Singer Vivian DellaChiesa, a lyric soprano who performed in opera, radio, TV and nightclubs, died Jan. 6 in Huntington, N.Y. She was 94.
A native of Chicago, she won a radio talent contest atage 16, which was aired on the CBS radio network and helped open the door to her long singing career.
DellaChiesa made her debut in opera with the Chicago Civic Opera in the late 1930s, and appeared on numerous radio shows. In 1947, the soprano sang Maddalena in Giordano's "Andrea Chenier" at the New York City Opera. She went on to perform for several other opera companies, including the San Francisco Opera and the New Orleans Opera where she starred in the first major opera ever televised, "Falstaff."
In the 1960s, she began performing in supper clubs across the country including New York's Empire Room at the Waldorf Astoria, the Pump Room at Chicago's Ambassador Hotel and the Cocoanut Grove in Los Angeles. She was often billed with her friends Rosemary Clooney and Robert Merrill.
Variety dubbed her "Miss Supper Club" and the 1960s, she was the first woman honored by the all-male Lamb's Club. She also guested on "The Ed Sullivan Show" and "The "Milton Berle Show."
She hosted a TV show, "The Afternoon Show," on WLW in Cincinnati in the 1960s. Her sidekick was Nick Clooney, father of George Clooney and brother of her friend, Rosemary Clooney.
DellaChiesa retired from clubs in the late 1980s and became a vocal coach, teaching voice and presentation.
She was married to composer Alfred J. Re, who predeceased her, and is survived by three stepchildren.
Contact Variety Staff at
news@variety.com