|
 
1923-2017
Born
Rose Marie Mazetta on August 15 1923 in
New York City, NY, USA
Died
at 2:00pm on Dec 28th, Van Nuys, CA
The
longest active career in entertainment history
has come to an end. Rose Marie, Star
of Broadway, Film and TV (The Dick Van Dyke
Show / The Doris Day Show / Hollywood Squares)
has passed at the age of 94.
Born
on the day that the Broadway musical "Rose-Marie"
opened, Rose Marie had entertainment’s longest
and most fascinating entertainment careers
in history. She began at the age of
3 by winning an amateur contest that took
her to Atlantic City where she was billed
as Baby Rose Marie. She became a popular
radio personality appearing on numerous
top shows of the time. She eventually
received her own program on NBC and recorded
some of the most successful albums on the
Mercury label. Her extensive touring
took her to some of the finest showplaces
across the country. Rose Marie would
sing for presidents Coolidge, Hoover and
Roosevelt. She starred in several
of the earliest talking films, beginning
with a 1929 short, Baby Rose Marie the Child
Wonder, which was screened in theaters before
feature films such as “The Jazz Singer.”
She
appeared in several pictures for Paramount,
including “International House” and “Big
Broadcast of 1935.” She married her husband,
musician Bobby Guy, who was the lead trumpeter
for the NBC orchestra on "The Tonight
Show" and moved to California. In
1946, when Las Vegas opened its first big-time
casino hotel, The Flamingo, Rose Marie became
the First Lady of Las Vegas when she was
hired by Benjamin “Bugsy” Segal as one of
the headliners, along with Jimmy Durante
and Xavier Cugat. She had a brief
Broadway career in Top Banana with Phil
Silvers and in 1960 she accepted her first
regular role on “My Sister Eileen.”
When
“The Dick Van Dyke Show” premiered in 1961,
Rose Marie became a household name as the
quick-witted comedy writer, Sally Rogers.
After five seasons, she moved to “The
Doris Day Show.” She was the only original
member of the hit game show “Hollywood Squares”
to have worked on all of its reincarnations
and hosts.
She
extensively toured the night-club circuit
with Rosemary Clooney, Helen O'Connell &
Margaret Whiting in 4 Girls 4. She received
her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on
October 3, 2001. When asked about retiring
she said, "I've been in show business
my whole life. Why start something new now?"
She later released her best selling memoirs
“Hold The Roses” in 2006.
Her
famous hair bow, which had a strong personal
significance that she refused to elaborate
on, was inducted into the Smithsonian along
with other items from her extensive career
in 2008. In 2017, the critically acclaimed
film, “Wait For Your Laugh” by director
Jason Wise premiered, about the incredible
life and career of the former child star
turned adult legend and icon. Rose Marie
was very proud of the film and how well
it was received by fans and industry. Late
in life she discovered a love for social
media, which allowed her to interact directly
with fans.
Official
Website
and Facebook
page
OFFICIAL
BIOGRAPHY
For
interviews, press, high res photos and updated biography
please send an email to harlan@bhbpr.com
or call 626.296.3757
|
