Kathy Barr

Kathy Barr (born Marilyn Sultana Aboulafia; June 4, 1929 – June 21, 2008) was an American vocalist who performed and recorded popular, jazz, musical theater, and operettas. Her stage name was drawn from the first and married surname of her maternal grandmother, Katie Barr.

Kathy Barr
Birth name	Marilyn Sultana Aboulafia
Born	(1929-06-04)June 4, 1929 The Bronx, New York City, U.S.
Died	June 21, 2008(2008-06-21) (aged 79) Hollywood, Florida
Genres	Pop, jazz, opera
Occupation	Vocalist
Labels	RCA Victor
Spouses	Milton L. Schwartz ​ ​ (m. 1954; ann. 1956)​ Irwin H. Glickman ​ (m. 1966)​

Biography

Barr was born on June 4, 1929, in the Bronx, New York, to Ovadia "Ovid" Aboulafia (1900–1978), who, himself, was born in Çeşme, Turkey, and Eabeta "Tessie" Barr (1908–1978), a native New Yorker.

Barr flourished from the 1950s through the mid-1960s in musical theater, nightclubs, television, and radio. She was acclaimed for her coloratura soprano range, three and one-half octaves by at least one account (see Annotations below, "Vocal Range Context"), and her ability to sing pop, jazz, and classical.

Upon marrying for the second time, in 1965, Barr retired from as a recording artist, although she continued to perform club dates (one-nighters) and regional musical theater productions until around 1968. These later roles included Billy Dawn (Judy Holliday's role) in Born Yesterday (November 25, 1967–January 7, 1968) at the Hamlet Street Theater (now named the Rauh Theater) in Pittsburgh; and a hymn singer seeking to save men's souls in Guys and Dolls, starring Tony Martin, at the Meadowbrook Theater Restaurant in Cedar Grove, New Jersey (May 29, 1968–June 30, 1968).

Personal life

Her first marriage was to Milton ("Milt" or "Milty") Leon Schwartz (1901–1992), on June 20, 1954, in The Bronx. Schwartz, who was 27 years older, had been a saxophonist with the Al Trace Orchestra; he was co-owner with Ralph Mitchell (né Ralph Michelev; 1916–2004) of the acclaimed Chicago jazz club the Preview Lounge, at 7 West Randolph Street, that ran from about 1945 until the summer of 1960. At the same address, Schwartz and Mitchell also owned the Modern Jazz Room (formerly the Encore Room and formerly Mambo City), upstairs.

Her and Schwartz' marriage was annulled in New York Supreme Court on May 28, 1956, refereed by Ed Koch (who years later become Mayor of New York City).

In 1958, news media reported that Aboulafia was officially changing her name to Kathy Barr.

In 1965, in Manhattan, under her birth name, "Marilyn Aboulafia," she married Irwin M. Glickman (1930–2011). In 1966, she and Glickman had a daughter — Sylvia Beth Glickman. In 1968, reflecting on her disappointment about her first marriage, Barr confided that she was happy in her second marriage and declared, "This time, I wanted to work at it."

Barr died in Hollywood, Florida, on June 21, 2008.

Her daughter Sylvia married Jeffrey Zina Johnston in 2005. Sylvia and Jeff had two sons, both born in Hollywood, Florida: John Michael Thunder Johnston, born in 2005, and Lightning James Marshall Hawk Johnston, born in 2008.

Discography

Albums

Label	Cat No.	Released	Album Artist(s)	Side A	Side B	Notes
RCA Victor	LPM–1562	November 1957	Follow Me –––––––––– Kathy Barr Jerry Fielding (arranger & conductor)	"Tiptoe Through the Tulips" (audio) "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" (audio) "Cuddle up a Little Closer" (audio) "How Long Has This Been Going On?" (audio) "I'm Just Wild About Harry" (audio) "Give Me Something to Remember You By" (audio) –––––––––– Mx runout H2 PP5757 – 1S I A1	"Bye Bye Blackbird" (audio) "Love Is Here to Stay" (audio) "Day In, Day Out" (audio) "Fine and Dandy" (audio) "I Know He's Mine" (audio) "Follow Me" (audio) –––––––––– Mx runout H2 PP-5758 – 1S I B1	George T. Simon (sleeve notes) Sid Kuller (sleeve notes) Peter Gowland (cover photo) –––––––––– OCLC 12875997 (all editions)
RCA Victor RCA	LSO–1000 LOP–1000 SF–5005 EPA–4168 CPS–141	1958	Selections From The Desert Song –––––––––– Giorgio Tozzi as The Red Shadow Kathy Barr as Margo Peter Palmer (1931–2021) (supporting role) Eugene Morgan (né Eugene Byron Morgan; 1909–1974) (supporting role) Warren Galjour (né Warren Joseph Galjour; 1917–2009) (supporting role) With Male Chorus and Orchestra A. Lehman Engel (1910–1982) (conductor)	"Prelude and Opening Chorus" (audio) "The Riff Song" (audio) "O' Pretty Maid of France" (audio) "Why Did We Marry Soldiers?" (audio) "French Military Marching Song" (audio) "Romance" (audio) "Then You Will Know" (audio) "I Want a Kiss" (audio) "The Desert Song" (audio) –––––––––– Mx label H2PP–7449	"Finale" – Act I (audio) "Opening Chorus" ("My Little Castagnette") – Act II (audio) "Eastern and Western Love" (audio) "The Sabre Song" (audio) "Finale" – Act II (audio) –––––––––– Mx label H2PP–7450	Leonard Louis Levinson (1904–1974) (sleeve notes) "Beautiful young Kathy Barr is the Margot of our production." Victor Kalin (né Victor Benson Kalin; 1919–1991) (illustration) –––––––––– OCLC 5857234 (all editions)
Äva Records	A–48	1964	Do It Again –––––––––– Kathy Barr Jerry Fielding (arranger & conductor)	"Just Squeeze Me" (audio) "Should I" (audio) "Do It Again" (audio) "My Sugar Is So Refined" (audio) "How Come You Do Me Like You Do" (audio) –––––––––– Mx label HPS–285	"How Little We Know" (audio) "It All Depends on You" (audio) "All of You" (audio) "You're Driving Me Crazy" (audio) "Don'cha Go 'Way Mad" (audio) –––––––––– Mx label HPS–286	Peter Whorf Graphics (né Peter Lee Whorf; 1931–1995) (design) Wally Heider (1922–1989) (engineer) Leslie Carr (liner notes) (illustration) Linda Bartlett (photography) Recorded at United Recording Corp. Hollywood, California –––––––––– OCLC 796372591 (all editions)

Singles

Label	Cat No.	Released	Artist(s)	Side A	Side B	Notes
RCA Victor RCA	20–7036 45–7036 10373	1957	Kathy Barr With Orchestra Directed by Jerry Fielding	"Welcome Mat" (audio) (©1957) By Jerry Fielding –––––––––– Mx label H2PW–5447	"A Slip of the Lip" (©1957) By Walter Kent & Tom Walton (words & music) –––––––––– Mx label H2PW–5446	George T. Simon (sleeve notes) Sid Kuller (sleeve notes) –––––––––– OCLC 1116161307 (all editions)
RCA	EPA–4168	1958	Selections From The Desert Song –––––––––– Giorgio Tozzi as The Red Shadow Kathy Barr as Margo Peter Palmer (1931–2021) (supporting role) Eugene Morgan (né Eugene Byron Morgan; 1909–1974) (supporting role) Warren Galjour (né Warren Joseph Galjour; 1917–2009) (supporting role) With Male Chorus and Orchestra A. Lehman Engel (1910–1982) (conductor)	"The Riff Song" (audio) "The Desert Song" (audio) –––––––––– Mx label H 2 PH–7856	"Romance" (audio) "One Alone" –––––––––– Mx label H 2 PH–7857	Leonard Louis Levinson (1904–1974) (sleeve notes) "Beautiful young Kathy Barr is the Margot of our production." Victor Kalin (né Victor Benson Kalin; 1919–1991) (illustration) –––––––––– OCLC 5857234 (all editions)

‡ Audio courtesy of YouTube

Radio transcription disc

• "Kathy Barr." Magic in Music. Radio transcription disc. Program 42. Series: END-570. Prog. Time 25:00. Armed Forces Radio & Television Service (AFRTS). → via Rand's Esoteric OTR, a blog of Randy Riddle (profile at Duke University) at randsesotericotr.podbean.com.
  Note: The program, hosted by Lt. Bob Osterberg, USMC (né Robert Pierce Osterberg; 1929–2016), interviewed Kathy Barr and featured tracks from her new album, Follow Me. The show title, Magic in Music, is titled Magic of Music on the AFRTS disk label.

Musical theater roles

• Marinka, as Marinka (leading soprano role)

Winter Garden Theatre, New York

Australia touring production

Tivoli circuit, Melbourne: Opened May 28, 1948, at the Tivoli Theater, Melbourne

At the age of 19, Barr was elevated to the role of Marinka after being the understudy for Kathryn Grayson

• Wizard of Oz, as Dorothy Gale (leading soprano role)

Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera, August 1 thru August 6, 1949

References

Sources

• Argus (The) (April 5, 1948). "Tivoli Stage Shows to be Filmed Here". Argus. No. 31697. Melbourne. p. 3 (cols. 1–3; bottom) – via Trove.

• Argus (The) (May 29, 1948). "Operetta Opens at Tivoli". Argus. No. 31744. Melbourne. p. 5 (col. 1) – via Trove.

• Buffalo Evening News; Lawson, Nell (aka Mrs. Fred Kosslow; né Helen Lawson; 1908–1969) (November 25, 1957). "Disc Date" (column) → "Kathy Barr" (PDF). Vol. 155, no. 39. p. 37 (Section 3; col. 2) – via Fultonhistory.com.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  "Kathy Barr, stunning red-haired singer of American birth and Turkish ancestry, has a three and one-half octave voice and the things she does with it in her RCA-Victor debut long-play titled Follow Me are a revelation. She is a subtle interpreter of 'Tip-Toe Through the Tulips,' 'My Heart Belongs to Daddy' (she borrows nothing from Mary Martin), 'Bye, Bye Blackbird,' and others with music arranged and conducted by Jerry Fielding."

• Cash Box (The) (November 9, 1957). "November Album Releases" → "RCA Victor" → "Follow Me"". Cashbox. Vol. 19, no. 8. Cash Box Pub. Co. p. 32 – via Internet Archive (Council on Library and Information Resources; Andrew W. Mellon Foundation; College of William and Mary Libraries).

• Cedar Rapids Gazette (The) (April 22, 1958). "Pretty Singer to Change Her Name". Vol. 76, no. 103. p. 24 – via Newspapers.com.

• Chicago Daily Tribune; Lyons, Herb (May 25, 1956). "Tower Ticker" (column) "Milt Schwartz". Vol. 115, no. 125. p. 2 (Part 2; digital image 18) – via Newspapers.com.
  "Still good friends."

• Chicago Tribune Magazine (Section 9); Leonard, Will (né William Daniel Leonard; 1912–1977) (December 15, 1974). "The Jazz and the Glory". pp. 43 (digital image 220), 44, 47, 49–50 – via Newspapers.com.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

• Claghorn, Charles Eugene (1911–2005) (1973). Biographical Dictionary of American Music. → "Engel, A. Lehman". West Nyack, New York: Parker Publishing Company, Inc. p. 142. ISBN 9780130763310 – via Internet Archive (Brown University Library).{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) LCCN 73-5534; ISBN 0-1307-6331-4; OCLC 609781 (all editions).

• Down Beat (January 1, 1940). "Orchestra Personnels" → "Al Trace". DownBeat. Vol. 7, no. 1. Maher Publications Division. p. 17 – via Internet Archive (Kahle/Austin Foundation).

• Håkansson, Jonas; Mikkelsen, Cathrine; Jakobsen, Lasse; Elemans, Coen P.H., PhD (November 29, 2022). "Bats Expand Their Vocal Range by Recruiting Different Laryngeal Structures for Echolocation and Social Communication". PLOS Biology. 20 (11): e3001881. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.3001881. PMC 9707786. PMID 36445872.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) LCCN 2003-212293 (publication); ISSN 1544-9173 (print), ISSN 1545-7885 (online); OCLC 52767259 (all editions) (publication); doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.3001881 (article); EBSCOhost 160486282 (article).

• Herald Statesman (The) (December 19, 1974). "Obituaries" → "Eugene Morgan". Vol. 112, no. 31. p. 16 (col. 2, top) – via Newspapers.com.

• Hi-Fi; Thornton, John Robert (1914–1994) (September 1958). "Stereo Reels and Records" → "Romberg: The Desert Song – Highlights" (PDF). Hi-Fi. Vol. 1, no. 8. New York: Ziff-Davis Publishing Co. pp. 98–99 – via WorldRadioHistory.com, a site maintained by David Frackelton Gleason (born 1946), Cleveland.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) LCCN 87-644437; ISSN 2689-6176; OCLC 5994920 (all editions).

• Morning Call (The); Lewis, Dan (June 17, 1968). "Kathy Barr Can't Quit". Vol. 172, no. 145. Paterson, New Jersey: Donald Gowen Borg (1906–1975) (publisher). p. 13 – via Newspapers.com.

• Daily News; Albelli, Alfred Abraham (1901–1983) (June 6, 1956). "No Kids to Hug Her, Educated Bosom, Sues". Daily News. Vol. 37, no. 297 (Late ed.). p. 4 (digital image 376) – via Newspapers.com.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

• Desert Sun (The) (January 10, 2016). "Robert 'Red Barron' Osterberg" (paid notice: obituary). Vol. 89, no. 86. Palm Springs, California. p. 30A.

Via:
1. Legacy.com. (ID: 16422651) .
2. Newspapers.com.
3. ProQuest (US Newsstream).
4. ProQuest (US Newsstream).

• Journal and Courier; Flowers, James (March 8, 1958). "Gave Up Math – Accident Turns Actress Into a Singer". Lafayette, Indiana: Central Press Association. p. 20 (digital image 36) – via Newspapers.com.
  "Of Turkish ancestry, Kathy was born in Manhattan, the only child of Tess and George Aboulafia. Christened Marilyn Sultana, she took her professional name from her grandmother when she decided on a singing career."

• Leader-Herald; Kleiner, Dick (December 17, 1953). "Kathy Barr Sings Anything From Gospel to Blues; She Gives God Credit for Voice" (PDF). Vol. 3, no. 277. p. 12 (lower right) – via Fultonhistory.com.

• Newsday; Wilson, Earl (December 16, 1953). "It Happened Last Night" (syndicated column) "Big-Name Hunter ... ". Vol. 14, no. 87 (Final, Long Island ed.). p. S50 (digital image 49) – via Newspapers.com.

• Old Radio Times (The) (September–October 2009). "OTRR Acquires New Episodes & Upgraded Sound Encodes for July/Aug". → "Magic of Music". "Kathy Barr". No. 45. p. 23. OCLC 763181778.

1. Via OTRR blog (PDF) – via www.otrr.org.
2. Via Internet Archive. 22 February 2020.

• Times-News (The) (October 25, 1959). "Was Announcer for Marine Players" – "Marine, T.F. Man, Looking Forward to Reunion as Band Plays Here Today". Vol. 41, no. 193. Twin Falls, Idaho. p. 26.

1. Via Newspapers.com.
2. Via Internet Archive. 25 October 1959.

• Washington Post; Somasundaram, Praveena (December 1, 2022). "Mariah Carey's Vocal Range Is Better Than Most Humans'. Bats Surpass It". ISSN 2641-9599

1. Via blog. ProQuest 2743827933 (US Newsstream database)

• "Naturalization Petition: Katie Barr." New York, U.S., State and Federal Naturalization Records, 1794–1943. Re: Katie Barr – Birth date: September 12, 1884 → Birth place: Tadnapel, Austria → Arrival date: June 29, 1894 → Arrival place: New York, New York → Spouse: Max → Petition No. 56497. October 29, 1924 – via Ancestry.com.
• New York, New York, Marriage License Indexes, 1907–2018. Re: Irwin Glickman and Marilyn Aboulafia → Manhattan, New York City → 1965 → License Number: 5088 – via Ancestry.com.

Copyrights

• Catalogue of Copyright Entries. "Third Series." "Music".Vol. 11, Part 5, No. 2. July–December 1957. "A Slip of the Lip". © Mayfair Music Corp.; 19 July 1957; Class E (musical composition) Unpublished [EU]485831. U.S. Govt. Print. Off. 1957. p. 1444 – via Internet Archive (University of Michigan Library).
• Vol. 11, Part 5, No. 2. July–December 1957. "I Wouldn't Let You Wipe Your Feet off on My Nice Clean Welcome Mat". © Arpege Music Co.; 30 August 1957; Class E (musical composition) Unpublished [EU]490815. U.S. Govt. Print. Off. 1957. p. 1228 – via Internet Archive (University of Michigan Library).

External links

• Brooklyn Eagle; Salerno, Alfred "Al" (1918–2008) (May 29, 1951). "Brooklyn and Broadway Nightlife" (column) "Contract for Kathy Barr". Vol. 110, no. 148 (Late News ed.). p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
• Nostalgia and Now; Gasten, David (May 13, 2011). "Meet 50's Cheesecake Singer: Kathy Barr". Nostalgia and Now, the WordPress blog of Andrew John Godfrey of Sulphur, Louisiana. The author, David Gasten, is (or was) connected with the blog, This Is Vintage, of Swing City Productions, Los Angeles. Retrieved August 20, 2013.