s popularity. They assigned staff animator Grim Natwick to come up with a girlfriend for Bimbo the Dog; the result was a caricature of Helen Kane, with droopy dog ears and a squeaky singing voice. “ Betty Boop ,” as the character was dubbed, became an instant smash hit and the star of her own cartoons. By 1932 , she became more realistically human, her long ears turning into loop earrings. In 1932 , Kane filed an unsuccessful $250,000 suit against Paramount and Max Fleischer , charging unfair competition and wrongful appropriation in the Betty Boop cartoons. The trial opened in April 1934 with Helen Kane and Betty Boop films being screened by Judge McGoldrick (no jury was called). Betty Boop voice-over talent Mae Questel , Margy Hines and Bonnie Poe were brought in to testify. McGoldrick ruled against Helen in 1934 , claiming that Kane's testimony could not prove that her singing style was unique or not an imitation itself (a little-known black singer known as 'Baby Esther' was cited by the defence as "booping" in song). LATER YEARS With the hardships of the Great Depression biting, the flamboyant world of the Flapper was over, and Kane's style began to date rapidly. After 1931 she lost the favour of the movie makers, who chose other singers for their films. She appeared in a stage production called ''Shady Lady'' in 1933 , and made appearances at various nightclubs and theatres during the 1930s. On 1st February 1933 she married actor Max Hoffman Jr ; they were divorced on 17th May 1935 . Five years later in 1939 she married the performer Dan Healy , with whom she had worked in the show ''Good Boy'', back in 1928. Together they opened a restaurant in New York, known as "Healy's Grill". She remained married to Healy for the rest of her life. {Link without Title} In ''. She did not appear in the film's credits. She appeared in several TV shows in the 1950s and 1960s, principally '' Toast Of The Town '' (later episodes known as ''The Ed Sullivan Show''). Kane battled Breast Cancer for more than ten years. She died in Jackson Heights , Queens , of the disease on September 26 1966 . Helen Kane is buried in Long Island National Cemetery . EXTERNAL LINKS |
|
|