Show biz legend—and Maysville’s own—Rosemary Clooney made a triumphant homecoming with an evening of song and nostalgia on a special In Performance tribute taped in 1999. Her brother, Nick Clooney, veteran broadcaster and former host of the American Movie Classics cable network, served as special host. The singer was backed up by the John Oddo Band.
Clooney began her career in 1945, singing duets with her sister Betty on a radio station in Cincinnati. The following year they sang at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City as the Clooney Sisters, and soon after Rosemary signed a solo contract with Columbia Records. Early recording success led to her own television show and landed her picture on the cover of Time magazine. During this time, she also made her way to the silver screen and is probably best remembered for her role in White Christmas, the 1954 classic with Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye.
Although her career slowed in the 1960s, Clooney mounted an impressive comeback the following decade, putting together a remarkable string of high-profile concerts and well-received albums. She also resumed acting, gaining an Emmy nomination in 1995 for a guest role on NBC’s ER, which at the time starred her nephew George Clooney.
Rosemary Clooney died in July 2002.
