The Dollar Tree isn't usually the place where I find my summertime reading...but after combing through their books I found a biography of Broadway legend Ethel Merman entitled simply "Ethel Merman, a life" by Brian Kellow. It was well worth the dollar!
Ethel Merman was a superstar in the heyday of the musical theater. Her loud brassy voice was one of a kind -- no cookie cutter voice there.... Like many stars, her personal life was pretty sad. Through several marriages she never truly found love and her rude behavior at times alienated people. Of course that always makes for a great read.
After reading this book, I remembered that I had a classic recording of Ethel Merman and another show biz icon Mary Martin. It is the soundtrack to a 1953 tv special "The Ford 50th Anniversary Show." Amazing to think about, but when the Ford Motor Company was 50, they had a special seen simultaneously on both CBS and NBC. Ethel and Mary sing for about 12 minutes together and it apparently became the "stuff legends are made of." Sixty million people saw it. Amazingly I found it on Youtube so click here and enjoy it for yourself..... An interview with both ladies taped in the 1970s is also available here.
And don't forget to check the Dollar Tree for some interesting reading this week.
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