show tunes and ethel merman

I love Ethel...but I seem to be alone...did she become a parody in later life? When she was young she ruled the nest!

But I DO understand her stage presence.

and should get more credit for Ethel's appeal

I just thought the thread was going to be about Whistle-Ass not whistling show tunes because he's a manly man.

:evilgrin:

:evilgrin:

that story was a partial inspiration for this thread!

That she was married to Ernest Borgnine once, but felt overshadowed by his fame.

I think I might've heard it on AMC--can't figure out otherwise where it would come from.

Ethel Merman (1908 - 1984), the film actress with a strong blues singing voice, who was signed by RKO Radio. She appeared with Bing Crosby in 'We're Not Dressing', her first film. She died in her sleep after surgery to remove a brain tumour.

With all due respect to Bernadette Peters's wonderful, Tony-winning portrayal in the 1999 revival of Annie Get Your Gun, the role of sharpshooting Annie Oakley belongs to Ethel Merman. Her bold, brassy performance of Irving Berlin's best score is legendary, as are the songs themselves, including "Doin' What Comes Natur'lly," "You Can't Get a Man with a Gun," "They Say It's Wonderful," "I Got the Sun in the Morning," "Anything You Can Do," and, of course, the classic industry anthem "There's No Business Like Show Business." This rerelease of the original 1946 cast recording includes four bonus tracks recorded in 1972: the overture, "Colonel Buffalo Bill" and "I'm a Bad, Bad Man" (both removed along with "I'm an Indian Too" for the politically correct 1999 revival), and "An Old-Fashioned Wedding," which was written for the 1966 revival. --David Horiuchi