The Fontane Sisters

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The Fontane Sisters
Origin New Milford, New Jersey, U.S.
Years active 1941–1961
Former members
Bea Rosse - born [1925]
Geri Rosse -born [1928]
Marge Rosse-born [1923]

The Fontane Sisters were a trio (Bea, Geri and Margi Rosse) from New Milford, New Jersey. Originally they performed with their guitarist brother Frank [1941 - 1944], but he was killed in World War II. They were featured on a radio show done by Perry Como 1945 - 1948 and Como's later television simulcast program 1948 known as The Chesterfield Supper Club and later (1949 -1954) as The Perry Como Show.

In 1949 they were signed by RCA Records, and did some recordings as backup to Como. In 1951 they had a minor hit with "The Tennessee Waltz," of which bigger recordings were done by Patti Page and Les Paul and Mary Ford.

In 1954 they switched to Randy Wood's Dot Records, where they had 18 songs in the Billboard Hot 100, 10 in the top 40.

The Fontane Sisters retired from show business around 1961, when youngest sister Geri was expecting her daughter. The daughter was named after Geri, and as an adult she went by the name "Geri Fontane Latchford"--"Latchford" coming from Geri's (the mother's) husband, Al(bert) Latchford. Marge felt that the trio didn't want to continue the "grind" of tours and mixing with the newer members of the music scene. The sisters agreed that they did not want to be part of the evolving rock'n roll scene. They felt they had become stereotyped as "cover" artists and wanted private lives.

In 1963, Dot Records did release one last album, Tips of my Fingers, and single ("Tips of My Fingers"/"Summertime Love") by The Fontane Sisters. But these recordings did not mark a return to performing for the trio, who remained retired despite having agreed to make the recordings for Dot.

For the next 40 years, The Fontane Sisters remained out of the public's eye, living normal lives with their families. While many of their fans wondered what had become of them, it was apparently their choice that their private lives remain private. The next definitive word about them came in 2004, when an article in New York Daily News reported that Geri Fontane Latchford had received back royalties due to her mother and two aunts. It was revealed in this same article that all three of The Fontane Sisters had died --Geri (65) in 1993, Bea (77) around 2002, and Marge (80) around 2003.

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