Ethel Smith (born Ethel Goldsmith; November 22, 1902[1][2] – May 10, 1996) was an American organist who played primarily in a pop or Latin style on the Hammond organ. She had a long recording career and appeared in many films.
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. She became proficient in Latin music while staying in South America, and it is the style of music with which she is now most associated.[1]
Film and recording careeredit
Smith performed in several Hollywood films such as George White's Scandals (1945) and Melody Time (1948). In these appearances, she was known for her colorful, elaborate costumes, especially her hats. She was married to Hollywood actor Ralph Bellamy from 1945 to 1947, at the height of her fame, and their acrimonious divorce made headlines.[3] She never had children.[1]
Her rendition of "Tico Tico" became her best-known hit. She performed it in the MGM film Bathing Beauty (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.[4][5]
"Down Yonder" was her second national hit, reaching #16 on October 27, 1951.[6]
Smith's recording of "Monkey on a String" became the theme song for Garfield Goose and Friends, a popular children's television show in Chicago that ran from 1952 until 1976.[7]
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.[1]
The Ethel Smith Hammond Organ Method Book One, Revised Edition, Copyright 1949 and 1964 By Ethel Smith Music Corp. New York, NY. For use on every Hammond Organ including all Spinet Models.
Referencesedit
^ abcdeBrown, Matthew; Galand, Elizabeth (2000). "Ethel Smith: Weird Organ Lady or Mongo Organista?". Cool and Strange Music! (18): 16–19. Retrieved July 1, 2014. Although she publicly gave her birthdate as November 22, 1910, she was actually born in 1902. An early marriage to a Mr. Spiro had ended in divorce before 1940.
^"Social Security Death Index". Retrieved July 1, 2014.
^"Married". Time. September 10, 1945. Archived from the original on February 27, 2009. Retrieved June 17, 2008.
^"Disks With Most Radio Plugs" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 57, no. 4. January 27, 1945. p. 16. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
^Ankeny, Jason. "Ethel Smith Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
^"Most Played Juke Box Records" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 63, no. 43. October 27, 1951. p. 38. Retrieved December 11, 2016.
^Okuda, Ted; Mulqueen, Jack (2004). The Golden Age of Chicago Children's Television. Lake Claremont Press. pp. 56–57. ISBN 978-1893121171. Retrieved December 11, 2016.
^"Ethel Smith, radio and film organist, dies". Cox News Service. May 18, 1996.
^"Album Reviews". Billboard. Vol. 75, no. 4. January 26, 1963. p. 37. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
External linksedit
The Ethel Smith Memorial Home Page
Ethel Smith at IMDb (partially conflated with her namesakes)