- Alice Lon
Alice Lon (born
November 23 ,1926 , in Cooper in Delta County,Texas ; diedApril 1981, in Dallas) was a singer and dancer on the "Lawrence Welk Show " during its early years on network television.Throughout the big-band era and the years that followed, each of
Lawrence Welk 's female vocalists was always nicknamed "The Champagne Lady." Alice Lon assumed the title in 1955, during the program's first season. Her expressive alto singing voice graced the Welk hour weekly until 1959, when she was fired on-camera by Welk himself. The reason given for publication was that the singer, perched atop a desk during a vocal, displayed too much knee to the television audience. Welk, well known for his insistence on a wholesome show, thought Lon's performance was too much like that of apin-up girl ("cheesecake," as he called it). Another reason for her dismissal, not published, involved her salary: she was raising three children and had privately asked for a raise, which, for whatever reason, Welk was not disposed to provide.Viewers missed the popular Alice Lon, and Welk received many messages demanding that she be rehired and that she receive an apology. Welk tried to bring her back, but she refused and was ultimately replaced in 1960 by
Norma Zimmer . Although Lawrence and Alice eventually reconciled personally, they never worked together professionally again.She died of
scleroderma .External links
* [http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70615FA3F5F1A7B93CBA8178CD85F4D8585F9 Alice Lon Leaves Welk, July 19, 1959]
* [http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/L/htmlL/lawrencewelk/lawrencewelk.htm The Lawrence Welk Show]
* [http://www.bookrags.com/Lawrence_Welk Encyclopedia of World Biography© on Lawrence Welk]
* [http://www.televisionheaven.co.uk/welk.htm TelevisionHeaven: THE LAWRENCE WELK SHOW]
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=6676630 Find-a-Grave]
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