Song:Impossible/It's Possible
Album:Cinderella: Original TV Cast
Though she won Tony and Emmy awards, Edie Adams was an underrated performer. She was known for her sex appeal and her marriage to legendary comedian Ernie Kovacs. But she was very versatile as you can see from her performance as The Fairy Godmother in the 1957 TV production of the musical Cinderella. And it's not a typo. She was billed as Edith Adams. She was born Edith Enke Apr. 16, 1927 in Kingston, PA. Her family moved to the New York area and she went to high school in Tenafly, NJ. She has a vocal degree from Juilliard and graduated from the Columbia School of Drama. Edie started appearing on TV in 1950 and an appearance on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts got her an audition for a new show starring comedian Ernie Kovacs. Though she lacked experience, Edie was hired anyway and the two were married September 12, 1954. Meanwhile, Edie started appearing on Broadway. She won a Theater World award for the 1953 show Wonderful Town and a Tony award for playing Daisy Mae in the 1956 show Lil Abner. Cinderella was the only musical written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein for TV. It was broadcast on CBS Mar. 31, 1957. It was designed as a star vehicle for Julie Andrews who had just made a big splash on Broadway in My Fair Lady. Maybe that's why Edie was billed as Edith Adams. Impossible/It's Possible is Edie's big number. The show is available on CD. Edie recorded for MGM and appeared in films like The Apartment in 1960. Of course everything changed when Kovacs died in a car accident on Jan. 13, 1962. Edie continued to appear on TV and films. She was probably best known for her series of Muriel Cigar commercials in the 60s. She also started her own cosmetic and hair salon companies and became a millionaire. Edie married trumpeter Pete Candoli in 1972 and frequently toured with him. And she archived the work of Ernie Kovacs. Edie Adams died on Oct. 15, 2008 at age 81. Here's Edith Adams and Julie Andrews performing Impossible/It's Possible on the 1957 broadcast of Cinderella.
No comments:
Post a Comment