Clooney, Rosemary (1928-2002)

US pop and jazz singer and actor, especially popular during the 1950s and 60s for her deep, rich voice and warm stage presence. She is best known for her hit single ‘Come On-a My House’ (1951) and her starring role in the film White Christmas (1954) alongside Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye.

Clooney began her singing career in the late 1940s with her sister, Betty, in Cincinnati, Ohio. The duo had a weekly radio appearance and later toured with an orchestra led by US bandleader Tony Pastor. Moving to New York City, Clooney joined Columbia Records in 1950, and went on to record 13 top 40 hits in the early 1950s. She made records with Benny Goodman and Duke Ellington, and co-hosted a radio show with Bing Crosby during the 1950s. Appearing on many television variety and talk shows, she also starred in her own The Rosemary Clooney Show (1956-57). In the 1960s she moved to RCA and made more records with Crosby.

Clooney was born in Maysville, Kentucky. She was married to Puerto Rican actor José Ferrer 1953-66. She experienced an emotional breakdown in 1968 and went into semi-retirement. In 1976 she joined Crosby for his 50th anniversary tour and the following year she signed with the jazz record label Concord, with whom she recorded during the 1980s and 1990s.