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What inspired you
to be a singer?
I was a very shy child
in elementary school, but when our music teacher decided
to do a little concert and she asked all of us to sing I
just lost all my shyness and sang... and she gave me all
of the solos. People seemed so astounded because I had
been so quiet up until then, I kept on singing and
decided to look for professional things to do. I heard
about an audition at the St. Louis MUNY Opera (the
largest professional outdoor theatre in the US) and out
of 800 kids auditioning, got my first professional
acting/singing job at age 12 as Tom of Warwick in
"Camelot" opposite John Cullum and England's Sally Ann
Howes (who I had a HUGE crush on) and have worked ever
since. My inspirations were the great singers of my
parents' generation. I learned to sing by imitating
Doris Day, Sammy Davis Jr., and a host of others.
Best memory from
your performances?
So many (good and
bad!) ...one is meeting Jazz legend Teddi King and
having her come up to me and say, "Some people have to
and are meant to sing - YOU are one of those - I could
listen to you forever, thank you." Having just arrived
to New York at 18, I was totally tongue-tied.
I understand Doris
is an inspiration to you. Why?
In St. Louis (and
probably all over) there were always Doris Day movies
showing on TV....I remember in "My Dream is Yours" the
story being so true to what Doris' natural talents
are....a singer learning about phrasing and telling a
story...that velvety voice was the added thrill. By the
time I knew "Love Me or Leave Me" by heart, even as a
kid, it had already been integrated into what I try to
accomplish when I sing: learn the melody as written and
then tell the story, hopefully creating an intimacy with
my audience. Many people have nice instruments, pretty
sounds, but if you can't tell the story and simply
follow the line of music without a lot of vocal
pyrotechnics...I am not so sure that is singing at its
best. I particularly admire Doris' intimacy, you really
feel she is singing the song to you alone, whispering
right in your ear. If I can achieve that I am happy.
Do you have a
favourite Doris Day album?
I have
read so often about Doris' early live performances and
how jazzy and sexy they were and
...I play her records often
and I also collect Doris Day sheet music...I'm missing
"A Woman's Touch" from "Calamity Jane" if someone out
there is reading this... [contact this site if you can
assist Craig]
What are your plans
for the future?
I have two more CD's
coming out and performances in NY in September and
October at NY's newest and nicest clubs, The
Metropolitan Room. And with the success at The Gardenia
Lounge I will return to LA in November which I am very
excited about....so everyone come out and say
hello...and mention Doris. There are talks about
returning to London (one of my favorite places to
perform in the world). So visit my site if you can for
updates and news...and Thank You Stephen for your
support and for this very important site....oh...one
last thing, I want everyone to keep writing in to the
Academy for Doris' much-deserved special Academy Award.
Sincere
thanks to Craig Pomranz for taking the time to do this
Q&A interview (conducted by S. Munns).
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