Carol Connors (born Annette Kleinbard, November 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. She is perhaps best known as the lead vocalist on the Teddy Bears' single, " To Know Him Is To Love Him", which was written by her bandmate

Phil Spector Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...

Biography

Early life

Connors was born Annette Kleinbard on November 13, 1941, in

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

.Liami Lawrence
From Elvis to ‘Rocky’ – the charmed life of Carol Connors
''

The Jerusalem Post ''The Jerusalem Post'' is a broadsheet newspaper based in Jerusalem, founded in 1932 during the British Mandate of Palestine by Gershon Agron as ''The Palestine Post''. In 1950, it changed its name to ''The Jerusalem Post''. In 2004, the pap ...

'', March 24, 2014 Her parents were

Polish Jew The history of the Jews in Poland dates back at least 1,000 years. For centuries, Poland was home to the largest and most significant Ashkenazi Jewish community in the world. Poland was a principal center of Jewish culture, because of the lon ...

s. She lost many relatives in

the Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europ ...

. She attended Fairfax High School in Los Angeles, California.

Career

She was the lead singer of the pop vocal trio known as the Teddy Bears, which also included

. The Teddy Bears' only major

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

, " To Know Him Is To Love Him", which Spector wrote specifically to showcase Connors' singing voice, reached No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in late 1958, also becoming the first woman to chart. After their initial hit, the trio disbanded because of the failure of their follow-up

singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

, and the fact that Spector preferred working behind the scenes to performing. Some years later she legally changed her name to Carol Connors. She co-wrote (with

Ayn Robbins Ayn Robbins is a lyricist and poet. She is best known for co-writing with Carol Connors the lyrics for two Academy Award and Grammy nominated songs, " Gonna Fly Now" from ''Rocky'' (1976; music by Bill Conti William Conti (born April 13, 19 ...

and

Bill Conti William Conti (born April 13, 1942) is an American composer and conductor, best known for his film scores, including ''Rocky'' (and four of its sequels), ''The Karate Kid'' (and all of its sequels), '' For Your Eyes Only'', ''Dynasty'' (and its ...

) " Gonna Fly Now", the

theme song Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at ...

from the film ''

Rocky ''Rocky'' is a 1976 American sports drama film directed by John G. Avildsen and written by and starring Sylvester Stallone. It is the first installment in the ''Rocky'' franchise and stars Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, and Burges ...

'', which earned her an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nomination. Carol Connors sang the theme to the film ''

Orca The orca or killer whale (''Orcinus orca'') is a toothed whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family, of which it is the largest member. It is the only extant species in the genus '' Orcinus'' and is recognizable by its black-and-white ...

'', called "We Are One". Other songwriting credits include

the Rip Chords The Rip Chords were an early-1960s American vocal group, originally known as the Opposites, composed of Phil Stewart and Ernie Bringas. The group eventually expanded into four primary voices, adding Columbia producer Terry Melcher and co-produce ...

' 1964 hit "

Hey Little Cobra "Hey Little Cobra" is a song released in 1963 by The Rip Chords about the Shelby Cobra. The song was produced by Terry Melcher and Bruce Johnston, who also sang vocals. The song spent 14 weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, peaking at No. ...

", plus the 1980

Billy Preston William Everett Preston (September 2, 1946 – June 6, 2006) was an American keyboardist, singer and songwriter whose work encompassed R&B, rock, soul, funk, and gospel. Preston was a top session keyboardist in the 1960s, during which he ba ...

Syreeta Wright Syreeta Wright (February 28, 1946 – July 6, 2004), who recorded professionally under the single name Syreeta, was an American singer-songwriter, best known for her music during the early 1970s through the early 1980s. Wright's career heights we ...

duet A duet is a musical composition for two performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a harmony, as the performers take turns performing a sol ...

With You I'm Born Again "With You I'm Born Again" is a 1979 duet written by Carol Connors and David Shire that originated on the soundtrack of the 1979 motion picture ''Fast Break''. It was performed by Motown recording artists Billy Preston and Syreeta Wright (credited ...

"; the 1994 title track "For All Mankind" on the debut album of Italian singer Guendalina Cariaggi, which was used as the theme song for a documentary produced by Pier Quinto and Lara Cariaggi, on the legends of soccer and the

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament has ...

; for "Madonna in the Mirror", the finale song on A&E's ''15 Films About

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

''; and three songs – "Condi, Condi", "I Think of You so Fondly", and "Chill, Condi, Chill" – for

Courting Condi ''Courting Condi'' is a 2008 film by British filmmaker Sebastian Doggart that portrays the quest of a love-struck man, actor Devin Ratray, who wants to win the heart of United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Plot Devin Ratray is a mus ...

(2008). Connors also wrote and performed songs for several films. The 1967 beach-party film ''

Catalina Caper ''Catalina Caper'', also known as ''Never Steal Anything Wet'', is a 1967 comedy musical mystery film starring Tommy Kirk. It blends the beach party format with a standard crime-caper comedy. It was shot on and around Santa Catalina Island, Calif ...

'' features her song "Book of Love" (not to be confused with the Monotones' song), co-written with Roger Christian, which she performed backed by the Cascades. She co-composed (with

) three songs for the soundtrack of the 1977

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

film, '' The Rescuers'': "Tomorrow Is Another Day", "The Journey" and "Someone's Waiting for You". In 1983 Connors was nominated for a

Golden Raspberry Award The Golden Raspberry Awards (also known as the Razzies and Razzie Awards) is a parody award show honoring the worst of cinematic under-achievements. Co-founded by UCLA film graduates and film industry veterans John J. B. Wilson and Mo Murphy ...

, for the 'Worst Original Song' for "It's Wrong for Me to Love You", from ''

Butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The group compris ...

'', which she co-composed with

Ennio Morricone Ennio Morricone (; 10 November 19286 July 2020) was an Italian composer, orchestrator, conductor, and trumpeter who wrote music in a wide range of styles. With more than 400 scores for cinema and television, as well as more than 100 classi ...

. In 2011, she skydived and performed a concert to raise awareness for the Wounded Warrior Project. A Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars was dedicated to her in 1999.

Personal life

Connors lives in

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...

. She testified at the O. J. Simpson trial in 1995. She had seen Simpson at a charity event the night before his ex-wife's murder.

Selected discography

*"My Diary" 1961

References

External links

Official Website
* * Songwriting credits @ Allmusic.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Connors, Carol 1940 births Living people 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers American women singer-songwriters American people of Polish-Jewish descent Jewish American musicians Jewish American songwriters Jewish women singers Musicians from Beverly Hills, California Musicians from New Brunswick, New Jersey Singer-songwriters from California Singer-songwriters from New Jersey 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American women The Teddy Bears members