Jane Morgan (producer)

Jane Morgan (born Florence Catherine Currier; May 3, 1924) is an American former singer and recording artist of traditional pop. Morgan initially found success in France and the UK before achieving recognition in the US, receiving six gold records. She was a frequent nightclub and Broadway performer, and also appeared numerous times on American television, both as a singer and as a dramatic performer.

Early life

Morgan was born Florence Catherine Currier in Newton, Massachusetts, on May 3, 1924. one of five children born to musicians Olga (Brandenburg) and Bertram Currier. At five she began vocal lessons while continuing piano lessons. During the summers, she took on child roles and appeared in theater productions at the Kennebunkport Playhouse in Kennebunkport, Maine, which her brother, Robert Currier, had founded.

In 1941, she was listed as the Treasurer of the Kennebunkport Playhouse. After graduating from Seabreeze High School, she was accepted into New York's Juilliard School of Music. Intending to become an opera singer, she studied opera by day and performed whenever possible.

Early career

Morgan sang popular songs in nightclubs and small restaurants, and at bar mitzvahs and other private parties, to help pay her tuition expenses at Juilliard.Kapp Records Liner Notes, 1957–1962 Orchestra leader Art Mooney changed her name to Jane Morgan by taking the first name of one of his vocalists, Janie Ford, and the last name of another, Marian Morgan.

In 1948, French impresario Bernard Hilda selected her to accompany him to Paris. Morgan became a sensation in Paris. Many French songwriters, including Charles Trenet, frequented the club, and they wrote several songs that became hit recordings for Morgan. Morgan and Hilda soon opened a new weekly hour-long television show and she began recording in 1949 on the French Polydor label as well as Parlophone, Philips, and others.''Kapp Records Liner Notes'', 1956. She returned to Europe in 1954 to appear in a London West End review with comedian Vic Oliver, and later at the Savoy Theatre and London Palladium.

American success

Morgan left her agent and began singing at Lou Walters' Latin Quarter in New York. Walters kept Morgan at the Latin Quarter for a year, when she was noticed by Dave Kapp, who had recently founded a new recording label, Kapp Records. Kapp signed Morgan to a recording contract, and near that same period he signed pianist Roger Williams.

To counter her reputation as a French singer, Kapp had Morgan record "Baseball, Baseball", and her first album release was titled ''The American Girl from Paris''. She recorded several additional albums and soon was paired with Williams, who had gained national acceptance with his recording of " Autumn Leaves". They recorded " Two Different Worlds", which gave Morgan her first significant airplay on US radio. In 1957 Kapp brought The Troubadors, a virtually unknown group of five musicians, to his studio. They had appeared in '' Love in the Afternoon''. Kapp asked Morgan to join The Troubadors and sing " Fascination". Although written in 1904 by F. D. Marchetti as "Valse Tzigane", the song was modified in Paris at the Folies Bergère as a "strip" number. With English lyrics added by Dick Manning in 1932, it had been played throughout the 1957 movie (the French lyric had been created in 1942). Her recording was released in late 1957 and remained on the charts for 29 weeks.

In 1958, Kapp released " The Day the Rains Came" (a French song by Gilbert Bécaud called "Le jour où la pluie viendra") with Morgan singing in English on one side and in French on the other. It reached number one in the UK Singles Chart in early 1959. She was featured on the 10 November 1959, jazz special, ''Timex-All-Star Jazz III''.

Middle years

Morgan performed in musicals on the stage and Broadway. She appeared in ''Can-Can'', ''The King and I'', ''Kiss Me, Kate'', '' Gentlemen Prefer Blondes'', '' Bells Are Ringing'', '' Anniversary Waltz'', ''Affairs of State'', '' Hello, Dolly'' and others.

Morgan's agent died in 1959 and her new manager, Jerry Weintraub, was able to obtain bookings for her in many noted US venues. Morgan divorced Larry Stith in 1964 and married Weintraub, more than a decade her junior, in 1965; the couple later adopted three daughters. Morgan also has a stepson Michael from Weintraub's first marriage. Morgan and Weintraub separated in the 1980s, but never divorced. Weintraub died in 2015.

In 1960, she recorded the English-language version of an Italian song, '' Romantica''.

Later years

After Morgan performed on Broadway, she said, "Being on Broadway was one of the most exciting things in my life because I had always dreamed of it".

Morgan's two final albums were for RCA Records: her last LP, ''Jane Morgan in Nashville'', yielded two moderate hits on the country music charts, including her answer to Johnny Cash's song, " A Boy Named Sue", titled "A Girl Named Johnny Cash" (written by comic Martin Mull). She performed the song on Cash's eponymous television series in early 1971.Jane Morgan, ''Nashville Liner Notes'', 1970

The only other time Morgan had recorded without formal arrangements was on her hit single, "Fascination"; nevertheless, she was reportedly dubbed "The Countryest Girl in Nashville" by the crew. She retired from performing in 1973, but has appeared occasionally over the years at special events and benefits. She worked as a production assistant to her husband (producer Jerry Weintraub) on films including the remake of ''Ocean's Eleven''.Francis D. McKinley interview with Jane Morgan, 22 May 2000.

On December 10, 2009, Morgan performed at the UNICEF Ball honoring her husband, Jerry Weintraub, held at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, singing "Ten Cents a Dance" and "Big Spender". Known as Jane Weintraub, she divides her time between Malibu, California, Palm Springs, California and Kennebunkport, Maine. She has owned Blueberry Hill Farm in Kennebunkport, Maine since 1958.

Morgan's collection of her unique performance gowns spanning from the 1950s to the 1980s were exhibited to the public for the first time, premiering at the Brick Store Museum in Kennebunk, Maine, in February 2022.

Morgan celebrated her 100th birthday on May 3, 2024."Happy Birthday, Dear Jane"
kporths.com. May 9, 2024. Accessed May 21, 2024.

Notable associates

Morgan performed for French President Charles de Gaulle, and for five U.S. Presidents: John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and George W. Bush. She toured with Jack Benny and John Raitt, and appeared at the Grand Ole Opry; two of her RCA singles hit the Billboard country charts in 1970.

Television appearances

Morgan made her U.S. television debut on ''Celebrity Time'' in 1951. Her early television credits include ''The Victor Borge Show'', ''The Colgate Comedy Hour'', ''Cavalcade of Stars'', ''The Jack Benny Program'', ''The Jimmy Dean Show'', ''The Jonathan Winters Show'', ''The Mike Douglas Show'', and ''The Hollywood Palace'', as well as more than fifty appearances on ''The Ed Sullivan Show''.

Morgan appeared in such television specials as ''Highways of Melody'' 1961; ''The Bell Telephone Hour: A Trip to Christmas'' (1961); ''The Bell Telephone Hour: Christmas Program'' (1965); ''The Bell Telephone Hour: Masterpieces and Music'' (1966); ''Coliseum'' (1967); ''Kraft Music Hall: Broadway's Best'' (1969) and ''Operation: Entertainment'' (1969).

She starred in three of her own television specials: ''The Jane Morgan Hour'' (1959); ''Voice of Firestone: An Evening in Paris'' (1959), and ''The Jane Morgan Show'' (1968), and made several dramatic television appearances, including ''The Web: Rehearsal for Death'' (1952); ''Peter Gunn: Down the Drain'' (1961); and '' It Takes a Thief: The Suzie Simone Caper'' (1970).

Morgan's version of "If Only I Could Live My Life Again" was featured during the closing credits of the second season finale of Apple TV's ''The Morning Show'' which was released November 19, 2021.

On May 6, 2011, Morgan received the 2,439th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Discography

Singles

Albums (original vinyl)

* This list does not include re-releases.

Albums (CD)

See also

* List of artists who reached number one on the UK Singles Chart

References

Notes

Bibliography
* Kaplan, Mike. ''Variety Who's Who in Show Business'', Garland Publishing Inc., 1983,
* Kapp Records, liner notes, 1957–1962
* Epic Records liner notes, 1965–1967
* RCA Records liner notes, 1969–1970
* Lax, Roger, and Frederick Smith. ''The Great Song Thesaurus'', Oxford University Press, 1989,
* Maltin, Leonard. ''Movie and Video Guide 1995'', Penguin Books Ltd., 1994
* McAleer, David. ''The All Music Book of Hit Singles'', Miller Freeman Books, 1994,
* Murrells, Joseph. ''Million Selling Records from the 1900s to the 1980s'', Arco Publishing Inc., 1984,
* Osborne, Jerry. ''Rockin Records'', Osborne Publications, 1999,
* Francis D. McKinley interview with Jane Morgan on 22 May 2000, and subsequent article

External links

*
UNICEF Ball honoring Jerry Weintraub

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Jane
1924 births
20th-century American women singers
Living people
American women centenarians
American contraltos
American musical theatre actresses
American women pop singers
American television actresses
Colpix Records artists
Epic Records artists
Kapp Records artists
Musicians from Daytona Beach, Florida
Traditional pop music singers
Seabreeze High School alumni
Singers from Florida
American expatriates in France
American expatriate musicians in Canada