Vikki Carr - 2011
Vikki Carr - 2011

Vikki Carr - 2011

Born Florencia Bisenta de Casillas Martinez Cardona in El Paso, Texas and raised in Southern California, the eldest of seven children, who would later change her name to Vikki Carr, began performing at the age of four singing Adeste Fidelis in Latin at a Christmas program. She was signed to a contract with Liberty Records in 1961. She recorded He‘s A Rebel, which first became a hit in Australia. That title was soon followed by the unforgettable release, It Must Be Him, which charged up the charts in England. One year later, the single was released in the United States and earned Carr three Grammy Award nominations. The international hit emerged again when she and the song were featured in the storyline of the Academy Award winning movie Moonstruck. After It Must Be Him came a string of hits including With Pen In Hand, for which she received her fourth Grammy Award nomination, The Lesson, Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You and For Once in My Life. In addition to her many album releases, Vikki Carr has appeared on stage and television. She has starred in productions of South Pacific, The Unsinkable Molly Brown and I’m Getting My Act Together and Taking It on The Road. In 2002 she starred in the Reprise production of Steven Sondheim’s beloved musical “Follies” in Los Angeles, garnering glowing reviews from the LA Times, Hollywood Reporter, and Variety. Two years later, Los Angeles PBS affiliate, KCET, filmed a special Vikki Carr: Memories, Memorias: a salute to the English‑language hits of the 1940s and 1950s originally composed by Latinos, and featuring guest appearances by Jack Jones, Pepe Aguilar and Arturo Sandoval. PBS again tapped Vikki to host and star in a new production celebrating the music of Mexico, Fiesta Mexicana, which was featured on all PBS stations in 2008. A frequent musical guest on major network variety shows, including Dean Martin, Ed Sullivan, Perry Como, and Carol Burnett, Vikki also taped six specials for London Weekend TV. As an actor, she appeared on the Bing Crosby Show, Mod Squad, Fantasy Island, Baywatch and many other shows. Vikki was the first female to regularly guest host for Johnny Carson on the Tonight Show.

Area: Central / El Paso High

Source: Felix Rivera

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Comments

Add a comment
Thank you for your comment

March is Women's History Month.

Report this entry

Choose the most important reason for this report

Your name

Your email address

Optional detail

Thank you for your report

More from the same community-collection

U.S. Army Travelling with Wagons

This shows how the military traveled during this time. In the ...

View of El Paso High

The image shows the neighborhood El Paso High. N Mesa Street is ...

View of El Paso High

The image shows the neighborhood El Paso High. N Oregon Street ...

El Paso High School

The image shows El Paso High School, the oldest operating High ...

Owen P. White

Owen Payne White, writer and editor, second son of Alward and ...

Rev. J. R. Carter

He was the first pastor of Trinity Methodist Church - El Paso, ...

Rev. Joseph W. Tays - El Paso, Texas

Reverend Joseph Tays, an Episcopal missionary who founded El ...

Mrs. C. Jane Hawkins christening the USS Hawkins

Mrs. Hawkins was the mother of 1st Lt. William Deane Hawkins, ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - 1949

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank - in 1947

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank- 1966

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank - 1964

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank - 1963

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank - 1962

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank - 1961

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank - 1960

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank - 1959

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank - 1958

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - 1957

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank - 1956

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank - 1955

Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank in the year 1955.

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - State National Bank - 1954

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

Annual Sun Bowl Parade - 1953

The Sun Bowl was chartered in 1934 making it the second oldest ...

home.search_collection