Sophie Tucker
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| Hartford native, celebrated actress and singer whose 50 year career took her from vaudeville to Broadway and royal performances.
Born Sophie Abuza in Russia, as an infant Tucker emigrated with her family first to Boston , then to Hartford , where she began singing in her father's kosher restaurant on Front Street . At the age of 17, she moved to New York City , working at small cafés before becoming a headliner in vaudeville and burlesque shows. As her popularity grew, Tucker shared billings with many of this century's most famous stars, including Will Rogers, Jack Benny and Fanny Brice, and was invited to perform in London , Paris , and other European cities.
In 1911 Tucker recorded "Some of These Days," the song that became her trademark, and was soon touring with her own band. In 1921 she hired pianist Ted Shapiro, her long-term musical director, who wrote such famous songs for her as "The One I Love Belongs to Somebody Else" and "Red-Hot Mama." And, in 1925, Tucker sang "My Yiddische Mama," at the Palace Theater, the first performance of what would become a Jewish anthem in Europe after being banned by Hitler. By 1929 Tucker had made her movie debut in Honky Talk , later receiving critical acclaim for her performances in Thoroughbreds Don't Cry and Broadway Melody of 1938 , with Judy Garland. In 1934 she made her first Royal Command Performances, and was to become the only American performer to appear before three generations of English Royalty. In 1945 she published her autobiography, Some of These Day. And, in the 1950's and 1960's, she continued to work in clubs and on television, with several stints on the Ed Sullivan show. Increasingly known for her philanthropy, as well as her independent and ribald persona, Tucker's favorite charities included youth centers, a high school wing in Israel, the Theater Arts program at Brandeis University, a maternity clinic at Denver's General Rose Memorial Hospital, and Hartford's Emmanuel Synagogue. Tucker was married three times: first to Louis Tuck, hence her stage name, then to Frank Westphal, one of her pianists, and finally to Al Lackey, her business manager. She remained close to her family, returning to Hartford each year to celebrate the High Holidays. In 1955 Tucker raised almost one million dollars in a benefit performance on behalf of the Hebrew Old People's Home. As the Hartford Courant wrote in its obituary, "Miss Tucker was more than a Red-Hot Mama; she had a mama's love for people, and her memorial to her hard-working parents was always to remember other people in need." | |||||||||||
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