Hildegarde Loretta Sell, known as Hildegarde (February 1, 1906 – July 29, 2005) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...

singer, who was well known for the song "

Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup "Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup" is a popular song with words and music by Anna Sosenko in 1935. Sosenko was the manager of the singer Hildegarde who adopted the song as her theme. It was introduced in the film ''Love and Hisses'' by Hildegarde ...

Early life

She was born Hildegarde Loretta Sell in

Adell, Wisconsin Adell is a village in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 498 at the 2020 census. It is included in the Sheboygan, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Originally called Sherman's Station after the town ...

, and raised in

New Holstein, Wisconsin New Holstein is a city in Calumet County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 3,098 as of the 2020 census. The city is located within the Town of New Holstein. History New Holstein is named after the German duchy of Holstein from w ...

, as a Roman Catholic in a family of German extraction. She trained at

Marquette University Marquette University () is a Private university, private Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It was established as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, by John Henni, the first Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Ar ...

's College of Music in the 1920s.

Vaudeville and cabaret

Hildegarde worked in

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...

and traveling shows throughout her career, appearing across the United States and Europe. She was known for 70 years as The Incomparable Hildegarde, a title bestowed on her by columnist

Walter Winchell Walter Winchell (April 7, 1897 – February 20, 1972) was a syndicated American newspaper gossip columnist and radio news commentator. Originally a vaudeville performer, Winchell began his newspaper career as a Broadway reporter, critic and c ...

. She was also nicknamed the First Lady of the Supper Clubs by

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt ( ; October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the longest-serving First Lady of the United States, first lady of the United States, during her husband Franklin D ...

. She was once referred to as a "luscious, hazel-eyed Milwaukee blonde who sings the way Garbo looks". During the peak of Hildegarde's popularity in the 1930s and 1940s, she was booked in cabarets and

supper club A supper club is a traditional dining establishment that also functions as a social club. The term may describe different establishments depending on the region, but in general, supper clubs tend to present themselves as having a high-class imag ...

s at least 45 weeks a year. Her recordings sold in the hundreds of thousands, and her admirers ranged from soldiers during World War II to King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden and the

Duke of Windsor Duke of Windsor was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 8 March 1937 for the former monarch Edward VIII, following his Abdication of Edward VIII, abdication on 11 December 1936. The Duchy, dukedom takes its name from ...

. On some of her recordings, she was accompanied by band leader

Carroll Gibbons Carroll Richard Gibbons (January 4, 1903 – May 10, 1954) was an American-born pianist, bandleader and popular composer who made his career primarily in England during the British dance band era. Early life and career Gibbons was born an ...

. During most of the 1940s she appeared on ''Raleigh Room'', an

NBC Radio The National Broadcasting Company's NBC Radio Network (also known as the NBC Red Network from 1927 to 1942) was an American commercial radio network which was in continuous operation from 1926 through 1999. Along with the NBC Blue Network, it wa ...

program. She wore elegant gowns and long gloves: "

Miss Piggy Miss Piggy is a The Muppets, Muppet character known for her Breakthrough role, breakout role in the sketch comedy television series ''The Muppet Show''. She is notable for her temperamental diva superstar personality, her tendency to use French l ...

stole the gloves idea from me", she once said. A noted flirt, Hildegarde told risqué anecdotes while giving long-stemmed roses to men in the audience. During one performance, she waltzed with a U.S. senator. She is credited with starting a single-name vogue among entertainers. Investments and work in ads for a bottled-water company, barley vitamins and a bathtub device gave her a comfortable income through the rock era.

Television and stage

Hildegarde's television debut occurred on ''The Blue Angel'' on September 28, 1954. She sang a presidential nomination campaign song for

Margaret Chase Smith Margaret Madeline Chase Smith (née Chase; December 14, 1897 – May 29, 1995) was an American politician. A member of the Republican Party, she served as a U.S. representative (1940–1949) and a U.S. senator (1949–1973) from Maine. She was th ...

's unsuccessful 1964 campaign for president; the song was called "Leave It to the Girls", and was written by

Gladys Shelley Gladys Shelley (née Shaskan, December 15, 1911 – December 9, 2003) was an American lyricist and composer, who was responsible for over 300 songs. Early life Gladys Shaskan was born in Lawrence, New York, to George Fried and Fannie Shaskan. S ...

.🖉

Personal life and death

Hildegarde never married, although she said, "I traveled all my life, met a lot of men, had a lot of romances, but it never worked out. It was always 'hello and goodbye'". She was the business partner and good friend of

Anna Sosenko Anna Sosenko (June 13, 1909 – June 9, 2000) was an American songwriter and impresario who flourished in the 1930s. She was a manager and writer for cabaret singer Hildegarde, for whom she wrote " Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup". Early life A ...

, an aspiring songwriter whom she met at a boarding house in Camden, New Jersey, at the beginning of her career. That relationship ended in litigation over the control of receipts from their joint efforts. Her autobiography, ''Over 50... So What!'', was published by

Doubleday Doubleday may refer to: * Doubleday (surname), including a list of people with the name Publishing imprints * Doubleday (publisher), imprint of Knopf Doubleday, a subsidiary of Penguin Random House * Doubleday Canada, imprint of Penguin Random ...

in 1961. She died at the age of 99 in a Manhattan hospital on July 29, 2005, of natural causes.

References

External links