Waters, Ethel

Waters, Ethel
born Oct. 31, 1896/1900, Chester, Pa., U.S.
died Sept. 1, 1977, Chatsworth, Calif.

U.S. blues and jazz singer and actress.

She was a professional singer by age 17, and she recorded with jazzmen such as Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman in the 1930s. She made her Broadway debut in the Africana revue (1927) and later had a lead role in Blackbirds (1930). In 1933 she appeared in Irving Berlin's musical As Thousands Cheer, in which she sang "Heat Wave" and "Suppertime." Her later stage successes included Cabin in the Sky (1940; film, 1943) and The Member of the Wedding (1950; film, 1952). She also acted in films such as Pinky (1949) and The Sound and the Fury (1959).

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▪ American singer and actress
born Oct. 31, 1896/1900, Chester, Pa., U.S.
died Sept. 1, 1977, Chatsworth, Calif.
 American blues and jazz singer and dramatic actress whose singing, based in the blues tradition, featured her full-bodied voice, wide range, and slow vibrato.

      Waters grew up in extreme poverty and was married for the first time at the age of 12, while she was still attending convent school. At 13 she became a chambermaid in a Philadelphia hotel, and that same year she sang in public for the first time in a local nightclub. At 17, billing herself as “Sweet Mama Stringbean,” Waters was singing professionally in Baltimore, Maryland. It was there that she became the first woman to sing the W.C. Handy classic “St. Louis Blues” on the stage. Her professional rise was rapid, and she moved to New York City. In 1925 she appeared at the Plantation Club in Harlem, and her performance there led to Broadway.

      In 1927 Waters appeared in the all-black revue Africana, and thereafter she divided her time between the stage, nightclubs, and eventually movies. In 1930 she was on the Broadway stage again in Blackbirds, a revival of the popular 1924 musical, and the following year she starred in Rhapsody in Black. In 1933 Waters appeared with Marilyn Miller (Miller, Marilyn) in Irving Berlin's musical As Thousands Cheer, her first departure from shows with all-black casts. Her rendition of “Heat Wave” in that show linked the song permanently to her. Considered one of the great blues singers, Waters also performed and recorded with such jazz greats as Duke Ellington (Ellington, Duke) and Benny Goodman (Goodman, Benny). Several composers wrote songs especially for her, and she was particularly identified with “Dinah” and “Stormy Weather.”

      Waters's first straight dramatic role was in the 1938 production of DuBose and Dorothy Heyward's Mamba's Daughters. Two years later she spent a season on Broadway in the hit musical Cabin in the Sky, and she also appeared in the 1943 film version. Probably her greatest dramatic success was in the stage version of Carson McCullers's The Member of the Wedding in 1950, a performance for which she won the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award. She also starred in the movie version in 1953.

      Among Waters's other films are Cairo (1942), Pinky (1949), and The Sound and the Fury (1959). Her autobiography, His Eye Is on the Sparrow (1951), was a best-seller. After the mid-1950s Waters worked in television and occasionally in nightclubs. In the 1960s she appeared frequently with Billy Graham (Graham, Billy) in his evangelistic crusades.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Waters,Ethel — Wa·ters (wôʹtərz, wŏtʹərz), Ethel. 1896 1977. American actress and singer who began in vaudeville and became popular on Broadway and in films, such as The Sound and the Fury (1959). * * * …   Universalium

  • Waters, Ethel — (31 oct. 1896/1900, Chester, Pa., EE.UU.–1 sep. 1977, Chatsworth, Cal.). Actriz y cantante de blues y jazz estadounidense. Ya era una cantante profesional a la edad de 17 años, y en la década de 1930 participó en grabaciones discográficas con… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Ethel Waters — Infobox musical artist Name = Ethel Waters Img capt = photo by Carl Van Vechten, 1938 Background = solo singer Born = birth date|1896|10|31 Chester, Pennsylvania, USA Died = death date and age|1977|9|1|1896|10|31 Chatsworth, California, USA… …   Wikipedia

  • Ethel Waters — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Waters. Ethel Waters. Ethel Waters, née le 31 octobre 1896 à Chester (P …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Ethel — /eth euhl/, n. a female given name: from a Germanic word meaning noble. * * * (as used in expressions) Merman Ethel Ethel Agnes Zimmerman Ethel Florence Lindesay Richardson Rosenberg Ethel and Julius Ethel Greenglass Smyth Dame Ethel Mary Waters… …   Universalium

  • Ethel — (as used in expressions) Merman, Ethel Ethel Agnes Zimmerman Ethel Florence Lindesay Richardson Rosenberg, Ethel y Julius Ethel Greenglass Smyth, Dame Ethel (Mary) Waters, Ethel …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Ethel Waters — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Ethel Waters Nombre real Ethel Waters Nacimiento 31 de octubre de 1896 …   Wikipedia Español

  • Ethel Waters — (zw. 1938 und 1948) (Ausschnitt aus einem Foto von William P. Gottlieb Ethel Waters (* 31. Oktober 1896 im Chester County, Pennsylvania, USA; † 1. September 1977 in Los Angeles, Kalifornien), war eine US amerikanische …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Ethel — ist ein weiblicher englischer Vorname. Herkunft und Bedeutung Der Name Ethel ist ein Kurzform von mit Ethel beginnenden englische Vornamen wie Etheldreda. Das Namenselement ethel entspricht dem deutschen adal und bedeutet „edel“.[1]… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Waters — is a surname, and may refer to:* Alice Waters (born 1944), American chef * Allan Waters (1921–2005), Canadian businessman * Anthony Waters (born 1985), American football linebacker * Beau Waters (born 1986), Australian rules footballer * Brian… …   Wikipedia

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