June Hutton

June Hutton (August 11, 1920 – May 2, 1973^[1]) was an American popular singer.

Career

Born June Cowan in Chicago she and her older sister, Ina Ray Hutton, a band leader in the 1930s and 40s, passed as white throughout their musical careers. United States Census records identified her family as “negro,” and “mulatto,” when the Bureau used that term.^[2] Though their family occasionally appeared in the society pages of a black newspaper, both sisters had light complexions and by the late 1930s, dyed their hair blonde. Ina Ray Hutton changed her last name to "Hutton" (inspired by heiress Barbara Hutton), and in 1941, her younger sister June joined the band of her older sister, first singing under the name of Elaine Merritt, eventually changing her last name to "Hutton' as well. June Hutton joined Charlie Spivak's band as a member of a vocal group, The Stardusters (along with Glenn Calyon, Curt Purnell and Dick Wylder).^[3] The Spivak orchestra and the Stardusters appeared in a Betty Grable film, Pin-Up Girl (1943). She had two hits as a member of The Stardusters, "This Is No Laughing Matter" and "Brother Bill", and also made a solo hit recording, "Dreamsville, Ohio".

In 1944, when Jo Stafford left The Pied Pipers to go solo, Hutton replaced her in that group. With the Pipers, she recorded a number of hits: "Lily Belle", "Mam'selle", "In the Middle of May", "My Happiness", and the Pipers' trademark song, "Dream". In 1945, she dubbed the singing voice for Vera-Ellen in the film, Wonder Man.

In 1950, she left the group to become a soloist. The next year she married orchestra leader and composer, Axel Stordahl. Her recordings for Capitol Records were backed up by Stordahl's orchestra. In 1953, she had three charted hits on Capitol: "Say You're Mine Again", "No Stone Unturned", and "For the First Time". "Say You're Mine Again" was her only hit in the UK Singles Chart, reaching #6 in 1953.^[1]

On her death in May 1973, at the age of 52, Hutton was buried in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California next to her first husband, Axel Stordahl, with whom she was married from 1951 to 1963 (his death).^[3] They had two children, Susan and Jeffrey. Hutton's second husband was actor, Kenneth Tobey, with whom she was married from 1968 to 1972 (divorced).

References

External links

• June Hutton at the Internet Movie Database
• "June Hutton". Find a Grave. Retrieved 2013-12-11. 
• Solid! page on June Hutton