R.I.P MOLLY BEE

Molly Bee dies at 69; country singer
By Valerie J. Nelson
February 11, 2009



Molly Bee, a country singer popular in the 1950s and 1960s who was a teenage star on television's "Hometown Jamboree" and "The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show," has died. She was 69.

Bee, who lived in Carlsbad, Calif., died Saturday of complications related to a stroke at Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside, said Michael Allen, her son.

At 10, she sang "Lovesick Blues" for country singer Rex Allen and soon debuted on his radio show. Within two years, she was a regular on "Hometown Jamboree," a Los Angeles-based show run by Cliffie Stone, who helped popularize country music in California.

First broadcast on radio, "Jamboree" aired on KTLA-TV Channel 5 from the late 1940s to 1960. The show gave a big break to many young singers, including Tommy Sands, who became a teen idol and dated Bee in the 1950s.

"She had a great voice and a wonderful stage personality," Sands told The Times on Monday. "She was a sweet person, just terrific."

When she was 13, Bee signed with Capitol Records and had her first major recording success with "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" in 1952.

The next year, she recorded a duet with Ford, "Don't Start Courtin' in a Hot Rod Ford." In 1954, Bee left the children's TV program "The Pinky Lee Show" to join Ford's daytime variety show.

Before their performance of “Dim Lights Thick Smoke,” Ford teased her about the pigtails she once wore and praised her "silver bell voice." He then coaxed her to yodel, a skill she had honed on the Beltbuckle, Tenn., farm where she spent her early years.

Born Mollie Gene Beachboard on Aug. 18, 1939, in Oklahoma City, she moved to Tucson in the 1940s and to Los Angeles when she was 11. She graduated from Hollywood Professional High School.

As her career took off, Bee appeared on a number of TV variety shows and had more hit singles, including "Young Romance," "Don't Look Back" and "5 Points of a Star."

In the 1960s, she turned toward acting, appearing in several stage musicals and films but once said she was "too shy" to embrace acting. Her films included "Chartroose Caboose" (1960) and "The Young Swingers" (1963).

Bee regularly headlined in the 1960s at major Las Vegas showrooms and briefly toured with Bob Hope's USO troupe.

She struggled with drug addiction and took several years away from performing to rebuild her life, biographical sources said.

"I've done it all and lived to tell about it," Bee once said. "Mine has been like six lifetimes rolled into one."

Married at least five times, she called herself "the Zsa Zsa Gabor of the country music set." Her marriage to country singer Ira Allen lasted 10 years.

Through her children, she found equilibrium, she said in 1975 in Country Song Roundup magazine. Bee reconnected with Stone, made two more albums and often toured with her two daughters in tow.

Eventually, she moved to Oceanside with her family in 1986 and regularly performed in the early 1990s at a local restaurant and nightclub she ran called Molly Bee's.

Most recently, she used the name Molly Muncy offstage.

In addition to her son Michael of Napa, Calif., Bee is survived by daughters Lia Genn of Winchester, Calif., and Bobbi Carey of Oceanside; brother Robert Beachboard of Escondido; and four grandchildren.

A celebration of Bee's life will be held at 3 p.m. Monday at El Camino Memorial Chapel, 340 Melrose Ave., Encinitas.

Instead of flowers, the family suggests donating to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, www.stjude.org.

valerie.nelson@latimes.com

Source :: http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-molly-bee11-2009feb11,0,7175717.story

Her recording of "Tennessee Tango" was scored by arranger-conductor Van Alexander - giving it some background music that had clarinets and saxophones. It was Mr. Alexander in 1937 who wrote and conducted a tune called "A-tisket A-tasket" for Ella Fitzgerald and got her career on the move.
Her first release did so well, that it got followed quickly by a Christmas recording called "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" and "Willy Claus".
By 1955, Cliffie Stone had moved the Hometown Jamboree to the Valley Gardens Arena in North Hollywood, California. Members of the show's cast would make regular appearances in the southern California area. Country and Western Jamboree magazine had a regular column called "On The Trail" where they listed personal appearances being made by various acts. Throughout 1955, the magazine listed Molly as part of the Hometown Jamboree at the Valley Gardens Arena each week.
They described her singing style then as '...youthful exuberance, strong jazz sense and reads lyrics with a maturity far beyond her years." Her first recording was "Tennessee Tango" along with "The Kids Who Pay".
In 1955, she was signed by Coral Records. But it appears the record company wanted to stretch her audience. A note in one 1955 news report indicated that Coral was going to have her record both country and pop material. At the time, she was a regular not only on Cliffie Stone's Hometown Jamboree, but Tennessee Ernie Ford's show as well.
Country and Western Jamboree had a regular "Checkin' The Records" section in their magazine where they listed the new singles released and offered some commentary about the music they heard on those records. But at times, those reviews appeared to be trying too hard for lame humor. But in May of 1955, while trying to provoke a smile to the reader, they offer up the contrast in the two sides of a Coral records release by Molly. One was "I Won't Grow Up" that was backed by a tune called "False Alarm", which was about a cheater in love. Keep in mind, she was only 16 at the time. This aspect of a young singer singing a tune that fit her age group but also singing of more mature, adult themes may not be all that uncommon. Let's think back to when Tanya Tucker came on the scene and was singing such tunes as "Delta Dawn".

Country and Western Jamboree magazine mentioned another of her Coral releases in April of 1956 and it is interesting to note the themes of the material. For one side, "Fair Weather Fellow", the magazine notes that she knows he's fickle and their love will soon come to an end. On the other side, "Young and Naive", the magazine tells us its a song about a young lady who has found a new love, but hopes "...he won't find out she's so young."
A 1967 article tells us that in her first personal appearance, she borke the six-year attendance record at the Mesker Auditorium in Evansville, Indiana. She then went on to break the attendance record at the Ohio State Fair.
Molly appeared in several movies in her career, but as we'll see later from a 1975 interview, she didn't feel she did too well as an actress. She felt she was "too shy" and said they weren't 'released', they 'escaped'. Her first movie was in 1958 with Allan Reed, Jr., Bill Goodwin, Ralph Moody, Ken Miller, Susan Easter and Irene Hervey in a film for Columbia called "Going Steady" . She later did "Summer Love" for Universal International in 1958 with such folks as John Saxon, Jill St. John, Troy Donohue, Fay Wray, Rod McKuen, Shelley Fabares, George Winslow, and Edward Platt. Other movies included "The Chartroose Caboose" in 1960 (starring such folks as Ben Cooper, Edgar Buchanan, Slim Pickens, Michael McGreevey, and Kay Bartels) and in 1963, "The Young Swingers" (her co-stars included Rod Lauren, Gene McDaniels, Jack Larson, Karen Gunderson, John Merritt, Jo Helton, Justin Smith, Jerry Summers and Jack Younger). According to the online movie database resource, imdb.com, she first appeared in a "musical-featurette" for Universal that starred Tennessee Ernie Ford, Cliffie Stone, Herman the Hermit, Billy Strange, Bucky Tibbs and the rest of the Hometown Jamboree gang.

1960s
She even did a bit of stage work. Her first effort was in San Francisco at the Garden Court Theater in the Sheraton Palace Hotel in "The Boy Friend." Around 1967, she did "Finian's Rainbow" with ALan Young at the Melodyland theatre in Anaheim.

Molly also did several appearances on the Jimmy Dean network television show. Another network show she worked on was Swinging Country which was hosted by the newest member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, Roy Clark.
Around 1967, Dick Clark and Barbara John put together a new show for NBC, "Swingin' Country". It featured three regulars - Roy Clark, Molly Bee and Rusty Draper. The show gained popularity and even the Armed Forces Radio and Television picked it up to be seen by over 250,000 military people stationed around the world. The show had guest stars such as Leroy Van Dyke, JOdy Miller, Rex Allen, Webb Pierce, Don Bowman, Tex Williams, Hank Thompson, Ferlin Husky, Merle Haggard, Jimmy Wakely and Bonnie Guitar. It also featured a few folks that some might not consider 'country' oriented in their music. These included Vic Dana, Dorsey Burnett, Tommy Leoneti, Roger, WIlliams and Al Martino. But the show was country - it would feature country music, whether sung by country artists or popular artists. And wouldn't you have liked to seen the show that Rex Allen was a guest? Imagine that many years later after Rex had hosted the young Molly Bee, the tables were turned and Molly was hosting Rex on her show.
Molly gave an interview to Country Song Roundup magazine back in 1975 that provides some interesting insights into her career, observations and her life.
At the time, she had been on a rest from her musical career, living in Las Vegas and raising her two daughters. She, in her mind, she was becoming quite domestic back then. She had gone to a bingo game or some such gathering and some would recognize her and ask her, "Didn't you used to be Molly Bee?".
She had kept in contact with Cliffie Stone all through her career. She had come to a point where she decided a divorce was needed as well as a change of scenery by taking her daughters and moving back to California to try and take up her singing career again.

She told CSR magzaine that life in Las Vegas was similar to Tucson and not just weather wise. She noted that everybody knew what everyone else was doing and the focus is all local - the rest of the world they just ignored. She called it "very small ownie".
But she noted, if you forgot to pick up your cleaning, you could still do it at 2am or you could go and get your hair done at midnight. She said you just don't spend time on the strip doing "the tourist thing."
She mentions she was married for a time to a boss at the Tropicana Hotel and observed that its not a very anti-social type of setting, no one seemed to mix much. She was accustomed to being around a lot of people and a lot of activity going on. She notes, that in the Las Vegas gaming business, "You just don't fraternize."
The subject of her very young start in the entertainment industry came up. She was asked if she felt she had missed out on anything. She replied that she felt she actually did more - "I lived six lifetimes in one." She told CSR that if her kids decided they wanted to be in the music business, even at a young age, she hoped they would have as much fun as she did. She had gone around the world by the time she was just 19 years old. She recalls working with "incredible people and always into where the action was." Granted it wasn't all glamor - the long trips, sitting in airporst all night and the like, but she says, "I wouldn't trade it for the world."
She told CSR that she started becoming conscious that she might be a celebrity when she would notice that people would point or stare at her in public places such as restaurants. She notes her first date was with Stan Freeburg. Then it got to her a bit, causing her to be self-conscious, and began a routine of trying to duck the sit down restaurants and doing the drive-in lane, trying to avoid too much visibility so she could feel comfortable when she was out and about.
One of the reasons for the interview was the restart of her singing career and more of a focus on her recordings. She notes it had been a while between records, but noted she had never really focused on that aspect. Up to that point, the focus had been on personal appearances at state fairs, rodeos, concerts, television spots and movies. Touring to promote a record was new to her after being in the entertainment business for 25 years.


She told CSR that her nine years with the Tennessee Ernie Ford show were the most enjoyable years. She told the readers that she was home most of the time, got to see her family everyday. Yet, she was still "...being seen by a million people and don't even realize it." She opined, "It's scary when you go out on the road and there's thousands of people in little towns that you had no idea of, who had known everything about you."
She was asked whether the attitude of people on the club scene had changed towards female enertainers since the 1960s. She replied that she had not performed at clubs much - felt it was the hardest personal appearance to do. She had started her career again by doing mostly specials, recordings and television, including an appearance on Hee Haw and the Wembley Music Festival in London. She felt doing those two or three shows a night in the club scene was perhaps one of the toughest roles to play.
When she got back into the entertainment business again in 1975, she wanted to give her recording career a bigger emphasis - she wanted that hit record. But she also wanted to be a part of a television series - a situation that would allow her to be at home and be with her children. She fond that the travels caused her phone bills to sky rocket.
Finally, CSR asked her if she had changed her singing style now that she had matured. She noted that "I understand things now that were just words to me before. I think I've finally got around to maturing." She further noted, "I worked twenty years without really stopping and you cna't relate to real people unless you've lived something normal." For example, she notes, "they handed me my first baby and I didn't know how to tune her. I said this won't get in tune. OK, it was crazy, but having kids, I learned you could get so involved in aoother person. The first time you're around little babies, you discover they got you. You just die for them. It was the first time I ever felt anything like that and it's changed my outlook on everything."

1990s and Later
Molly left an impression with the folks she entertained. While reviewing old articles that mention Molly, we found a memory a disc jockey by the name of Dave Hull told the Orange County Register in an interview upon returning to KRLA. He said he was going to start doing the old "Love Line" segment on his show again which tried to match up single guys and gals. He recalled a caller by the name of Floyd who once called up and well, had no love life to speak of. But Floyd did get the biggest kick out of seeing Molly perform in concerts out in Blythe, California.
Perhaps by this time Molly was no longer traveling across the country doing personal appearances, but would still make appearances in southern California. In April of 1998, she was part of a roster of entertainers playing a benefit for the Ivey Ranch Park for the physically handicapped and mentally retarded, using the Old West as a back-drop to the benefit. The concert was held in Oceanside, California at the park across from the Mission San Luis Rey.
In 1991, the Sterling Silver Inn at 8737 Fenwick Street in Sunland, California was trying to offer live entertainment to its audiences, but did not want to hire its own band. The owners, Ruben Carranza and Ronald Battaglia, decided to bring some traditional country music acts to town. One was Johnny Lee. On August 9, 1997, Cliffie Stone along with the Riders of the Purple Sage and Molly were to appear; admission was $20.
After Cliffie Stone died in 1998, his wife Joan would organize an annual tribute concert to Cliffie that would include many of the former people associated with him and the Hometown Jamboree. The benefit concert, sponsored by the Music Performance Trust Fund, was held at the William S. Hart Park in Newhall, California in 1998 and continued to be a venue for the tribute show. Molly appeared on the roster for that tribute in 1998 along with the Riders of the Purple Sage and the Al Vescovo band among others, and would always feature the local talent who were trying to get some exposure as well. Entertainment ran from noon to 5:00pm. In 2001, Molly again appeared on the show and was touted as an original member of the Hometown Jamboree as part of the entertainment lineup that day. The event went from 11:30am to 5:00pm and was free to the public. The Music Performance Trust Fund sponsored the concert.
Later in life, she may have changed her mind about 'clubs'. We learned from that question and answer column that Molly had her own club in Oceaside, California. Acts that would appear at her club included such folks as Tommy Sands, who appeared there in November of 1992 for two shows a night for two nights; . Molly Bee's Club was located at 1903 Hill Street in Oceanside. In 1993, there was live dancing Thursday through Sunday and had no cover charge.
Molly was married seven times according to a question and answer column that answered a reader's question about Molly.

Credits & Sources

• Cowboy Songs Magazine No. 26; May 1953; American Folk Publications, Inc.; Derby, CT
  
• Cowboy Songs Magazine No. 29; November 1953; American Folk Publications, Inc.; Derby, CT
  
• Country Song Roundup No. 33; July-August 1954; American Folk Publications, Inc.; Derby, CT
  
• Country and Western Jamboree; Vol. 1 No. 2; April 1955; Country and Western Jamboree, Inc.; Chicago, IL
  
• Country and Western Jamboree; Vol. 1 No. 3; May 1955; Country and Western Jamboree, Inc.; Chicago, IL
  
• Country and Western Jamboree; Vol. 1 No. 4; June 1955; Country and Western Jamboree, Inc.; Chicago, IL
  
• Country and Western Jamboree; Vol. 2 No. 2; April 1956; Maher Publications, Inc.; Chicago, IL
  
• Country and Western Jamboree; Vol. 2 No. 5; August 1956; Maher Publications, Inc.; Chicago, IL
  
• Country Song Roundup No. 99; April 1967; Charlton Publishing Corp., Inc.; Derby, CT
  
• Country and Western Hit Parade; Vol. 14, No. 45; August 1967; Charlton Publishing Corporation; Derby, CT
  
• Country Song Roundup No. 195; October 1975; Charlton Publications, Inc.; Derby, CT
  
• Los Angeles Times (San Diego County Edition); April 18, 1991; 'Benefit to Revive Old West;'; Los Angeles, CA
  
• Orange County Register; April 10, 1992; 'Veteran disc jockey Dave Hull returns to KRLA'; Santa Ana, CA
  
• The San Diego Union Tribune; November 10, 1992; 'The Maximum Daily Irrelevance'; San Diego, CA
  
• The San Diego Union Tribune; January 24, 1993; 'Scoot Your Boots All Over The County'; San Diego, CA
  
• Wall Street Journal; June 9, 1993; 'The cabaret singer as entrepreneur'; New York, NY
  
• Buffalo Magazine; Buffalo Daily News; 'One Busy Boy'; May 7, 1995; Buffalo, NY
  
• Los Angeles Times; July 24, 1997; 'Country Crooners'; Los Angeles, CA
  
• The San Diego Union Tribune; August 9, 1998; 'Moore has played it all, from boogie joints to Mr. A's'; San Diego, CA
  
• Daily News; 'Saluting Stoe: Concert Will Pay Tribute To Singer'; September 4, 1998; Los Angeles, CA
  
• Daily News; 'Memorial Jamboree for Stone on Sunday'; August 31, 2001; Los Angeles, CA
  

Get The Music

Recordings

Capitol Rec. No. Side Song Title 2258 A The Kids Who Pay (W/Van Alexander) 2258 B Tennessee Tango (W/Van Alexander) 2285 A I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus 2285 B Willy Claus 2339 A Honky Tonk Mountain 2339 B Nobody's Lonesome For Me 2396 A What'll He Do? 2396 B Dancin' With Someone 2473 A Don't Start Courting In A Hot Rod (w/Tennessee Ernie Ford) 2473 B We're A-Growin' Up 2494 A I'll Tell My Mommy 2494 B The Doggie On The Highway 2567 A This Is My Day 2567 B God Bless Us All 2741 A Pine Tree, Pine Over Me 2741 B Remember Me 2790 A In The Pyrenees 2790 B Stuffy 3865 A Goin' Steady With A Dream 3865 B Magic Mirror 3968 A Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone 3968 B Don't Look Back 4064 A After You've Gone 4064 B Five Points Of A Star C-1062 A Willy Claus C-1062 B I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus Coral Rec. No. Side Song Title 61357 A I Won't Grow Up 61357 B Falst Alarm 61580 A Young And Na�ve 61580 B Fair Weather Fellow Dot Rec. No. Side Song Title 45-15453 A Sweet Shoppe Sweetheart 45-15453 B From The Wrong Side Of Town 45-15517 A Since I Met You Baby 45-15517 B I'll Be Waiting For You Liberty Rec. No. Side Song Title 55438 A Just For The Record 55438 B Lyin' Again 55543 A All My Love All My Life 55543 B She's New To You 55569 A I Was Only Kiddin' 55569 B He's My True Love 55631 A Some Tears Fall Dry 55631 B Johnny Liar 55691 A Our Secret 55691 B He Doesn't Want You MGM Rec. No. Side Song Title 13356 A Single Girl Again 13356 B Keep It A Secret 13411 A I'm Gonna Change Everything 13411 B Together Again 13491 A Losing You 13491 B Miserable Me 13537 A How's The World Treating You 13537 B It Keeps Right On A Hurting 13615 A Everything But Your Name 13615 B World I Can't Live In 13694 A Heartbreak USA 13694 B Almost Persuaded 13770 A You Win Again 13770 B I Hate To See Me Go 13864 A Fresh Out Of Tryin' 13864 B Sinner's Wine Granite Rec. No. Side Song Title 509 A She Kept On Talking 509 B Baby You Got It 515 A Right Or Left At Oak Street 515 B I Got A Man 524 A California Country (Stereo) 524 B California Country (Mono) 531 A I Can't Live In The Dark Anymore (Stereo) 531 B I Can't Live In The Dark Anymore (Mono)

Source ::
http://hillbilly-music.com/artists/story/index.php?id=13191

Tribute to Molly Bee: THE GISELE MacKENZIE SHOW 1-4-1958

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8GOHsFfg_k

Ben mince alors, mais ils se sont tous donner le mot !!!

R.I.P.


AHHH !! Molly, si tu savais que j'étais jalouse de toi, d'être aussi prêt de
mon Tennessee Ernie Ford !!