An inside joke?
reprinted by permission of Cherie Davis Thanks Cherie!
Julie London was
born Julie Peck in Santa Rosa California on September 26, 1926. She sang as a teenager in
a band on the West Coast, prior to her first film appearance. She attended Hollywood
Professional High School and graduated in 1944. She was discovered by talent agent Sue
Carol (the wife of actor Alan Ladd) while an elevator operator. She appeared in her first
film, Nabonga, in 1944. Her first public professional singing performance was at
the 881 Club.
Julie's first recording was a 45 single "Cry Me a River" written by former high
school classmate Arthur Hamilton. Another former classmate was disc-jockey Jack Wagner of KHJ in Hollywood. Jack
was very impressed with Julie's sultry looks as a high school student and equally
impressed with her singing talent. He, as much as anyone, helped tremendously to promote
her albums. Jack wrote the liner notes for Julie's 1957 album "About the Blues"
(Liberty 3043). Julie was married to Jack Webb, star of the "Dragnet" TV series
who also was the producer of "Pete Kelly's Blues" in which Julie appeared in
1955. She later married Bobby Troup who helped to sign her to the then new
"Liberty" label. She made over 30 albums.
I have recently had the pleasure of meeting author Joseph Lanza (The Cocktail and Elevator
Music). He has spoken highly of Julie London's role in "cocktail culture" and
given me permission to excerpt portions of the text on Julie London here.
Julie London emerged as the consummate cocktail siren. Movie star, club performer,
recording artist, and occasional television personality, she was also the perfect physical
type for conveying aerodynamic glamour in the new age of mass-produced Frididaires and
televisions. She was a blend of Dionysian flesh and Detroit steel, streamlined car and
cocktail shaker combined. Her cool, sleek supple contours, cobalt blue eyes, and high tech
vocals satisfied America's fascination for what Marshall McLuhan called "the assembly
line goddess."
…Julie London's music also incited a fresh repertoire of amorous sexual responses,
making romance more a matter of environment than emotion. Many of her songs are less about
passion than about its accoutrements: the jewels, the satin sheets, the colognes, the
after-office dinners, and, best of all, the cocktail interlude when many pecuniary deals
are forged. For the cover of her 1961 album, Whatever Julie Wants, Julie had to have
special armed security men stand guard as she posed beside almost $750,000 worth of furs,
jewels, and piles of paper money…(excerpts from "The Cocktail: The influence of
spirits on the American psyche" by Joseph Lanza.)
Nightclub singer, 'Emergency!' actress Julie London dies
By JEFF WILSON
.c The Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Julie London, the smoky-voiced ``Cry Me A River'' nightclub singer who
played TV nurse Dixie McCall on the old ``Emergency!'' series, died Wednesday. She was 74.
London had been in poor health since suffering a stroke five years ago. She was taken by
ambulance from her San Fernando Valley home to a nearby hospital, where she died Wednesday
morning, her business manager Meyer Sack said.
London was born Julie Peck in Santa Rosa, and moved to Los Angeles at 14 with her
vaudeville song-and-dance team parents. She had roles in movies, including ``Jungle
Woman'' (1944), ``The Red House'' (1947) with Edward G. Robinson, ``Task Force'' (1949)
with Gary Cooper, ``The Fat Man'' (1950) with Rock Hudson and ``A Question of Adultery''
(1958).
London was married to ``Dragnet'' star Jack Webb for five years. Her second husband, Bobby
Troup, was the composer, jazz musician and actor who penned the classic song ``Route 66.''
Troup booked London for a nightclub engagement that was followed by her hit ``Cry Me A
River'' in 1955 and eventually 32 albums.
In 1955, '56 and '57, she was voted one of Billboard's top female vocalists. Among her
songs: ``Around Mignight,'' ``In the Middle of A Kiss,'' ``In the Wee Small Hours of the
Morning'' and ``My Heart Belongs to Daddy.''
When nightclubs began losing their appeal and closing in the 1960s, London moved to
television.
She appeared on an episode of ``Big Valley,'' then got the role of the head nurse at
fictional Rampart General Hospital on ``Emergency!'' Her husband, Troup, played
neurosurgeon Dr. Joe Early on the 1970s TV drama. He died of heart failure last year at
80.
Webb was the show's executive producer, which ran from 1972 to 1977. Cable TV reruns have
brought ``Emergency!'' renewed popularity.
London is survived by a daughter from her marriage to Webb and three, children from her
39-year marriage to Troup.
Julie London and Bobby Troup remained married until Bobby's death in February of
1999.
