Connie Russell

Connie Russell (May 9, 1923 – December 18, 1990) was an American singer, actress, and Broadway performer born in New York City. She came from an entertainment family: her parents, Tommy and Nina Russell, worked as a vaudeville team, and her grandparents performed professionally under the name Glenroy and Russell. Russell attended Lawrence High School in Cedarhurst, Long Island, and the Professional Children's School in New York City.

While still a teenager, Russell performed at prominent venues including the Starlight Club at the Waldorf-Astoria, the Famous Door, the Paramount Theater in New York City, and the 500 Club in Atlantic City, New Jersey. By age sixteen she had signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Her film work spanned the 1930s through the 1950s, encompassing seven pictures, among them Lady Be Good (1941), Cruisin' Down the River (1953), This Is My Love (1954), and Nightmare (1956), in which she played a lead role.

On radio, Russell served as the featured female singer on the CBS program Let Yourself Go from 1944 to 1945 and appeared regularly on the syndicated Naval Air Reserve Show. In 1947 she joined NBC as a network staff singer, taking on an eight-week engagement as the featured singer on Manor House Summer Party.

In 1950, Russell appeared on Broadway in South Pacific. Her television work included a regular singing role on Club Embassy and on Garroway at Large from 1949 to 1951, followed by a stint on The Buick-Berle Show on NBC from 1953 to 1955. Eddie Cantor, impressed by a guest appearance she made on his television program, signed her to a contract. On April 5, 1959, she appeared on The Steve Allen Show on NBC, performing "You've Changed" from her album Don't Smoke in Bed and taking part in the closing musical segment alongside Don Knotts, Lenny Bruce, and The Three Stooges.

One of Russell's most recognized contributions came without a screen credit. She provided the singing voice for the Red Riding Hood character in the Tex Avery-directed 1943 animated short Red Hot Riding Hood, performing a rendition of "Daddy" by Bobby Troup. The cartoon was later voted number seven on the list of The 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time. In late December 1952, Russell appeared at the opening night gala of the Copa Room at the Sands Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, sharing the bill with Danny Thomas, Lou Wills, Jr., and Ray Sinatra and his orchestra.