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Hildegarde Loretta Sell 1906 - 2005

Hildegarde Loretta Sell of New York, New York United States was born on February 1, 1906 in Adell, WI, and died at age 99 years old on July 29, 2005 in New York, NY.

Hildegarde Loretta Sell

New York, New York United States

February 1, 1906

Adell, Wisconsin, United States

July 29, 2005

New York, New York, United States

Female

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Hildegarde Loretta Sell Hildegarde Sell (1906 - 2005)

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Hildegarde Loretta Sell's History: 1906 - 2005

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Introduction

HILDEGARDE was a famous cabaret singer who used one name. She sang beautifully and was very highly paid. She drew a crowd of very famous people.
02/1

1906

Birthday

February 1, 1906

Birthdate

Adell, Wisconsin United States

Birthplace

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Professional Career

Hildegarde Birth name Hildegarde Loretta Sell Born February 1, 1906 Adell, Wisconsin Died July 29, 2005 (aged 99) New York, New York Hildegarde Loretta Sell (February 1, 1906 – July 29, 2005) was an American cabaret singer, well known for the song "Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup". Early life She was born Hildegarde Loretta Sell in Adell, Wisconsin, and raised in New Holstein, Wisconsin, as a Roman Catholic in a family of German extraction. She trained at Marquette University's College of Music in the 1920s. Vaudeville and cabaret She worked in vaudeville and traveling shows throughout her career, appearing across the United States and Europe. She was known for 70 years as The Incomparable Hildegarde, a title bestowed on her by columnist Walter Winchell. She was also nicknamed the "First Lady of the Supper Clubs" by Eleanor Roosevelt. She was once referred to as a "luscious, hazel-eyed Milwaukee blonde who sings the way Garbo looks".[5] During the peak of her popularity in the 1930s and 1940s, she was booked in cabarets and supper clubs at least 45 weeks a year. Her recordings sold in the hundreds of thousands, and her admirers ranged from soldiers during World War II to King Gustaf VI Adolph of Sweden and the Duke of Windsor. On some of her recordings, she was accompanied by band leader Carroll Gibbons. During most of the 1940s she appeared on the "Raleigh Room", an NBC Radio program. She wore elegant gowns and long gloves. "Miss Piggy stole the gloves idea from me," she once said. A noted flirt, she told risqué anecdotes while giving long-stemmed roses to men in her audience. During one performance she waltzed with a U.S. Senator. She is credited with starting a single-name vogue among entertainers. Investments and work in ads for a bottled-water company, barley vitamins and a bathtub device gave her a comfortable income through the rock era. As an inspiration She appeared on the cover of Life in 1939, and Revlon introduced a Hildegarde shade of lipstick and nail polish. She was an inspiration for Liberace, who once acknowledged her influence on his performances: "Hildegarde was perhaps the most famous supper-club entertainer who ever lived. I used to absorb all the things she was doing, all the showmanship she created. It was marvelous to watch her, wearing elegant gowns, surrounded with roses and playing with white gloves on. They used to literally roll out the red carpet for her". Television and stage From the 1950s through the 1970s, in addition to her cabaret performances and record albums, she appeared in a number of television specials and toured with the national company of the Stephen Sondheim musical Follies. She appeared as the celebrity mystery guest on What's My Line? on May 8, 1955. After a question from Bennett Cerf about her handing out roses to which she replied "I don't hand them out, I throw them out!", Dorothy Kilgallen correctly guessed it was her. Campaign song She sang a presidential nomination campaign song for Margaret Chase Smith’s unsuccessful 1964 campaign for president; the song was called “Leave It to the Girls,” and was written by Gladys Shelley. Personal life Hildegarde never married although she was quoted as saying, "I traveled all my life, met a lot of men, had a lot of romances, but it never worked out. It was always 'hello and goodbye.'" She was the business partner and good friend of Anna Sosenko, an aspiring songwriter whom she met at a boarding house in Camden, New Jersey at the beginning of her career. That relationship ended in litigation over the control of receipts from their joint efforts. Her autobiography, Over 50... So What!, was published by Doubleday in 1961. Death She died at age 99 in a hospital in Manhattan on July 29, 2005, of natural causes.
Personal Life & Family

Hildegarde Sell Famous memorial ORIGINAL NAME Hildegarde Loretta Sell BIRTH 1 Feb 1906 Adell, Sheboygan County, Wisconsin, USA DEATH 29 Jul 2005 (aged 99) New York, USA BURIAL Cremated, Ashes given to family or friend MEMORIAL ID 149912300 · View Source MEMORIAL PHOTOS 6 FLOWERS 154 Entertainer. She was an American cabaret singer, well known for the song "Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup." She worked in vaudeville and traveling shows throughout her career, appearing across the United States and Europe. She was known for 70 years as The Incomparable Hildegarde, a title bestowed on her by columnist Walter Winchell. She was also nicknamed the "First Lady of the Supper Clubs" by Eleanor Roosevelt. She was once referred to as a "luscious, hazel-eyed Milwaukee blonde who sings the way Garbo looks." During the peak of her popularity in the 1930s and 1940s, she was booked in cabarets and supper clubs at least 45 weeks a year. Her recordings sold in the hundreds of thousands, and her admirers ranged from soldiers during World War II to King Gustaf VI Adolph of Sweden and the … Bio by: Solberg Family Members Parents Charles Sell Charles F Sell 1865–1933 Ida Sell Ida Amelia Jermain Sell 1877–1954
07/29

2005

Death

July 29, 2005

Death date

old age - 99.

Cause of death

New York, New York United States
Death location

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Obituary

Hildegarde, Cabaret Artist, Is Dead at 99 By Enid Nemy - Aug. 1, 2005 Hildegarde, whose career as an international cabaret chanteuse spanned almost seven decades and who was credited with starting the single-name vogue among entertainers, died on Friday at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell hospital. She was 99. Her death was confirmed Saturday by her longtime friend and manager, Don Dellair. A regal figure in couture gowns, jeweled glasses, glittering earrings and, in her later years, a curly platinum wig, Hildegarde influenced a number of performers. She accompanied herself on the piano, always in her trademark long white gloves, and, fluttering a lace handkerchief, chatted between numbers, often poking fun at herself. "Hildegarde was perhaps the most famous supper-club entertainer who ever lived," Liberace once said. "I used to absorb all the things she was doing, all the showmanship she created. It was marvelous to watch her, wearing elegant gowns, surrounded with roses and playing with white gloves on. They used to literally roll out the red carpet for her." Although Liberace said he was careful not to imitate her, he did take a single stage name and used "I'll Be Seeing You," one of her best-known numbers, as his theme song. Usually billed as the Incomparable Hildegarde, an orchid bestowed on her by Walter Winchell, she was at the peak of her popularity in the 1930's and 40's, when she was booked in plush hotel cabaret rooms and supper clubs at least 45 weeks a year. At one engagement in 1946, she was paid $17,500 a week and 50 percent of the gross over $80,000. She was on the cover of Life magazine in 1939, had a Top 10 radio show and traveled with her own orchestra and several dozen pieces of luggage. Her recordings of such songs as "Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup," "The Last Time I Saw Paris" and "Lili Marlene" became worldwide hits. Revlon introduced a Hildegarde shade of lipstick and nail polish, a nursery named a rose for her, and a linen company, picking up on the way she signed her autograph, introduced a "Bless You" handkerchief. Hildegarde's admirers ranged from enlisted men and officers during World War II to the Duke of Windsor. In 1961 she was the guest of honor at a gala at which Eleanor Roosevelt presented her with an award naming her First Lady of the Supper Clubs. From the 1950's through the 70's, in addition to working in cabaret and recording albums, she appeared in a number of television specials and toured with the national company of the Stephen Sondheim musical "Follies." Her autobiography, "Over 50 So What!" was published by Doubleday in 1963. She was in a 1979 revival of the 1927 musical "The Five O'Clock Girl" at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, Conn., and took part in a tour of "The Big Broadcast of 1944," which recreated radio programs of that year. She also did a number of lecture tours at universities and auditoriums, singing, playing, chatting and answering questions. Born Hildegarde Loretta Sell in Adell, Wis., to German immigrant parents, she began her career in Milwaukee at the age of 16 when, as a music student at Marquette University, she played the piano in a silent movie house. In 1928 she joined a vaudeville troupe, toured for two seasons and then spent a year as an accompanist to various performers. She arrived in New York by way of Camden, N.J., where she struck up a friendship with Anna Sosenko, her landlady's daughter and a budding songwriter, who became the architect of her career. "Anna was determined to be a songwriter," Hildegarde once said. "She made me go with her to New York to sing her work to publishers." For a time, Hildegarde took a job as a song plugger for Irving Berlin. She emerged as the one-name Hildegarde after an audition with Gus Edwards, the impresario, who suggested she lose her surname. Anna Sosenko became her business manager and the two traveled, lived and collected art together for 23 years. Sosenko wrote "Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup," which became Hildegarde's signature song, and was the singer's partner until 1955, when the relationship dissolved. The friendship resumed two decades later. Although most of her career was in the United States, Hildegarde was engaged to appear at the Café de Paris in London when she was in her early 20's. She was not a great success, but the experience led her and Anna Sosenko to take off for Paris to learn the art of cabaret. They remained there for three years. Sosenko helped her perfect her technique, and she acquired an international flavor by learning to sing in French, Russian, Italian and Swedish. She also developed the precise diction that made every word clear and reduced her slight German accent. Her name became synonymous with the best clubs on both sides of the Atlantic. In 1934, she sang at the Ritz Hotel in London during the Duke of Kent's wedding festivities. The next year she was back for King George V's jubilee, and she returned in 1937 for King George VI's coronation. She also appeared in several British movies and stage revues. During the zenith of her career in the 40's, Hildegarde's name appeared on best-dressed lists, and people were stunned when she said she spent $10,000 a year on clothes. By the 60's, the sum had risen to $30,000. "I rarely look back," she said as she approached 90. "That's part of the secret of staying young." She leaves no immediate survivors, her manager, Mr. Dellair, said. During a 1993 performance at Manhattan's Algonquin Hotel, Hildegarde said: "Wrinkle, wrinkle, leave me alone. Go and sliver Sharon Stone." "I can't imagine myself not performing," she said in 1995. "I like to be in harness. I'm good, I know I'm good, and I'm ready." Another cabaret legend, Bobby Short, who died this year at 80, once said, "Hers was the slickest nightclub act of all time."

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Hildegarde Loretta Sell lived 24 years longer than the average family member when died at the age of 99.

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