Dorothy Shay (April 11, 1921 – October 22, 1978) was an American popular comedic recording artist in the late 1940s and early 1950s, who later became a character actress. She was known as the "Park Avenue Hillbillie".
Early life
Shay was born
Dorothy Sims in Jacksonville, Florida. When she began her career as a "straight" singer, she took vocal lessons to lose her Southern accent. She sang for the
USO during World War II. Dorothy changed her name to "Shay" so she wouldn't be confused with
Ginny Simms, another vocalist of the day, choosing "Shay" to honor her mentor Betty Shay (later
Betty Corday). While performing with
Morton Gould and his orchestra, she performed an encore, "Uncle Fud", a hayseed novelty number that became popular and launched her solo singing career.
"The Park Avenue Hillbillie"
She signed with
Columbia Records and recorded a series of hit records. Her biggest hit was "Feudin' and Fightin'" in 1947,
the year she joined
Spike Jones's
CBS radio show as the female vocalist. That same year, her album, "Dorothy Shay (The Park Avenue Hillbillie) Sings", was rated #1 in
Billboard magazine's Best-Selling Popular Albums.
This album was part of Columbia's initial catalogue of 101
, which were the first LPs ever released.
Shay was the first female artist to have a #1 album on the
Billboard chart.
In her singing engagements, she performed dressed as a sophisticated urbanite while talking like a rural Southerner. She was popular in nightclubs, radio, and television. The 1951 Abbott and Costello movie Comin' Round The Mountain featured special introductory billing as Dorothy Shay's first motion picture; she played a nightclub singer involved in a hillbilly feud. The film was an excellent showcase for her musical and comic talents; all five musical numbers were performed by Shay.
Shay was the musical guest on the second (television) season premiere of The Jack Benny Program in November 1951. She performed at President Eisenhower's Inaugural Ball in 1953. She recorded for Capitol Records and Imperial Records where she recorded a rockabilly song titled "Hunky Dory".
Personal life
She was married briefly to Dick Looman from 1958 to 1959.
After a period of inactivity in the 1960s, she returned to show business as a character actress in the 1970s. She had a recurring role as Thelma, first owner of the Dew Drop Inn, in the TV series
The Waltons.
[ Dorothy Shay profile, imdb.com; accessed March 19, 2015.]
Death
Shay was 57 when she died of a
heart attack on October 22, 1978, in Santa Monica, California.
Upon her death, the writers of
The Waltons wrote her character off, with the mention that she sold the Dew Drop Inn and moved to California.
[ Profile, tv.com; accessed March 19, 2015.]
Discography
External links
