Ethel Smith (born Ethel Goldsmith; November 22, 1902 – May 10, 1996) was an American

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists. In addition, an organist may accompany congregational h ...

who played primarily in a pop or

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

style on the Hammond organ. She had a long recording career and appeared in many films.

Early life and career

Born Ethel Goldsmith, to parents Elizabeth Bober and Max Goldsmith, she performed from a fairly young age and traveled widely, after studying both music and several languages at

Carnegie Institute of Technology Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...

. She became proficient in

Latin music Latin music ( Portuguese and es, música latina) is a term used by the music industry as a catch-all category for various styles of music from Ibero-America (including Spain and Portugal) and the Latino United States inspired by Latin Amer ...

while staying in South America, and it is the style of music with which she is now most associated.

Film and recording career

Smith performed in several Hollywood films such as ''

George White's Scandals ''George White's Scandals'' were a long-running string of Broadway revues produced by George White that ran from 1919–1939, modeled after the ''Ziegfeld Follies''. The "Scandals" launched the careers of many entertainers, including W. C. Fi ...

'' (1945) and ''

Melody Time ''Melody Time'' is a 1948 American live-action/animated musical film produced by Walt Disney. The tenth Disney animated feature film, it was released to theatres by RKO Radio Pictures on May 27, 1948. Made up of seven segments set to popular mu ...

'' (1948). In these appearances, she was known for her colorful, elaborate costumes, especially her hats. She was married to Hollywood actor

Ralph Bellamy Ralph Rexford Bellamy (June 17, 1904 – November 29, 1991) was an American actor whose career spanned 65 years on stage, film, and television. During his career, he played leading roles as well as supporting roles, garnering acclaim and ...

from 1945 to 1947, at the height of her fame, and their acrimonious divorce made headlines. She never had children. Her rendition of " Tico Tico" became her best-known hit. She performed it in the MGM film ''

Bathing Beauty ''Bathing Beauty'' is a 1944 musical film starring Red Skelton, Basil Rathbone, and Esther Williams, and directed by George Sidney. Although this was not Williams' screen debut, it was her first Technicolor musical. The film was initially to be ...

'' (1944), after which her recording reached the U.S. pop charts in November 1944, peaked at #14 on January 27, 1945, and sold nearly two million copies worldwide. " Down Yonder" was her second national hit, reaching #16 on October 27, 1951. Smith's recording of "Monkey on a String" became the theme song for ''

Garfield Goose and Friends ''Garfield Goose and Friends'' is a children's television show produced by WGN-TV in Chicago, Illinois, United States from 1955 to 1976. The show was known as ''Garfield Goose and Friend'' from 1952 to 1955 when it aired on WBKB and WBBM-TV. It ...

'', a popular children's television show in Chicago that ran from 1952 until 1976. Smith was a guitarist as well as an organist, and in her later years occasionally played the guitar live for audiences, but all her recordings were on the organ. She recorded dozens of albums, mostly for Decca Records.

Death

Smith died on May 10, 1996, at age 93.

Selected works

78s

*Teddy Bear's Picnic / Fiddle-Faddle, Decca 60.298 American Series (very rare) *Tico Tico, Decca 23353 *Tico Tico / Lere Lero, Decca BM03571 American Series *White Christmas / Jingle Bells, Decca BM30601 American Series *Paran Pan Pin - Cachita / The Parrot, Decca BM03632 American Series *Quizas, Quizas, Quizas / Made for Each Other, Decca 60.139 American Series *Blame It on the Samba / The Green Cockatoo, Decca 60.249 American Series *Mambo Jambo, Decca 27119 *Monkey on a String, Decca 27183 *I'm Walking Behind You / April in Portugal, Brunswick 05147 *Ethel's Birthday Party / The Wedding of the Painted Doll, Decca 60.605 *(Fifi) Bring her Out Again / Sleigh Ride, Brunswick 04517

LPs

*''Ethel Smith's Hit Party'', Decca DL 4803 *''Souvenir Album'', Decca DL 5016 *''Christmas Music'', Decca DL 5034 *''Ethel Smith's Cha Cha Cha Album'', Decca DL 8164 *''Christmas Music'', Decca DL 8187 (expanded version of DL 5034 above) *''Galloping Fingers'', Decca DL 8456 *''Latin From Manhattan'', Decca DL 8457 *''Miss Smith Goes to Paris'', Decca DL 8640 *''Dance to the Latin Rhythms of Ethel Smith'', Decca DL 8712 *''Waltz With Me'', Decca DL 8735 *''Lady Fingers'', Decca DL 8744 *''Bright and Breezy'', Decca DL 8799 *''Ethel Smith Swings Sweetly'', Decca DL 74095 *''The Many Moods of Ethel Smith'', Decca DL 74145 *''Make Mine Hawaiian'', Decca DL 74236 *''Lady of Spain'', Decca DL 74325 *''Rhythm Antics!'', Decca DL 74414 *''At the End of a Perfect Day'', Decca DL 74467 *''Hollywood Favorites'', Decca DL 74618 *''Ethel Smith's Hit Party'', Decca DL 74803 *''Seated One Day at the Organ'', Decca DL 78902 *''Bouquet of the Blues'', Decca DL 78955 *''Ethel Smith on Broadway'', Decca DL 78993 *''Ethel Smith'', Vocalion VL 3669 *''Organ Holiday'', Vocalion VL 73778 *''Silent Night—Holy Night'', Vocalion VL 73882 *''Parade'', MCA Coral CB 20021

CDs

*''Tico Tico,'' Living Era AJA-5506 (2004). A compilation of early releases from 1944–1952 *''The Fabulous Organ Music of Ethel Smith'', MCA MSD-35255 (out of print as of December 2005) *''The First Lady of the Hammond Organ: Plays "Tico Tico" & Other Great Recordings,'' Jasmine Music (2003). A 2-CD compilation of early recordings

Films

*''

'' (1944) *'' Twice Blessed'' (1945) as Herself *''

'' (1945) *'' Cuban Pete'' (1946) *''

Easy to Wed ''Easy to Wed'' is a 1946 Technicolor American musical comedy film directed by Edward Buzzell, and starring Van Johnson, Esther Williams, Lucille Ball, and Keenan Wynn. The screenplay by Dorothy Kingsley is an adaptation of the screenplay of ...

'' (1946) as Herself *'' Melody Time: Blame It on the Samba'' (1948) as Herself *''

C'mon, Let's Live a Little ''C'mon, Let's Live a Little'' is a 1967 film directed by David Butler. It stars Bobby Vee and Jackie DeShannon. This was the last film directed by Butler, who began acting on screen in 1917 and had been directing since the late 1920s. Plot Enr ...

'' (1967) *''

The Sidelong Glances of a Pigeon Kicker ''The Sidelong Glances of a Pigeon Kicker'' (stylized as ''Pigeons'') is a 1970 American comedy film directed by John Dexter and written by Ron Whyte. The film stars Jordan Christopher, Jill O'Hara, Robert Walden, Kate Reid, William Redfiel ...

'' (1970) *''

Wicked, Wicked ''Wicked, Wicked'' is a 1973 horror-thriller film written and directed by Richard L. Bare and starring David Bailey, Tiffany Bolling and Randolph Roberts. It was presented in "Duo-Vision", a gimmick more commonly known as split-screen. Plot Th ...

'' (1973)

Music books

References

External links

The Ethel Smith Memorial Home Page
* (partially conflated with her namesakes)
Ethel Smith recordings
at the Discography of American Historical Recordings.
"Monkey on a String"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Ethel 1902 births 1996 deaths Musicians from Pittsburgh American organists Women organists People from Palm Beach, Florida 20th-century American keyboardists 20th-century organists 20th-century women musicians