Helen Morgan (August 2, 1900 - October 9, 1941) was an American singer and actress who worked in films and on the stage. She was born on 2 August 1900 in rural Danville, Illinois. She was born 'Helen Riggins' to a farmer and schoolteacher but became 'Morgan' when her mother remarried. Her mother's second marriage ended in divorce, and she moved to Chicago with her daughter. Morgan never finished school beyond the eighth grade, and worked a variety of jobs to get by. In 1923 she even entered the Miss Montreal contest, even going to New York to meet Miss America Katherine Campbell, but when she returned her American citizenship was discovered and she was disqualified. She also worked as an extra in films. By 20 Morgan had taken voice lessons and was singing in speakeasies in Chicago. Helen Elizabeth Morgan (born 1951), of the Barry, Wales, is the 1974 winner of the Miss United Kingdom pageant. ... Carl Van Vechten (June 17, 1880 – December 21, 1964) was an American writer and photographer who was a patron of the Harlem Renaissance and the literary executor of Gertrude Stein. ... is the 214th day of the year (215th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Äž: For the film, see: 1900 (film). ... United States Illinois Vermilion 17. ... is the 282nd day of the year (283rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1941 (disambiguation). ... Flag Seal Nickname: The Windy City Motto: Urbs In Horto (Latin: City in a Garden), I Will Location Location in Chicagoland and northern Illinois Coordinates , Government Country State Counties United States Illinois Cook, DuPage Mayor Richard M. Daley (D) Geographical characteristics Area     City 606. ... is the 214th day of the year (215th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Äž: For the film, see: 1900 (film). ... is the 282nd day of the year (283rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1941 (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see United States (disambiguation) and US (disambiguation). ... is the 214th day of the year (215th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Äž: For the film, see: 1900 (film). ... United States Illinois Vermilion 17. ... Year 1923 (MCMXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Helen Morgan's high, thin, and somewhat wobbly voice was not fashionable during the '20s for the kind of songs that she specialized in, but nevertheless she became a wildly popular torch singer. Her heart bled about hard living and heartbreak onto her accompanist's piano. This draped-over-the-piano look became her signature look while performing at Billy Rose's Backstage Club in 1925. Morgan drank too much and was often drunk during these performances, despite the National Prohibition Enforcement Act passed in 1919. During this period several Chicago gangsters tried to help fund her various attempts to open her own nightclub. However, Prohibition agents kept too strict an eye on her and her attempts failed. A torch song is a sentimental love song, typically one in which the singer laments an unrequited or lost love. ... Year 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ...

Morgan was noticed by Florenz Ziegfeld while dancing in the chorus of his production of Sally in 1923 and she went on to perform with the Ziegfeld Follies in 1931, the Follies' last active year. During this period she studied music at the Metropolitan Opera in her free time. Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. ... This article is about the Ziegfeld Follies Broadway shows . ... Year 1931 (MCMXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, the lead section of this article may need to be expanded. ...

In 1927 Helen Morgan appeared as Julie LaVerne in the original cast of Show Boat, her best-known role. She sang "Bill" (lyrics by P.G. Wodehouse and Oscar Hammerstein) and "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" in two stage runs and two film productions of the famous musical over a span of 11 years. (In the first film version of Show Boat, made in 1929, Morgan appeared only in the song prologue; Alma Rubens played Julie in the film proper, which was mostly silent. However, Morgan did play the role in the 1936 film version of the musical.) For films based on the musical, see Show Boat (film). ... Called English literatures performing flea, P. G. Wodehouse, pictured in 1904, became famous for his complex plots, ingenious wordplay, and prolific output. ... For work done with Richard Rodgers, see Rodgers and Hammerstein Oscar Hammerstein II (July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was a New-York born writer, producer, and (usually uncredited) director of musicals for almost forty years. ... Cant Help Lovin Dat Man, music by Jerome Kern and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, is one of the most famous songs from their classic 1927 musical play Show Boat, adapted from Edna Ferbers novel. ... Alma Rubens Alma Rubens (February 19, 1897 - January 22, 1931) is an american silent film actress. ...

After appearing in the 1929 film version of Show Boat, Morgan went on to star in Kern and Hammerstein's Broadway musical, Sweet Adeline. The title was a pun on the famous barbershop quartet song. In the musical, Morgan introduced the songs Why Was I Born and Don't Ever Leave Me. Oddly enough, when Sweet Adeline was filmed in 1934, Morgan's role went to her future Show Boat co-star, Irene Dunne, who possessed a lovely soprano, but was certainly not a torch singer. For other uses of Broadway, see Broadway. ... Barbershop harmony is a style of unaccompanied vocal music characterized by consonant four-part chords for every melody note in a predominantly homophonic texture. ... Irene Dunne (December 20, 1898 - September 4, 1990) was a five-time Academy Award-nominated American film actress and singer of the 1930s and 1940s. ...

In the late '30s Morgan was signed up for a show at Chicago's Loop Theater. She also spent time at her farm in High Point, New York. Alcoholism plagued her and she was hospitalized in late 1940. Her career underwent something of a comeback in 1941, thanks to the help of manager Lloyd Johnson. However, the years of alcohol abuse had taken their toll. She collapsed onstage during a performance of George White's Scandals of 1942 and died at 41 of cirrhosis of the liver on 8 October 1941 in Chicago, Illinois. Year 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1941 (disambiguation). ... is the 281st day of the year (282nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1941 (disambiguation). ... Flag Seal Nickname: The Windy City Motto: Urbs In Horto (Latin: City in a Garden), I Will Location Location in Chicagoland and northern Illinois Coordinates , Government Country State Counties United States Illinois Cook, DuPage Mayor Richard M. Daley (D) Geographical characteristics Area     City 606. ...

Morgan was married three times, to fan Lowell Army, whom she met at a stage door while she was in Sally, to Maurice "Buddy" Maschke (they married on May 15, 1933 and divorced several years later), and to Lloyd Johnson, whom she married on July 27, 1941. is the 135th day of the year (136th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1933 (MCMXXXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 208th day of the year (209th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1941 (disambiguation). ...

Morgan was portrayed by Polly Bergen in a 1957 Playhouse 90 drama, directed by George Roy Hill, and won an Emmy Award for her performance. That same year, the feature film The Helen Morgan Story starred Ann Blyth as Morgan. Polly Bergen (born Nellie Paulina Burgin on July 14, 1930, in Knoxville, Tennessee) is an American actress, singer, and entrepreneur. ... Playhouse 90 is the name of a 90-minute long dramatic television series that ran on CBS from 1956 to 1961. ... George Roy Hill (December 20, 1921 – December 27, 2002) was an Academy Award winning American film director. ... An Emmy Award. ... A reel of film, which predates digital cinematography. ... Ann Blyth Ann Marie Blyth (born August 16, 1928 in Mount Kisco, New York) is an American actress and singer, most often cast in Hollywood musicals, but who also succeeded in the dramatic roles she was given. ...

Filmography

• Six-Cylinder Love, 1923
• The Heart Raider, 1923
• Scandals, 1925
• Show Boat, 1929 (in the prologue only, she appeared as Julie La Verne and sang "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" and "Bill")
• Applause, 1929 (sang "What Wouldn't I Do For that Man" and "Give Your Little Baby Lots of Lovin'")
• Glorifying the American Girl, 1930 (sang "What Wouldn't I Do For that Man")
• Roadhouse Nights, 1930 (sang "It Can't Go On Like This")
• The Gigolo Racket, 1931 (sang "Nobody Breaks My Heart" and "I Know He's Mine")
• Manhattan Lullaby, 1933 (sang "The Stork Song")
• The Doctor, 1934 (sang "One Little Smile")
• Frankie and Johnnie, 1934 (sang "Give Me a Heart to Sing To" and "If You Want My Heart")
• You Belong to Me, 1934 (sang "When He Comes Home to Me")
• Marie Galante, 1934 (sang "Song of a Dreamer" and "Serves Me Right for Treating You Wrong")
• Sweet Music, 1935 (sang "I See Two Lovers")
• Go Into Your Dance, 1935 (sang "The Little Things You Used to Do")
• Show Boat, 1936 (as Julie La Verne she sang "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" and "Bill")
• The Coo Coo Nut Grove, 1936 (Warner Brothers cartoon, caricature singing "The Little Things You Used to Do" )

Stage

• Sally, 1923 (chorus)
• Scandals,1925-1926 (first principal role)
• Americana, 1926
• American Grand Guignol, 1927 (sang "Nobody Wants Me")
• Show Boat, 1927-1929 (as Julie La Verne she sang "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" and "Bill")
• Sweet Adeline, 1929-1931 (starring role singing "T'was Not So Long Ago", "Here am I", "Why Was I Born?", "The Sun About to Rise" and "Don't Ever Leave Me!")
• Ziegfeld Follies, 1931 (sang "Half-Caste Woman", lyrics by Noel Coward)
• Show Boat, 1932-1933
• Memory, 1934 (starring role singing "A Fool There Was")
• A Night at the Moulin Rouge, 1939
• Show Boat, 1940 (as Julie La Verne she sang Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man and Bill)

Noël Peirce Coward (December 16, 1899 – March 26, 1973) was an Academy Award winning English actor, playwright, and composer of popular music. ...

Bibliography

• Maxwell, Gilbert (1974). Helen Morgan: Her Life and Legend. New York: Hawthorn Books. ISBN 0-8015-4526-9. 

External links

• Helen Morgan at Internet Broadway Database
• original 1927 Show Boat on Broadway at Internet Broadway Database
• The Helen Morgan Story release dates and alternative titles at Internet Movie Database
• Review of The Helen Morgan Story at Filmbug
• Helen Morgan on Myspace