Jo Sullivan | |
|---|---|
| Born | Elizabeth Josephine Sullivan (1927-08-28)August 28, 1927 Mounds, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | April 28, 2019(2019-04-28) (aged 91) Manhattan, New York City, U.S. |
| Other names | Jo Sullivan Loesser |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, singer |
| Spouse(s) | Don Jacobs (m. 1952— div. 1958) Jack Osborn (m. 1973– div. ?) |
| Partner(s) | Jacquin Fink (c. 1983 — 2019) |
| Children | 2 |
Elizabeth Josephine Sullivan Loesser (néeSullivan; August 28, 1927 – April 28, 2019) was an American actress[1] and highlyric soprano singer.[2] She became amusical theatre star with her performance in the original production ofThe Most Happy Fella, for which she was nominated for aTony Award in 1957.[3]
She was the daughter of Hessie Boone Sullivan and Eileen Celeste Woods Sullivan,[4] who worked for alumber-distributing company and soldcosmetics, respectively.[5] She was born inMounds, Illinois,[6] on August 28, 1927, and attended Cleveland High School.[7] After studying singing inSt. Louis,[5] in the late 1940s,[8] she studied music atColumbia University after failing to be accepted atJuilliard School and working atLord & Taylor department store[4] in New York to support herself.[9] She competed on theArthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts radio program but lost to a pair of harmonica players.[4]
Sullivan played Polly Peachum inMarc Blitzstein's English-language adaptation ofThe Threepenny Opera byKurt Weill andBertolt Brecht[9] off-Broadway in 1954. She also appeared as herself in an "original special" on Broadway, calledLet's Make An Opera (1950), which boasted music byBenjamin Britten, a libretto byEric Crozier, musical direction byNorman Del Mar, and was directed byMarc Blitzstein.
In the summer of 1951, she playedDorothy Gale inThe Muny's production ofThe Wizard of Oz, oppositeMargaret Hamilton, who reprised her film role of theWicked Witch of the West.[4] In 1992, Loesser's daughter, Emily, played the same role at The Muny, marking the first time in The Muny's history that a role has been played by both mother and daughter. Loesser later reprised her role in the 1953 production at theKansas CityStarlight Theatre.
She marriedFrank Loesser on April 29, 1959, just ahead of the May 1, 1959, deadline that Sullivan had given Loesser to marry her "or she would carry on with her career and forget about him."[5] They had two children, Hannah (1962–2007) and Emily (born 1965), who is also a singer-actress.[10]
She also appeared on numerous recordings, such asLoesser by Loesser (alongside her daughter, Emily) as well as several albums forBen Bagley's "Revisited" series onPainted Smiles Records (most notablyKurt Weill Revisited,Leonard Bernstein Revisited, andFrank Loesser Revisited).
In the early 1980s, she resumed her performing career when officials of The Ballroom, anightclub inNew York City, asked her to sing some of her late husband's songs. After that, she performed at other night clubs and in several theatrical musicals. In 1984, Loesser developed arevue,Jo Sullivan Sings Frank Loesser and Friends, that was presented in several cities.[11]
From the time of her husband's death in 1969 until her own death in 2019, she managed his estate, particularly Frank Music Company, which included guiding production of all of his musicals, includingGuys and Dolls,How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying andThe Most Happy Fella. The publishing portion of the company was sold to CBS Records in 1976.[8]
Around 1952, Sullivan married Don Jacobs.[12] They were divorced in 1958.
In 1973, Loesser married Jack Osborn, who headed anindustrial design firm.[13]
In 1983, she began a relationship withstockbroker Jacquin Fink. The two remained partners until Sullivan's death in 2019.
Mrs. Loesser is survived by a daughter from that marriage, Emily Stephenson, an actress and singer with whom she performed into the 1990s; two stepchildren, Susan Loesser and John Loesser; four grandchildren; and her longtime companion, Jacquin Fink. Another daughter, Hannah, an artist, died of cancer in 2007.
Loesser died of heart failure[4] on April 28, 2019, at her home in New York City.[15] She was 91.
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