Dinah Shore (born Fannye Rose Shore; February 29, 1916 – February 24, 1994) was an American singer, radio and television hostess, occasional actress, and golfer.
She was born in Tennessee from Russian Jewish immigrants, and first rose to prominence as a recording artist during the Big Band era, becoming the nationwide top-charting female vocalist of The '40s. While Shore's singing career waned with the rise of rock and roll, she achieved further success in television as the hostess of variety shows, such as The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (renamed The Dinah Shore Show when Chevrolet stopped sponsoring it) in the '50s and '60s and Dinah's Place (followed by Dinah!) in the '70s.
Shore also left a mark in the world of professional women's golf. After starting in the sport at the age of 52, she co-founded the Colgate Dinah Shore Golf Tournament, most recently renamed the Chevron Championship, one of the five major American golf championships for women. She was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame shortly after her death in 1994 for her role in promoting the women's game.
She was married to actor George Montgomery for 20 years until their divorce in 1963, and had a high-profile relationship with Burt Reynolds in the '70s. Her daughter, Melissa Montgomery, is an actress in her own right.
Film and TV appearances:
- Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943 film) as herself
- Hollywood Parade (1944 film) as herself
- Belle of the Yukon (1944 film) as Lettie Candless
- Make Mine Music: Two Silhouettes (1946) - song performance
- Fun and Fancy Free: Bongo (1947) - narrator and song performance
- Laugh-In (1970-1971) as Guest Performer
- Here's Lucy (1971) as herself
- Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman (1976) as herself
- The Carol Burnett Show (1976) as Melody
- Oh, God! (1977) as herself
- Alice (1979) as herself
- Hotel (1987) as Katherine Woodbridge
- Christmas at Pee-wee's Playhouse (1988) as herself
- Murder, She Wrote (1989 episode "Alma Murder") as Emily Dyers
Tropes applying to her works and career:
- Glamorous Wartime Singer: She appeared as herself in the morale-boosting movies Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943) and Follow The Boys (1944) during World War II. She also toured in liberated France after the Normandy landings in the second half of 1944, which earned her the USO Medallion Award.
- Muppet Cameo: Characters from The Muppet Show and Sesame Street showed up on several occasions in Dinah! in the late 1970s. One could say this meant the trope namers of "Sesame Street" Cred had acquired "Dinah Cred".
- Non-Standard Kiss: She always blew a kiss to the audience (saying "MWAH!") when wrapping up her variety shows.
- Ode to Food: "Shoo Fly Pie and Apple Pan Dowdy".
- Soprano and Gravel: Whenever she paired with male singers, from Al Jolson to Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra. She frequently paired with the latter.
