JULIE LONDON

Born Julie Peck, 26 September 1926, Santa Rosa, California
Died 18 October 2000, Encino, California Actress-singer London was inextricably linked to the sultry Andy Hamilton song "Cry Me A River", which gave the artist her sole million-seller in 1955 (# 9, Liberty 55006). She did a short, but amusing performance of the song in the movie "The Girl Can't Help It", the title song of which was written by her second husband, Bobby Troup. Though "Cry Me A River" was her only entry in the Billboard Top 100, she was not really a one-hit wonder, as six of her albums made the album charts betwen 1956 and 1963. "Cry Me A River" was included on her debut album, "Julie Is Her Name" (# 2), which was characterized by a laid-back delivery of romantic songs, accom- panied only by Barney Kessel on guitar and Ray Leatherwood on bass. Before "Cry Me A River", she had already played in many low-budget films from 1944 onwards ; all the while, she kept her $ 19-a-week job as an elevator operator in a department store. In 1945 (1947 according to our list member Wayne Jancik), she married radio announcer Jack Webb. When Jack became a big star in the "Dragnet" TV series, in 1950, Julie retired to raise two daughters, Lisa and Stacy. The marriage ended in divorce in 1953. The next year she met songwriter/pianist/actor Bobby Troup, who encouraged her singing endeavours and got her a contract with the new Liberty label. "She really was Miss Liberty", Troup said. "Before Julie was on it, Liberty Records was nothing". London continued to record prodigiously throughout the late 50s to the mid-60s, but this aspect of her career vied with her movie roles, notably The Great Man and A Question Of Adultery. She later appeared in several television series, often alongside Bobby Troup. In 1972, she starred as nurse Dixie McCall in the popular series Emergency!. The series was produced by her first husband, Jack Webb, and also starred Troup. Her popularity underwent a revival in the UK in the early 80s after Mari Wilson gained a hit with London's classic lament. London's looks were stunning, she oozed style, but unfortunately she did not possess the vocal range or expression to make her a truly great singer. CD: Julie Is Her Name, 1 & 2 (25 tracks). First CD issue on EMI, 1992, now out of print, remastered and reissued by Generic (Japan), 2001.