Edit filter log

'{{recent death|date=June 2009}} {{Infobox musical artist |Name = Gale Storm | image = Replace_this_image_female.svg <!-- NOTE TO EDITORS: Do not introduce any fair use images in the infobox. Any fair use photos (i.e. promotional photos) are copyright violations and will be deleted. Also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Fair_use_criteria --> |Background = solo_singer |Birth_name = Josephine Owaissa Cottle |Born = {{Birth date|1922|04|05|mf=y}}<br>[[Bloomington, Texas|Bloomington]], [[Victoria County, Texas|Victoria County]], [[Texas]], [[United States|USA]] |Died = {{Death date and age|2009|06|27|1922|04|05}}<br>[[Danville, California|Danville]], [[Contra Costa County, California|Contra Costa County]], [[California]], USA |Genre = [[Traditional pop music|Traditional Pop]] |Years_active = 1940-1989 |Label = [[Dot Records|Dot]] |URL = [http://www.galestorm.tv/ Official Gale Storm Web Site] |spouse=Twice widowed: (1) Lee Bonnell<br> (2) Paul Masterson }} '''Josephine Owaissa Cottle''' (April 5, 1922 - June 27, 2009),<ref name=chron /> better known as '''Gale Storm''', was an American actress and singer, who starred in two popular television programs of the 1950s, ''[[My Little Margie]]'' and ''[[The Gale Storm Show]]''. ==Early life== Storm was born in [[Bloomington, Texas|Bloomington]] in [[Victoria County, Texas|Victoria County]] in southeastern [[Texas]], the youngest of five children. She had two brothers and two sisters. Her father, William Walter Cottle, died after a year-long illness when she was just thirteen months old, and her mother, Minnie Corina Cottle, struggled to raise the children alone. One of her sisters gave Josephine the middle name, "Owaissa", an American Indian word meaning "bluebird". Storm's mother Minnie took in sewing, then opened a millinery shop in [[McDade, Texas|McDade]], Texas, which failed, and finally moved the family to [[Houston, Texas|Houston]]. Storm learned to be an accomplished dancer and became an excellent ice skater at Houston's Polar Palace. At Albert Sydney Johnston Junior High School and [[San Jacinto High School]], she performed in the drama club. When she was a 17-year-old senior, two of her teachers urged her to enter the contest on ''Gateway to Hollywood'', broadcast from the [[CBS Radio]] studios in [[Hollywood, California|Hollywood]], [[California]]. The first prize was a one-year contract with a movie studio. She won and was immediately given the stage name '''Gale Storm''', while her performing partner (and future husband), Lee Bonnell from [[South Bend, Indiana|South Bend]], [[Indiana]], became '''Terry Belmont'''. ==Film career== After winning the contest in 1940, Storm made several films for the studio, [[RKO Radio Pictures]]; the first was ''Tom Brown's School Days''. She worked steadily in a number of low-budget films released during this period. In 1941 she sang in several [[Soundies]], three-minute musicals produced for "movie jukeboxes." She acted and sang in [[Monogram Pictures]]' popular [[Frankie Darro]] series, and played ingénue roles in other Monogram features with the [[East Side Kids]], [[Edgar Kennedy]], and [[The Three Stooges]]. Monogram had always relied on established actors with reputations, but in Gale Storm the studio finally had a star of its own. She starred in the studio's most elaborate productions, both musical and dramatic. She shared top billing in Monogram's ''Cosmo Jones in The Crime Smasher'' (1943), opposite [[Edgar Kennedy]], [[Richard Cromwell (actor)|Richard Cromwell]], and [[Frank Graham]] in the role of Jones, a character derived from network radio. American audiences warmed to Storm and her fan mail increased. Altogether, she performed in more than three dozen motion pictures for Monogram. The early exposure from these film appearances paved the way for her success in other media. {{fact|date=June 2009}} Storm became an American icon of the 1950s, starring in two highly successful television series, and it was in this decade that her singing career took off.{{fact|date=June 2009}} ==Television career== Storm's television career skyrocketed from 1952 to 1955, with her starring role in ''[[My Little Margie]]''. The show, which co-starred former [[silent film]] actor [[Charles Farrell]] as her father, was originally a summer replacement for ''[[I Love Lucy]]'' on CBS. After becoming a hit, the show ran for 126 episodes on NBC and CBS. In an unusual move, the series was broadcast on [[CBS Radio]] from December 1952 to August 1955 with the same lead actors. Only 23 episodes of the radio show are known to survive. Storm's popularity was capitalized upon in ''[[The Gale Storm Show]]'' (aka ''Oh! Susanna''), featuring another silent movie star, [[ZaSu Pitts]]. This show ran for 143 episodes between 1956 and 1960. Storm appeared regularly on other television programs in the 1950s and 1960s as well. She was a panelist and as a "mystery guest" on ''[[What's My Line?]]'' ==Recording artist== In [[Gallatin, Tennessee]] in 1954, a 10-year-old girl, Linda Wood, was watching Storm on a Sunday night [[television]] comedy show hosted by [[Gordon MacRae]], singing one of the popular songs of the day. Linda's father asked her who was singing and was told it was Gale Storm from ''My Little Margie''. Linda's father, Randy Wood, was president of [[Dot Records]], and he liked Storm so much that he called to sign her before the end of the television show. Her first record, "I Hear You Knockin'", a [[cover version]] of a [[rhythm and blues]] hit by [[Smiley Lewis]], in turn based on the old [[Buddy Bolden]] standard "The Bucket's Got a Hole In It", sold over a million copies. It was followed in 1957 by the haunting ballad, "[[Dark Moon (song)|Dark Moon]]" that went to No. 4 on the [[Billboard Hot 100]]. Storm had several top ten songs and headlined in [[Las Vegas, Nevada|Las Vegas]] and appeared in numerous stage plays. ==Personal life== Storm was married and widowed twice. Her first marriage was to actor [[Lee Bonnell]], with whom she had four children: Peter, Philip, Paul and Susanna. Bonnell died in 1987. In 1988, Storm married Paul Masterson. Masterson died in 1996. ==Later years== In 1981, Storm published her [[autobiography]], ''I Ain't Down Yet'', which described her battle with [[alcoholism]]. She was also interviewed by author David C. Tucker for ''The Women Who Made Television Funny: Ten Stars of 1950s Sitcoms'', published in 2007 by McFarland and Company. Storm continued to make personal appearances and sign autographed photos with her and Charles Farrell from the ''My Little Margie'' program at conventions. She had attended events such as the Memphis Film Festival, the Friends of Old-Time Radio and the Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention. ==Death== Storm lived alone in [[Monarch Beach, California|Monarch Beach]], California, near two of her sons and their families, until failing health forced her into a convalescent home in [[Danville, California|Danville]]. She died there on June 27, 2009<ref name=chron>{{cite web|url=http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/nation/6501720.html|title=Gale Storm, perky star of 1950s TV, dies at 87 |last=Thomas|first=Bob|date=2009-6-28|publisher=chron.com|accessdate=2009-06-28}}</ref> at the age of 87. Gale Storm has three stars on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] for her contributions to recording, radio, and television.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/TV/06/28/obit.gale.storm/index.html?iref=mpstoryview|title=TV sitcom pioneer Gale Storm dies |last=Duke|first=Alan|date=2009-6-28|publisher=cnn.com|accessdate=2009-06-28}}</ref> ==Selected filmography== {| border="2" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 90%;" |- bgcolor="#CCCCCC" align="center" ! colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" | Film |- bgcolor="#CCCCCC" align="center" ! Year ! Film ! Role ! Notes |- | 1940 | ''[[Tom Brown's Schooldays#Film, TV and theatrical adaptations|Tom Brown's Schooldays]]'' | Effie | Alternative title: ''Adventures at Rugby'' |- | 1941 | ''Saddlemates'' | Susan Langley |- | 1942 | ''Rhythm Parade'' | Sally Benson |- | 1943 | ''Nearly Eighteen'' | Jane "Janie" Stanton |- | 1945 | ''G.I. Honeymoon'' | Ann Gordon |- | 1946 | ''[[Swing Parade of 1946]]'' | Carol Lawrence |- | 1947 | ''[[It Happened on Fifth Avenue]]'' | Trudy O'Connor |- | 1948 | ''The Dude Goes West'' | Liza Crockett |- | 1949 | ''[[Abandoned (1949 film)|Abandoned]]'' | Paula Considine | Alternative title: ''Abandoned Woman'' |- | 1950 | ''[[The Underworld Story]]'' | Catherine "Cathy" Harris |- | 1951 | ''Al Jennings of Oklahoma'' | Margo St. Claire |- | 1952 | ''Woman of the North Country'' | Cathy Nordlund |- |- bgcolor="#CCCCCC" align="center" ! colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" | Television |- bgcolor="#CCCCCC" align="center" ! Year ! Title ! Role ! Notes |- | 1952-1955 | ''[[My Little Margie]]'' | Margie Albright | 126 episodes |- | 1955 | ''[[Ford Theatre#Television|The Ford Television Theatre]]'' | Hope Foster | 1 episode |- | 1956-1960 | ''[[The Gale Storm Show]]'' | Susanna Pomeroy | 143 episodes |- | 1964-1965 | ''[[Burke's Law]]'' | Honey Feather Leeps<br>Dr. Nonnie Harper | 2 episodes |- | 1979 | ''[[The Love Boat]]'' | Rose | 1 episode |- | 1989 | ''[[Murder, She Wrote]]'' | Maisie Mayberry | 1 episode |} ==Recordings== ===Singles=== *1956: "[[I Hear You Knocking]]"/"Never Leave Me" (Dot 15412) (#2) *1956: "[[Memories Are Made of This]]"/"Teenage Prayer" (Dot 15436) *1956: "[[Why Do Fools Fall in Love (song)|Why Do Fools Fall in Love]]/I Walk Alone" (Dot 15448) *1956: "I Ain't Gonna Worry"/"[[Ivory Tower (1956 song)|Ivory Tower]]" (Dot 15458) (#6) *1956: "[[Tell Me Why (1956 song)|Tell Me Why]]"/"Don't Be That Way" (Dot 15474) *1956: "[[Now Is the Hour]]"/"A Heart Without a Sweetheart" (Dot 15492) *1956: "My Heart Belongs To You"/"Orange Blossoms" (Dot 15515) *1957: "Lucky Lips/"On Treasure Island" (Dot 15539) *1957: "[[Dark Moon (song)|Dark Moon]]"/"A Little Too Late" (Dot 15558) (#4) *1957: "On My Mind Again/Love By The Jukebox Light" (Dot 15606) *1957: "Go 'Way From My Window"/"Winter Warm" (Dot 15666) *1957: "I Get That Feeling"/"A Farewell To Arms" (Dot 15691) *1957: "You"/"Angry" (Dot 15734) *1957: "South Of the Border"/"Soon I'll Wed My Love" (Dot 15783 ) *1958: "Oh Lonely Crowd"/"Happiness Left Yesterday" (Dot 15861) *1960: "I Need You So"/"On Treasure Island" (Dot 16057) *1960: "Please Help Me I'm Falling"/"He Is There" (Dot 16111) ==References== {{reflist}} ==Further reading == * ''Sitcom Queens: Divas of the Small Screen'' by Michael Karol (2005) ISBN 0-595-40251-8 * ''The Women Who Made Television Funny: Ten Stars of 1950s Sitcoms'' by David C. Tucker (2007) ISBN 0-7864-2900-3 ==External links== *[http://www.galestorm.tv/ Official Gale Storm Website] *{{imdb name|0832561}} *{{amg|id=11:g01gtq5ztu43|label=Gale Storm}} *[http://www.composerjohnbeal.com/GaleStorm.html John Beal's Gale Storm Website] *[http://www.filmsofthegoldenage.com/foga/1999/winter99/galestorm.shtml Bio on "Films of the Golden Age"] *[http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/29/arts/television/29storm.html Gale Storm, 87, Is Dead; Earned Television Fame for Her Wholesome Roles] <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]] --> {{Persondata |NAME= Storm, Gale |ALTERNATIVE NAMES= Cottle, Josephine Owaissa |SHORT DESCRIPTION=American actress, singer |DATE OF BIRTH= April 5, 1922 |PLACE OF BIRTH=[[Bloomington, Texas]], USA |DATE OF DEATH= June 27, 2009 |PLACE OF DEATH= [[Danville, California]], USA}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Storm, Gale}} [[Category:1922 births]] [[Category:2009 deaths]] [[Category:Actors from Texas]] [[Category:American female singers]] [[Category:American film actors]] [[Category:American television actors]] [[Category:Dot Records artists]] [[Category:People from Orange County, California]] [[Category:People from Contra Costa County, California]] [[Category:People from Victoria, Texas]] [[Category:Traditional pop music singers]] [[de:Gale Storm]] [[fr:Gale Storm]] [[nl:Gale Storm]] [[nov:Gale Storm]] [[fi:Gale Storm]]'