Home   >   Movie Stars   >   C   >   Rosemary Clooney

Rosemary Clooney

Rosemary Clooney was an American popular singer and actress.

She was born in Maysville, Kentucky, about 60 miles up the Ohio River from Cincinnati, Ohio. Her sister, Betty, and brother, Nick, as well as her nephew, George Clooney (Nick's son), all became entertainers as well; Betty sang in a duo with Rosemary for much of her early career.

Her father was an alcoholic and she and her brother and sister were constantly moving back and forth between her parents. Eventually she and Betty went to live with their mother, Nick with their father, when Rosemary was 13. In 1945 the Clooney sisters won a spot on Cincinnati's radio station WLW as singers.

In 1951 her record of Come On-a My House became a hit, her first of many singles to hit the charts.

In 1954 she and Bing Crosby starred in the movie White Christmas.

In 1968 she was present at the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, with whom she was a close friend, and the event traumatized her life for years afterward. She had a nervous breakdown and serious drug problems.

In 1986 she sang a duet with Wild Man Fischer on It's a Hard Business.

She had two husbands, José Ferrer (from 1953 until the 1960s) by whom she had five children, including Gabriel Ferrer, born 1956, who married Debby Boone, and Dante DePaolo (whom she married in 1996).


Note: This profile was written in or before 2004.

Rosemary Clooney Facts

OccupationActress, Musician
BirthdayMay 23, 1928
SignGemini
BirthplaceMaysville, Kentucky, USA
Date of deathJune 29, 2002 (age 74)
Height5' 6" (1m68)  How tall is Rosemary Clooney compared to you?

Selected Filmography

Great Entertainers: The Show Stoppers
Going Home
White Christmas
Radioland Murders
Conquest of Space
Christmas From Hollywood
Colgate Comedy Hour: 16 Classic Episodes
Magic Moments
Greg Garrison Presents The Best of the Dean Martin Variety Show
Continue » Find more details on the Rosemary Clooney Movies page