Ada Leonard

Ada Leonard (July 22, 1915 – November 29, 1997) was an American bandleader. She was the leader of the All-American Girl Orchestra, the first all-girl group to tour with the USO during World War II.[1] The big-band band leader was a performer with a background in musical performance.

Early life

Ada Leonard was born in Lawton, Oklahoma on July 22, 1915.[2] Her father was an actor, and her mother a dancer who also played several different musical instruments.[2] Before she embarked on her career as a big band leader, she performed as a burlesque dancer.[2]

Musical career

While Leonard played the cello and the piano, she did not play either instrument professionally.[2]

The Ada Leonard Orchestra performed at army camps throughout the United States during World War II.[3] From 1952 to 1954, she hosted a variety show on television and subsequently went on to realize her ambition of leading an all-male big band.[2]

She was married, and widowed, twice: first to George L. McCall, who had managed her career; and, subsequently, Dr. Harold Bernstein, one of the founders of the Reiss-Davis Clinic. She died in Santa Monica, California on November 27, 1997, at the age of 82.[4]

References

  1. ↑ McGee, K. A. (2009). Some liked it hot: Jazz women in film and television, 1928-1959. Middletown, Conn: Wesleyan University Press. .
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 "Ada Leonard Biography". AllMusic.com. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
  3. ↑ Tucker, Sherrie (2000). Swing Shift: "All-Girl Bands of the 1940s. North Carolina: Duke University Press. ISBN 9780822328179.
  4. ↑ "Ada Leonard Bernstein: Led All-Woman Orchestra". Los Angeles Times. 3 December 1997. Retrieved 9 February 2014.