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Hannah Williams (actress)

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Hannah Williams
Hannah Williams with her husband Jack Dempsey after their marriage in 1933
BornJuly 16, 1911
Taylor, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedJanuary 11, 1973 (aged 61)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)Stage actress, film actress, singer, comedian
Spouses
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 1927; ann. 1927)​
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 1931; div. 1933)​
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 1933; div. 1943)​
  • Thomas J. Monaghan
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1950; div. 1951)​
Children2

Hannah Williams (July 16, 1911 – January 11, 1973)[1] was an American actress, singer, and comedian and former wife of bandleader Roger Wolfe Kahn[2] and Hall of Fame boxer Jack Dempsey.

Life and career

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Hannah Williams was born in Taylor, Pennsylvania and performed as a young child with her older sister Dorothy as "The Williams Sisters", a singing and dancing vaudeville act. Hannah was aged eight and her sister Dorothy aged ten when they commenced their stage careers. The sisters performed with the Scranton Sirens Orchestra (1923), and achieved early fame on Broadway, New York, when they performed in George White's Scandals of 1924. In Chicago, they performed with the Charley Straight Orchestra in (1925), and with the Ben Pollack Orchestra from 1926 to 1927, and in various Chicago and New York nightclubs and theaters. They were known as the hippest sister act in vaudeville and cabaret.

During the 1920s the Williams Sisters recorded with various orchestras including Ben Pollack's band. In Chicago on December 17, 1926, the Williams Sisters recorded the vocals on ‘He's The Last Word’[3] with Ben Pollack and his Californians starring Benny Goodman.[4] The following day, also in Chicago with Ben Pollack and his Californians, the Williams Sisters recorded ‘Nothing Else Matters Anymore’ and ‘Sam, The Old Accordion Man’ with a piano accompaniment by Wayne Allen. The tracks were released by Victor Records (No. 20452).[5][6]

In 1930, Hannah achieved featured billing, along with Fanny Brice and George Jessel in the Broadway musical revue Sweet and Low in which she sang the hit tune "Cheerful Little Earful", which in later years became the song most associated with her. She quit the show in 1931 to marry Roger Wolfe Kahn.[7]

Her only known film appearance was singing "Get Happy" in the short film The Audition (1933), one of the Warner Brothers series of "Melody Masters" musical shorts. In 1933, Hannah and her new husband Jack Dempsey appeared together in a featured Pathé newsreel.

In 1935, Hannah's husband Jack Dempsey[8] opened his famous Broadway restaurant & bar Jack Dempsey's Broadway Restaurant, which became an institution.

In 1937, Hannah was cast in the Harold Arlen and E. Y. Harburg musical Hooray for What![9] and performed in the Boston and Philadelphia tryouts, but was replaced before the show opened on Broadway by actress June Clyde.[10][11][12][13][14][15]

In 1940, Hannah planned to reignite her stage career. Reports appeared in the press acknowledging her comeback. She also confirmed she would not be using her husband's surname on stage and would go under her maiden name Williams.[16] Although she went into rehearsals, her planned comeback was temporarily halted, due to her marriage commitments. Her return to the stage did finally take place three years later, in 1943 upon her divorce from Dempsey. She opened in vaudeville and made various nightclub appearances, including at New York's chic Riobamba.[17]

In 1947, Hannah recorded with the bandleader Tommy Dorsey and his Clambake Seven, laying down the vocals on ‘But I Do Mind If Ya Don't’ and ‘That's Life; I Guess’. The songs were released by RCA Victor Records (release No. 20-2320).[18][19]

Family and marriages

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Hannah's third husband was the heavyweight boxing champion Jack Dempsey

Hannah first married the bandleader and future movie actor Charles Kaley. The marriage was terminated due to her being underage.[20] She then married bandleader Roger Wolfe Kahn from 1931 through 1933. Hannah went on to have a brief relationship with actor & crooner Russ Colombo who tragically died soon after in a shooting accident. A series of love-letters from Hannah written to Colombo exist and are mentioned in the book Let Me Tell You How I Really Feel: The Uncensored Book Reviews of Classic Images by Laura Wagner.[21] Hannah was married to eight-year heavyweight champion boxer Jack Dempsey from 1933 to 1943, with whom she had two children, Joan (1934) and Barbara (1936).[citation needed] Rare film footage of Hannah and Jack filmed by British Pathé Newsreel in 1933 just after they were married is housed at the British Pathé Historical Archive.[22] In 1950, she married the Hollywood movie actor and comedian Thomas J. Monaghan,[23][24] only to file for divorce the next year.[25] Her sister Dorothy was married to Dixieland cornet player Jimmy McPartland who was occasionally hired by Roger Wolfe Kahn.

Sources

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  • Williams Sisters Discography: Moanin' Low: A Discography of Female Popular Vocal Recordings, 1920–1933, by Ross Laird.[26]

Further reading

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  • Meyerson, Harold. & Harburg, Ernest, Who Put the Rainbow in the Wizard of Oz? Yip Harburg, Lyricist, publ. Uni. Michigan Press 1993, ISBN 0472104829, page 115 (Hooray For What?).
  • Williams, Iain Cameron. The KAHNS of Fifth Avenue: the Crazy Rhythm of Otto Hermann Kahn and the Kahn Family, 2022, iwp publishing, ISBN 978-1916146587 - details in-depth Hannah's marriage and divorce to Roger Wolfe Kahn, and Hannah's marriage to Jack Dempsey and gives a comprehensive account of Hannah's career with the Williams Sisters and as a solo performer.[27]

References

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  1. ^ "Keep (it) Swinging: The Williams Sisters – Hannah's Career". Keepswinging.blogspot.com. March 26, 2009. Retrieved March 15, 2012.
  2. ^ Banker’s Son Weds Actress (retrieved 20/10/2020) – Suffolk News-Herald, 17 February 1931, page 3 Suffolk News-Herald
  3. ^ Voices of the Jazz Age: Profiles of Eight Vintage Jazzmen by Chip Deffaa, publ. University of Illinois Press; Reprint edition (Jun 30, 1992) – Hannah and Dorothy Williams are discussed on pages 162–166
  4. ^ Ben Pollack And His Orchestra Starring Benny Goodman - 1926-31, 1973, retrieved November 28, 2023
  5. ^ Williams Sisters - Nothing Else Matters Anymore (1926), retrieved November 28, 2023
  6. ^ Williams Sisters - Sam, The Old Accordion Man (1926), retrieved November 28, 2023
  7. ^ Hannah Williams Quits ‘Sweet and Low’; Musical Comedy Actress to Mary Roger Wolfe Kahn, It Is Reported (retrieved 20/10/2020) - New York Times, February 8, 1931, page 26: New York Times
  8. ^ "Jack Dempsey with wife colorized by william19763 on DeviantArt". www.deviantart.com. May 4, 2018. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  9. ^ The New York Times, July 10, 1937, page 18 – NEWS OF THE STAGE; Hannah Williams Likely to Be in Hurray for What- (report)
  10. ^ Harold Arlen: Rhythm, Rainbows, and Blues by Edward Jablonski, Northeastern University Press (Aug 31, 1996), ISBN 1555532632, page 116 – Hannah Williams' role taken over by June Clyde.
  11. ^ "hooray for what – Page 4". THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT!. September 30, 2013. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  12. ^ ‘Down With Love’ from Hooray For What: Sheet Music, (1937) with Ed Wynn, Kay Thompson and Hannah Williams: http://digitalcollections.baylor.edu/cdm/ref/collection/fa-spnc/id/63032
  13. ^ "I've gone romantic on you [music] / words by E.Y. Harburg ; music by Harold Arlen - Catalogue | National Library of Australia". catalogue.nla.gov.au. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  14. ^ Irvin, Sam (November 15, 2011). Kay Thompson: From Funny Face to Eloise. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4391-7654-2.
  15. ^ Hannah Williams returning to the stage: report and picture:https://www.europeana.eu/portal/en/record/2024904/photography_ProvidedCHO_TopFoto_co_uk_EU056277.html
  16. ^ "On Broadway". The Archive. January 4, 2017. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  17. ^ "New York, NY- Hannah Williams, recently divorced from ex-heavyweight..." Getty Images. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  18. ^ Tommy Dorsey And His Clambake Seven - But I Do Mind If Ya Don't / That's Life; I Guess, 1947, retrieved November 28, 2023
  19. ^ Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. May 31, 1947.
  20. ^ Unsung Hollywood Musicals of the Golden Era: 50 Overlooked Films and Their ... by Edwin M. Bradley, page 23
  21. ^ Wagner, Laura. Let Me Tell You How I Really Feel: The Uncensored Book Reviews of Classic Images' Laura Wagner, 2001-2010. BearManor Media.
  22. ^ British Pathe Historical Archive: Hannah Williams and Jack Dempsey in the kitchen of their home making breakfast:https://www.britishpathe.com/video/jack-dempsey-with-bride-anna-williams-sic/query/jack+dempsey
  23. ^ "Hannah Williams and Thomas J. Monaghan marriage (March 22, 1950) announcement". Billboard. April 1, 1950. p. 59.
  24. ^ Hannah Williams Married (retrieved 20/10/2020) – New York Times, March 23, 1950 page 34: New York Times
  25. ^ "Hannah Williams Seeks Divorce". The Pomona Progress. May 19, 1951.
  26. ^ Moanin' Low: A Discography of Female Popular Vocal Recordings, 1920–1933, by Ross Laird, publ. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1996 – The Williams Sisters, page 587
  27. ^ The KAHNS of Fifth Avenue book synopsis[usurped]
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