Kathryn Elizabeth Smith famed as Kate Smith as well as The First Lady of Radio, was an American singer, a contralto who is best known for her rendition of Irving Berlin’s “God Bless America”. After performing at a concert demonstration against indecency, Smith was commended by Richard Nixon. Kate Smith is a member of the famous Opera Singer list. Alto singer who sang Irving Berlin‘s song “God Bless America” and who was known as the First Lady of Radio and who sang for fifty years. Smith became known as The Songbird of the South after her enduring popularity during World War II. She was a very talented singer.
Kate Smith: Center of Controversy about racist lyrics
It's been more than 30 years since Kate Smith died, but the singer is at the center of a recent controversy about racist lyrics. Last week, the NHL's Philadelphia Flyers announced they would stop playing her famous rendition of "God Bless America" during games and would cover up her statue outside the team's arena. The organization said it had discovered some of her songs contained racist lyrics and sentiments that were "incompatible" with their values. The MLB's New York Yankees said they pulled Smith's iconic version of "God Bless America" on April 1. The Yankees said the song had been a fixture at their games since 9/11. Smith's rendition has been replaced with other versions.
Philadelphia Flyers remove Kate Smith statue over racism allegations
The Philadelphia Flyers removed a statue of the late singer Kate Smith outside the NHL team’s arena on Sunday, two days after covering it amid allegations of racism against the 1930s star who made a popular recording of God Bless America. “The NHL principle ‘Hockey is for Everyone’ is at the heart of everything the Flyers stand for,” Flyers president Paul Holmgren said in a statement. “As a result, we cannot stand idle while material from another era gets in the way of who we are today.” The Flyers said Smith’s God Bless America recording had been removed from their library. The New York Yankees had made a similar move earlier in the week. The Yankees suspended use of Smith’s recording during the seventh-inning stretch amid conflicting claims about several of her songs, including a 1939 song That’s Why the Darkies Were Born. Smith’s likeness also appears in a 1939 ad that heavily uses the mammy caricature, one of the most well-known racist depictions of black women.
Cause Of Death
Kate Smith was impaired by diabetes. In the year 1976, she suffered brain damage after slipping into a diabetic coma. In January 1986, her right leg was amputated due to poor circulation caused by diabetes. Later, she underwent a mastectomy. On 17th June 1986, Smith died of respiratory arrest at Raleigh Community Hospital in Raleigh at the age of 79. For over a year following her death, Smith’s remains were stored in a vault at St. Agnes Cemetery in Lake Placid, while officials of St. Her private burial service took place on November 14, 1987.
Birth Facts, Early Life, Birthday, Family, Wiki, Siblings, Education, And More
Kate Smith was Born on 1st May 1907 in Greenville, Virginia, the United States with the birth name of Kathryn Elizabeth Smith. Her birth sign was Taurus and her religion was Christian. Her nationality was American and her ethnicity was White. She was born to Charlotte ‘Lottie’ Yarnell (nee Hanby) and William Herman Smith, growing up in Washington, D.C. Her father owned the Capitol News Company, distributing newspapers and magazines in the greater D.C. area. She was the youngest of three daughters, the middle child dying in infancy. As a baby, she failed to talk until she was four years old, but a year later she was singing in church socials. Her earliest musical influences were her parents: her father sang choir at the Catholic church; her mother played piano at the Presbyterian church. Concerning to her education, she attended Business High School in D.C. likely graduating in 1924. Later, her father sent her to the George Washington University School for Nursing where she attended classes for nine months between 1924-25 withdrawing to pursue a career in show business. Her other information about his early life will be updated soon.
Body Statistics (Height, Weight, Measurement, And More)
Kate was a very beautiful woman with an average height of 1.78 m or 5 ft 10 in tall. She has a weight of 235 pounds of 107 Kg. Despite her heavy weight, she looked very gorgeous with a charming smile on her lips. Her other body measurement will be updated soon.
Career (Beginning-Present)
- Kate began her career from the year 1926 in the field of recording.
- Her professional musical career began in 1930 when she was discovered by Columbia Records artists-and-repertoire executive Ted Collins.
- In 1931, Collins put Smith on the radio.
- She also performed "Dream a Little Dream of Me".
- Her biggest hits were "River, Stay 'Way from My Door" (1931), "The Woodpecker Song" (1940), "The White Cliffs of Dover" (1941), "Rose O'Day" (1941), "The Last Time I Saw Paris" (1942), "I Don't Want to Walk Without You" (1942), "There Goes That Song Again" (1944), "Seems Like Old Times" (1946), and "Now Is the Hour" (1947).
- She also appeared in Hello, Everybody!, with co-stars Randolph Scott and Sally Blane, and in the 1943 wartime film This Is the Army, she sang God Bless America, which became her signature song.
- She also appeared in many series.
- She began with Jack Miller twice-a-week NBC series, Kate Smith Sings followed by CBS: Kate Smith and Her Swanee Music (1931-33), The Kate Smith Matinee (1934-35); The Kate Smith New Star Revue (1934-35); Kate Smith's Coffee Time (1935-36), sponsored by A&P; and The Kate Smith A&P Bandwagon (1936-37).
- On 14th May 1944, she made a dramatic appearance, starring in "Little Johnny Appleseed" on Silver Theater.
- She then starred in television programs in the early 1950s The Kate Smith Hour on NBC Television from 1950 through 1954 and in the weekly The Kate Smith Evening Hour.
- She performed on the British television show, Sunday Night at the London Palladium on 2nd October 1966.
- Smith "stirred patriotic fervor" during World War II.
- She contributed to selling over $600 million (equivalent to $10.2 billion in 2018) of war bonds during a series of marathon broadcasts.
- Philadelphia Flyers hockey team played Smith's rendition of "God Bless America" before their game on 11th December 1969.
- In the year 1987, the team erected a statue of Smith outside their arena at the time, the Spectrum, in her memory, although it was covered and then removed in April 2019, due to racist lyrics of some of her earlier songs.
- On 22nd April 2019, her family responded by denying the racism allegations.
Married, Unmarried Or In A Relationship
Kate Smith was unmarried in her lifetime. She remained single whole life. There are no rumors about her dating with another person. She was not a lesbian and her sexual orientation was straight. She mainly focused on her career rather than sticking in a relationship.
Net Worth, Earnings, Source of Wealth
The net worth of this famous singer, Kate Smith's net worth is under evaluation but there is no doubt in the mind of her follower that she was earning in millions. Also, she was earning a considerable amount of salary from her work as her exact salary has not been revealed yet. Her major source of earning was from her singing career.
