Dinah Shore

Though many will best remember blonde, Southern charmer Dinah Shore as the hostess of primetime variety shows and daytime talk shows from the early '50s through the late '70s, she was also once a popular big band singer and star of radio and feature films. Born Frances "Fanny" Rose Shore in Winchester, TN, she contracted polio when she was a year and a half old and was left with a crippled right leg that was eventually strengthened by massage, swimming and tennis. Shore attended Vanderbilt University where she was president of her sorority. While in school, she received lessons in voice and acting, gaining early exposure on Nashville's WSM radio. Following graduation in 1938, Shore moved to New York to launch a singing career where she made her professional debut on New York's WNEW radio; her first recordings were made with Xavier Cugat's band. Her first big break came when she was hired to sing with the Leo Reisman Orchestra; Shore took her stage name from a popular song, "Dinah." By 1940, Shore had won many fans and was named "New Star of Radio 1940." She launched her film career in the 1943 revue Thank Your Lucky Stars and went on to appear in a few more films of the '40s and early '50s including Bell of the Yukon (1944) and Aaron Slick of Punkin Crick (1953). But though a talented singer and a pleasant personality, Shore's film career seemed permanently stalled so in 1951, she turned to television. Her first show, The Dinah Shore Show was 15 minutes long and aired twice weekly, featuring singing and the occasional guest. She became the first woman to host her own variety show in 1957 with The Dinah Shore Chevy Show. Shore's daytime talk show of the '60s was characterized by her easy down-home manner and wit that made her a charming cross between Hollywood sophistication and just-plain folksiness. From 1943 and 1962 she was married to actor George Montgomery. In the early '70s she created a stir when she became romantically involved with Burt Reynolds. Shore died of cancer in 1994.

~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide