Gale Storm, perky star of 1950s TV dies at 87

By BOB THOMAS Associated Press Writer

LOS ANGELES—Gale Storm, whose wholesome appearance and perky personality made her one of early television's biggest stars on "My Little Margie" and "The Gale Storm Show," has died at age 87. Storm, who had been in failing health in recent years, died Saturday at a convalescent hospital in Danville, said her son, Peter Bonnell. Before landing the starring role in "My Little Margie" in 1952, Storm starred in numerous B movies opposite such stars as Roy Rogers, Eddie Albert and Jackie Cooper. After her last TV series, "The Gale Storm Show," ended in 1960 she went on to a successful singing career while continuing to make occasional TV appearances. Storm was a Texas high schooler named Josephine Owaissa Cottle when she entered a talent contest for a radio show called "Gateway to Hollywood" in 1940. She was brought to Los Angeles for the finals, where her wholesome vivacity won over the radio audience and she was awarded a movie contract. The contest's male winner was a lanky would-be actor named Lee Bonnell, who would later become her husband. Given the quirky name Gale Storm, she went from contracts with RKO to Monogram to Universal, appearing in such low-budget films as "Where Are Your Children?" with Cooper and "Tom Brown's School Days" with Freddie Bartholomew.

She was often cast in westerns as the girl the cowboy left behind, and appeared in such B-movie oaters as "The Dude Goes West" with Albert, "The Kid from Texas" with Audie Murphy and "The Texas Rangers" with George Montgomery. "I was really scared of horses," she admitted in 2000. "I only rode them because that's what you had to do." She appeared in three Republic westerns with Rogers and recalled that his horse Trigger did what he could to cause her trouble. As she would smile and ride alongside Rogers while the king of the cowboys crooned a song, Trigger (out of camera range) would lean over and bite her horse's neck. With her movie roles diminishing in the early 1950s, Storm followed the path of many fading movie stars of the day and moved on to television. "My Little Margie" debuted on CBS as a summer replacement for "I Love Lucy" in 1952. It quickly became an audience favorite and moved to its own slot on NBC that fall. The premise was standard sitcom fare: Charles Farrell was a business executive and eligible widower, Storm was his busybody daughter who protected him from predatory women. The year after "My Little Margie" ended its 126-episode run in 1955, she moved on to "The Gale Storm Show," which lasted until 1960. This time she played Susanna Pomeroy, a trouble-making social director on a luxury liner. Storm, who had taken vocal lessons, sang on her second series, and three of her records became best sellers: "I Hear You Knocking," "Teenage Prayer" and "Dark Moon."

She appeared only sporadically on TV after "The Gale Storm Show," guest starring on such programs as "Burke's Law," "The Love Boat" and "Murder, She Wrote." Her fans were surprised to read in her 1980 autobiography, "I Ain't Down Yet," that she was an alcoholic. "I had hidden it socially, never drank before a performance," she said. After being treated in three hospitals, she found one that helped her break the habit. Born April 5, 1922, in Bloomington, Tex., Storm was only 13 months when her father died. Her mother supported five children by taking in sewing. A lifelong Christian, Storm and Bonnell named their sons after the Biblical figures Philip, Peter and Paul and their daughter after her TV character Susanna. Bonnell died in 1987, and in 1988 Storm married former TV executive Paul Masterson. He died in 1996.

Fred Travalena dies at 66; master impressionist and singer; 'The Man of a Thousand Faces' could voice Bugs Bunny as well as Luciano Pavarotti. Travalena, a Vegas performer, talk-show regular and star of his own specials, died of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. ... By Dennis McLellan 7:01 AM PDT, June 29, 2009

Fred Travalena, the master impressionist and singer whose broad repertoire of voices ranged from Jack Nicholson to Sammy Davis Jr. to Bugs Bunny, has died. He was 66.Travalena, who began being treated for an aggressive form of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2002 and saw the disease return last July after going into remission in 2003, died Sunday at his home in Encino, according to his publicist, Roger Neal. Travalena also was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2003 but had been in complete remission since then.Dubbed "The Man of a Thousand Faces" and "Mr. Everybody," Travalena emerged on the national stage as an impressionist in the early 1970s.

Over the next three decades, he was a headliner in Las Vegas, Reno and Atlantic City, performed in concerts around the country, appeared on "The Tonight Show" and other talk shows and starred in his own specials, such as "The Many Faces of Fred Travalena" and "Comedy in the Oval Office.

"The boyish-faced entertainer is said to have had a repertoire of more than 360 celebrity, political and cartoon-character voices, including Clint Eastwood, Dr. Ruth Westheimer, Joe Pesci, Robert De Niro, Henry Kissinger, Donald Rumsfeld, Johnny Mathis, Bruce Springsteen and Luciano Pavarotti.

"I've known impressionists who have reached a wall where they can't do any more [voices]," Travalena told the Omaha World Herald in 1996. "I don't have that problem, thank God."

In one part of his act, Travalena physically and vocally "morphed" into all of the U.S. presidents, from John F. Kennedy up to George W. Bush. He also was known to sing "Have I Told You Lately" in various voices, including Kermit the Frog ("Have I told you lately that I love you"), Katharine Hepburn ("Have I told you there's no one else above you") and Frank Sinatra ("You fill my heart with gladness . . . ")

The imaginative entertainer even did Sinatra imitating Boy George.

Of Italian and Irish heritage, Travalena was born Oct. 6, 1942, in the Bronx, N.Y., and grew up on Long Island.

In 1974, he opened for Shirley MacLaine at the old MGM Grand and later opened for other Vegas performers such as Mathis, Davis, Wayne Newton and Andy Williams.

Travalena's talent for vocal mimicry led to a side career dubbing offensive dialogue in feature films bound for airing on television -- including Pesci in "Casino," De Niro in "Brazil" and Sean Connery in "Just Cause."

Travalena made occasional guest appearances on TV series such as "The Love Boat" and "Murphy Brown," as well as on "Hollywood Squares" and other game shows. He also did voices on a number of TV cartoon series and appeared in the 1978 movie "The Buddy Holly Story."

In more recent years, he turned to songwriting and singing and released CDs including "We All Need Love Today" and " The Spirit of America."

Travalena received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2005.