Bea Wain

Big band-era vocalist Bea Wain (formerly Wayne) was born April 30, 1917 in New York City; after learning piano as a child, she went on to appear on the NBC radio series Children's Hour, and in her teens sang with vocal groups headlined by Fred Waring, Kay Thompson and others. After a stint with the Gene Kardos Orchestra, in 1937 Wain joined former Tommy Dorsey arranger Larry Clinton and His Orchestra, where in the following year her warm, engaging voice was featured on a series of hits including "Deep Purple," "Martha," "Heart and Soul," "My Reverie" and numerous others. So great was Wain's success that in 1939, a Billboard magazine poll named her the year's most popular female band vocalist; she left Clinton in the spring of that year to pursue a solo career, and her string of hits continued with efforts including "I'm Nobody's Baby," "Do I Worry?" and "Kiss the Boys Goodbye." A frequent guest on shows including Your Hit Parade and Quaker Party, Wain and her husband, radio announcer Andre Bruch, later co-hosted their own series, Mr. and Mrs. Music, eventually retiring to Florida during the 1970s.