RIP Patty Andrews, 1918 – 2013

Patty Andrews, the last surviving member of swing-era vocal group the Andrews Sisters (and the center sister in the photo below), died today of natural causes. She was 94. A beautiful lady with a golden voice.

‘Bounce Me Brother With a Solid Four’ will always be my fav of their songs. Thought I’d post the clip here. Not the mention that we get to see Jewel McGowan and Dean Collins dance. 🙂

From the late Thirties through the Forties, the Andrews Sisters produced one hit record after another. Patty Andrews is in the centre

  
http://youtu.be/aPEIn-1JrOw

2 strip Technicolor film…1928/29

I have been meaning to post this little 2 strip Technicolour film for a while now. It is quite amazing and seeing late 20s clothing and hats in all their coloured glory is mesmerising. I think my favourite hat is the black and white cloche and I love the green crepe ensemble.

You will notice that some of skirts are just slightly above knee. Contrary to what a lot of people think, these shorter lengths were generally only in vogue for a short period of time during the 1920s, from around late 1926 to 1928 and this quite often assists with dating a photo or piece of film. Hemlines soon plunged below the knee again in the early 1930s. Many thanks to Atqui on YouTube for uploading this.

The Lovely Lina Romay

welcome 446px-lina_romay

Lina Romay was an actress and singer in the 1940s and 50s, with Columbia and MGM. Though she was born in New York, she was daughter to the Mexican Consul to New York City and was typically cast as a Latin American beauty. She sang with Xavier Cugat’s orchestra in the early 1940s. You may have seen her singing with the band in the Fred Astaire/Rita Hayworth flick You Were Never Lovelier (1942) or in Stage Door Canteen (1943). In the clip below, she could be singing about herself…