Molly Bee
Encyclopedia
Molly Bee born Mollie Gene Beachboard, was an American country music
singer famous for her 1952 recording of the early perennial, "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
", and as Pinky Lee
's sidekick on The Pinky Lee Show.
Bee was also well known in the 1950s in Los Angeles, California
as a regular on Hometown Jamboree
, a local television program featuring Tennessee Ernie Ford
, later the host of NBC
's The Ford Show
. She also appeared several times on The Ford Show during its five-year run (1956–1961).
, was born in Oklahoma City
, Oklahoma
, on August 18, 1939, raised in Bell Buckle, Tennessee
, until she and her family moved to Tucson, Arizona
sometime in the 1940s. When Bee was a child, she wanted to be a "prima ballerina". While in Arizona, Bee was discovered by "singing cowboy" Rex Allen
, a disc jockey in Tucson, when he heard her singing. Allen was impressed with Bee's voice, and had the ten-year-old sing "Lovesick Blues" on his popular radio show.
In 1950, when Bee was 11, the Beachboard family moved to the Los Angeles area. She became a regular on Hometown Jamboree during the next two years, a KTLA-TV program produced at the American Legion Stadium
in El Monte
, California. It was later moved to the then-famous Harmony Park Ballroom in Anaheim
in Orange County, California
. The Saturday night stage show was hosted and produced by Cliffie Stone
, who helped popularize country music in California. While in her teens, Bee sang on the Jamboree, and gathered a large fan following. She was so popular, the program was sometimes referred to as "The "Molly Bee Show." The program gave a big break to many young singers, including Tommy Sands
, who became a teen idol, and dated Bee in the 1950s. When she was 13, Bee signed on with Capitol Records
and had her first major recording success with "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus", in 1952 She attended Rosemead High School
and graduated from Hollywood High School
.
In 1952, Bee was cast to play Pinky Lee’s sidekick on the nationally-televised children's program, The Pinky Lee Show. In 1954, Bee joined Tennessee Ernie Ford in an NBC
-TV daytime variety show which ran from January 3, 1955 to June 28, 1957. Before their performance of "Dim Lights Thick Smoke", Ford teased Bee about her hair, which she wore in braids and complimented her "silver bell voice." Ford also coaxed her to yodel, a skill learned on the Tennessee farm where she spent her early years. Thereafter, her yodeling became a feature in most of her early appearances. She was quoted as saying that her nine years with the Tennessee Ernie Ford show were the most enjoyable years of her life; she was home most of the time and got to see her family every day. Bee's No. 1 hit was followed by three more hit singles, including "The Tennessee Tango". She had gone around the world by the time she was 19 years old.
Bee also undertook a brief stage and film acting career in the 1950s and 1960s, appearing in Corral Cuties, Going Steady, Chartroose Caboose and The Young Swingers, but once said she was "too shy" for an acting career. Bee appeared in 1958 with George Montgomery in an episode of NBC's The Gisele MacKenzie Show
. She guest-starred on other national television variety shows hosted by Red Foley
and Steve Allen
.
During the 1960s, Bee was a regular headliner at major Las Vegas
showrooms and briefly toured with Bob Hope
's USO troupe. She also made frequent appearances on ABC-TV's The Jimmy Dean Show
. In 1966, Dick Clark and Barbara John put together a new show for NBC-TV, Swingin' Country. It featured three regulars—Bee, Roy Clark
and Rusty Draper. The show gained popularity, and the Armed Forces Radio and Television picked it up to be seen by over 250,000 military personnel worldwide. She was nominated in 1966 as "Best Television Personality" by The Academy of Country Music Awards.
By the end of the 1960s, her career began to fade; in later years she blamed her decline on drug abuse. In 1975, in Country Song Roundup magazine, she was quoted as saying that through her children, she found "equilibrium." In the 1970s, Bee reconnected with Cliffie Stone and recorded two more albums to begin her comeback; and played small country bars and venues, very different scenes from the large concert audiences that she had attracted early in her career. Her daughters often performed with her. Bee then released the albums Good Golly Ms. Molly in 1975, this time on Stone's Granite
record label; and in 1982, her final album, Sounds Fine to Me. Although she was no longer touring, in April 1998, she was part of the playbill putting on a benefit for the Ivey Ranch Park for the physically and mentally handicapped in her city of residence, Oceanside, California
.
By the 1990s she owned a restaurant and night club in Oceanside
, known as The Molly Bee. She was quoted as having said, "I've done it all, and lived to tell about it". She remembered working with "incredible people and always into where the action was. I wouldn't trade it for the world." "Mine has been like six lifetimes rolled into one."
of the country music set."
She had two daughters, Lia Genn and Bobbi Carey, and one son, Michael Allen. Her marriage to country singer Ira Allen
lasted ten years.
. She was 69 and lived in Carlsbad
, California. In addition to her son Michael of Napa, California
, Bee is survived by daughters Lia Genn of Winchester
, California, Bobbi Carey of Oceanside, brother Robert Beachboard of Escondido
, California, and four grandchildren.
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
singer famous for her 1952 recording of the early perennial, "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
"I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" is an American Christmas song with music and lyrics by Tommie Connor.The original recording by Jimmy Boyd on 15 July 1952 when he was 13 reached #1 on the Billboard charts in December 1952, and on the Cash Box chart at the beginning of the following year...
", and as Pinky Lee
Pinky Lee
Pincus Leff , better known as Pinky Lee, was an American burlesque comic and host of a children's television program, The Pinky Lee Show, in the early 1950s.-Biography:...
's sidekick on The Pinky Lee Show.
Bee was also well known in the 1950s in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
as a regular on Hometown Jamboree
Hometown Jamboree
Hometown Jamboree was an American country music radio and television show broadcast each Saturday night by KXLA radio, Pasadena, California and KTLA-TV, Los Angeles, California. The show was hosted by Cliffie Stone and first held at the American Legion Stadium in El Monte, California, and later at...
, a local television program featuring Tennessee Ernie Ford
Tennessee Ernie Ford
Ernest Jennings Ford , better known as Tennessee Ernie Ford, was an American recording artist and television host who enjoyed success in the country and Western, pop, and gospel musical genres...
, later the host of NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's The Ford Show
The Ford Show
The Ford Show is a half-hour comedy/variety program, starring singer and folk humorist Tennessee Ernie Ford, which aired in color on NBC television on Thursday evenings from October 4, 1956 to June 29, 1961....
. She also appeared several times on The Ford Show during its five-year run (1956–1961).
Biography
Bee, who was part Native AmericanIndigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
, was born in Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Oklahoma City is the capital and the largest city in the state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, the city ranks 31st among United States cities in population. The city's population, from the 2010 census, was 579,999, with a metro-area population of 1,252,987 . In 2010, the Oklahoma...
, Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, on August 18, 1939, raised in Bell Buckle, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, until she and her family moved to Tucson, Arizona
Tucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
sometime in the 1940s. When Bee was a child, she wanted to be a "prima ballerina". While in Arizona, Bee was discovered by "singing cowboy" Rex Allen
Rex Allen
Rex Elvie Allen was an American film actor, singer and songwriter, known as the Arizona Cowboy, particularly known as the narrator in many Disney nature and Western film productions. For contributions to the recording industry, Allen was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.-Family...
, a disc jockey in Tucson, when he heard her singing. Allen was impressed with Bee's voice, and had the ten-year-old sing "Lovesick Blues" on his popular radio show.
In 1950, when Bee was 11, the Beachboard family moved to the Los Angeles area. She became a regular on Hometown Jamboree during the next two years, a KTLA-TV program produced at the American Legion Stadium
American Legion Stadium
American Legion Stadium is a baseball venue located in Odessa, TX and the home of the Odessa College Wranglers baseball team in the Western Junior College Athletic Conference. The facility holds a capacity of 1,000....
in El Monte
El Monte, California
El Monte is a residential, industrial, and commercial city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city's slogan is "Welcome to Friendly El Monte," and historically is known as "The End of the Santa Fe Trail." As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 113,475,...
, California. It was later moved to the then-famous Harmony Park Ballroom in Anaheim
Anaheim, California
Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was about 365,463, making it the most populated city in Orange County, the 10th most-populated city in California, and ranked 54th in the United States...
in Orange County, California
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
. The Saturday night stage show was hosted and produced by Cliffie Stone
Cliffie Stone
Cliffie Stone , born Clifford Gilpin Snyder, was an American country singer, musician, record producer, music publisher, and radio and TV personality who was pivotal in the development of California’s thriving country music scene after World War II during a career that lasted six decades...
, who helped popularize country music in California. While in her teens, Bee sang on the Jamboree, and gathered a large fan following. She was so popular, the program was sometimes referred to as "The "Molly Bee Show." The program gave a big break to many young singers, including Tommy Sands
Tommy Sands
Tommy Adrian Sands is an American pop music singer and actor.-Early life:Born into a musical family in Chicago, Illinois, Sands' father was a pianist and his mother a big-band singer. While still young, he moved with his family to Shreveport, Louisiana...
, who became a teen idol, and dated Bee in the 1950s. When she was 13, Bee signed on with Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
and had her first major recording success with "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus", in 1952 She attended Rosemead High School
Rosemead High School
Rosemead High School is a secondary school located at 9063 East Mission Drive in Rosemead, California, in the ZIP Code 91770. It is a secondary school in the El Monte Union High School District...
and graduated from Hollywood High School
Hollywood High School
Hollywood High School is a Los Angeles Unified School District high school located at the intersection of North Highland Avenue and West Sunset Boulevard in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California.-History:...
.
In 1952, Bee was cast to play Pinky Lee’s sidekick on the nationally-televised children's program, The Pinky Lee Show. In 1954, Bee joined Tennessee Ernie Ford in an NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
-TV daytime variety show which ran from January 3, 1955 to June 28, 1957. Before their performance of "Dim Lights Thick Smoke", Ford teased Bee about her hair, which she wore in braids and complimented her "silver bell voice." Ford also coaxed her to yodel, a skill learned on the Tennessee farm where she spent her early years. Thereafter, her yodeling became a feature in most of her early appearances. She was quoted as saying that her nine years with the Tennessee Ernie Ford show were the most enjoyable years of her life; she was home most of the time and got to see her family every day. Bee's No. 1 hit was followed by three more hit singles, including "The Tennessee Tango". She had gone around the world by the time she was 19 years old.
Bee also undertook a brief stage and film acting career in the 1950s and 1960s, appearing in Corral Cuties, Going Steady, Chartroose Caboose and The Young Swingers, but once said she was "too shy" for an acting career. Bee appeared in 1958 with George Montgomery in an episode of NBC's The Gisele MacKenzie Show
The Gisele MacKenzie Show
The Gisele MacKenzie Show in an American variety show hosted by Gisele MacKenzie. The series aired live on NBC from September 28, 1957, to March 29, 1958. The Curfew Kids appeared on the program as semi-regulars....
. She guest-starred on other national television variety shows hosted by Red Foley
Ozark Jubilee
Ozark Jubilee is the first U.S. network television program to feature country music's top stars, and was the centerpiece of a strategy for Springfield, Missouri to challenge Nashville, Tennessee as America's country music capital...
and Steve Allen
Steve Allen
Steve Allen may refer to:*Steve Allen , American musician, comedian, and writer*Steve Allen , presenter on the London-based talk radio station LBC 97.3...
.
During the 1960s, Bee was a regular headliner at major Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
showrooms and briefly toured with Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
's USO troupe. She also made frequent appearances on ABC-TV's The Jimmy Dean Show
The Jimmy Dean Show
The Jimmy Dean Show is the name of several similar music and variety series on American local and network television between 1957–75. Each starred country music singer Jimmy Dean as host.-Daytime:...
. In 1966, Dick Clark and Barbara John put together a new show for NBC-TV, Swingin' Country. It featured three regulars—Bee, Roy Clark
Roy Clark
Roy Linwood Clark is an American country music musician and performer. He is best known for hosting Hee Haw, a nationally televised country variety show, from 1969–1992. Clark has been an important and influential figure in country music, both as a performer and helping to popularize the genre...
and Rusty Draper. The show gained popularity, and the Armed Forces Radio and Television picked it up to be seen by over 250,000 military personnel worldwide. She was nominated in 1966 as "Best Television Personality" by The Academy of Country Music Awards.
By the end of the 1960s, her career began to fade; in later years she blamed her decline on drug abuse. In 1975, in Country Song Roundup magazine, she was quoted as saying that through her children, she found "equilibrium." In the 1970s, Bee reconnected with Cliffie Stone and recorded two more albums to begin her comeback; and played small country bars and venues, very different scenes from the large concert audiences that she had attracted early in her career. Her daughters often performed with her. Bee then released the albums Good Golly Ms. Molly in 1975, this time on Stone's Granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
record label; and in 1982, her final album, Sounds Fine to Me. Although she was no longer touring, in April 1998, she was part of the playbill putting on a benefit for the Ivey Ranch Park for the physically and mentally handicapped in her city of residence, Oceanside, California
Oceanside, California
-2010:The 2010 United States Census reported that Oceanside had a population of 167,086. The population density was 3,961.8 people per square mile...
.
By the 1990s she owned a restaurant and night club in Oceanside
Oceanside
-Places:*Oceanside, New South Wales, Australia*Oceanside, British Columbia, Canada*Oceanside, California, United States*Oceanside, New York, United States*Oceanside, Oregon, United States-Other:...
, known as The Molly Bee. She was quoted as having said, "I've done it all, and lived to tell about it". She remembered working with "incredible people and always into where the action was. I wouldn't trade it for the world." "Mine has been like six lifetimes rolled into one."
Personal life
Bee was married at least five times—she called herself "the Zsa Zsa GaborZsa Zsa Gabor
Zsa Zsa Gabor is a Hungarian-born American stage, film and television actress.She acted on stage in Vienna, Austria, in 1932, and was crowned Miss Hungary in 1936. She emigrated to the United States in 1941 and became a sought-after actress with "European flair and style", with a personality that...
of the country music set."
She had two daughters, Lia Genn and Bobbi Carey, and one son, Michael Allen. Her marriage to country singer Ira Allen
Ira Allen
Ira Allen was one of the founders of Vermont, and leaders of the Green Mountain Boys; and was the brother of Ethan Allen.-Biography:...
lasted ten years.
Death
Bee, who in her later years went by Molly Muncy offstage, died on February 7, 2009, at Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside of complications related to a strokeStroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
. She was 69 and lived in Carlsbad
Carlsbad, California
-2010:The 2010 United States Census reported that Carlsbad had a population of 105,328. The population density was 2,693.1 people per square mile . The racial makeup of Carlsbad was 87,205 White, 1,379 African American, 514 Native American, 7,460 Asian, 198 Pacific Islander, 4,189 from other...
, California. In addition to her son Michael of Napa, California
Napa, California
-History:The name Napa was probably derived from the name given to a southern Nappan village whose people shared the area with elk, deer, grizzlies and cougars for many centuries, according to Napa historian Kami Santiago. At the time of the first recorded exploration into Napa Valley in 1823, the...
, Bee is survived by daughters Lia Genn of Winchester
Winchester, California
Winchester is a census-designated place in Riverside County, California, USA. As of the 2010 census, the CDP had a total population of 2,534, up from 2,155 at the 2000 census....
, California, Bobbi Carey of Oceanside, brother Robert Beachboard of Escondido
Escondido, California
Escondido is a city occupying a shallow valley ringed by rocky hills, just north of the city of San Diego, California. Founded in 1888, it is one of the oldest cities in San Diego County. The city had a population of 143,911 at the 2010 census. Its municipal government set itself an operating...
, California, and four grandchildren.
Albums
| Year | Album | US Country | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | Young Romance | Capitol | |
| 1965 | It's Great, It's Molly Bee | MGM | |
| 1967 | Swingin' Country | 40 | |
| 1975 | Good Golly Ms. Molly | Granite | |
| 1982 | Sounds Fine to Me | Accord |
Singles
| Year | Single |
|---|---|
| 1952 | "The Tennessee Tango" |
| 1952 | "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" |
| 1967 | "Sinner's Wine" |
| 1974 | "She Kept on Talkin'" |
| 1975 | "Good Golly Ms. Molly" |
| 1975 | "Right or Left at Oak Street" |
External links
- [ Molly Bee] bio at allmusic.com