Martha Mears
Martha Mears as she was pictured in the July 1934 issue ofRadio Stars magazine
Born	Martha Marie Peters July 18, 1910 Mexico, Missouri, US
Died	December 13, 1986(1986-12-13) (aged 76) Versailles, Missouri, US
Alma mater	University of Missouri
Occupation	Singer

Martha Mears (July 18, 1910 – December 13, 1986)^{[citation needed]} was a radio and filmcontralto^[1] singer, active from the 1930s to 1950s. She introduced in films original songs which have becomestandards, including "Long Ago (and Far Away)", and "My Foolish Heart".

Mears was born inMexico, Missouri. Her mother died when Mears was 4 years old, and she went to live with her grandmother. Five years later, she began living with an aunt and uncle inMoberly, Missouri. She began taking singing lessons when she was 15.^[2]

She graduated from Moberly High School,^[3]Moberly Junior College^[2] and then, in 1933, from theUniversity of Missouri^[4] with plans to be a teacher. On a post-graduation trip to New York City, however, her search for a teaching position was unsuccessful. Instead she found a job withGus Edwards'Stars of Tomorrow show.^[5]

Mears sang onKFRU in Columbia, Missouri, and onWIL in St. Louis, Missouri,^[2] before a 1934 interview led to a contract withNBC.^[5] She sang on such programs asAl Pearce and His Gang,^[6]The Baker's Broadcast (also known asThe Joe Penner Show),^[6]: 33It Happened in Hollywood,^[6]: 165Ten-Two-Four Ranch,^[6]: 327The Colgate House Party,The Old Gold Program,The General Foods Show,Bob Ripley,Phillip Morris, andRadio Rodeo.^{[citation needed]}

During World War II, Mears was featured on several episodes of thePersonal Album program produced by theArmed Forces Radio Service.^[7]

She was also the singing voice of many film actresses,^[8] notably singing forMarjorie Reynolds in the debut of "White Christmas" in the movieHoliday Inn (1942),^[9] forRita Hayworth inCover Girl^[8] and for one ofLucille Ball's songs inDuBarry Was a Lady (1943).^[10] Her other movie credits include dubbing the singing voices of actresses such asClaudette Colbert,Loretta Young,Hedy Lamarr,Veronica Lake, andEva Gabor.

Mears was married to Sidney Brokaw, a violinist, and they had two sons.^[5]

• Half Angel (1951) ("Castle In The Sand" forLoretta Young)
• My Favorite Spy (1951) ("Just A Moment More" forHedy Lamarr)
• Under The Gun (1951) ("I Cried For You" forAudrey Totter)
• My Foolish Heart (1949) (performer: "My Foolish Heart")
• The Countess of Monte Cristo (1948) ("Count Your Blessings", "Who Believes in Santa Claus" forSonja Henie)
• Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid (1948) ("The Caribee" forAndrea King)
• The Saxon Charm (1948) ("I'm In The Mood For Love" forAudrey Totter)
• The Gangster (1947) ("Paradise" forBelita)
• Isn't It Romantic? (1948) ("Miss Julie July", "Indiana Dinner", "At the Nickolodeon" forVeronica Lake)
• Nocturne (1946) ("Nocturne", "Why Pretend", "A Little Bit is Better than None" forVirginia Huston)
• Meet Me On Broadway (1946) ("Fifth Avenue" forMarjorie Reynolds)
• Bring on the Girls (1945) ("You Moved Right In" forMarjorie Reynolds)
• Tonight and Every Night (1945) ("Tonight and Every Night", "What Does an English Girl Think of a Yank?", "You Excite Me", "The Boy I Left Behind", "Cry and You Cry Alone" forRita Hayworth)
• Cover Girl (1944) ("The Show Must Go On", "Sure Thing", "Make Way for Tomorrow", "Long Ago (and Far Away)", "Poor John" forRita Hayworth)
• DuBarry Was a Lady (1943) ("DuBarry Was a Lady", "Madame, I Like Your Crepe Suzettes" forLucille Ball)
• Higher and Higher (1943) ("It's a Most Important Affair", "Today I'm a Debutante", "You're On Your Own", "Minuet in Boogie" forMichèle Morgan)
• Action in the North Atlantic (1943) ("Night and Day" forJulie Bishop)
• Silver Skates (1943) ("A Girl Like You, A Boy Like Me" forPatricia Morison)
• Two Tickets to London (1943) ("You Don't Know What Love Is" forMichèle Morgan)
• The Fallen Sparrow (1943) forMartha O'Driscoll
• They Got Me Covered (1943) ("Palsy Walsy" forMarion Martin)
• The Big Street (1942) ("Who Knows?" forLucille Ball)
• Holiday Inn (1942) (performer: "White Christmas", "(Come To) Holiday Inn", "Happy Holidays", "Abraham" forMarjorie Reynolds)
• Star Spangled Rhythm (1942) ("A Sweater, a Sarong, and a Peek-a-Boo Bang" forVeronica Lake)
• This Gun for Hire (1942) ("I've Got You", "Now You See It, Now You Don't" forVeronica Lake)
• Call Out the Marines (1942) ("The Light of My Life", "Hands Across the Border" forDorothy Lovett)
• Four Jacks and a Jill (film) (1942) ("Karanina", "You Go Your Way", "Wherever You Go" forAnne Shirley)
• South of Tahiti (1941) ("Melahi" forMaria Montez)
• The Parson of Panamint (1941) ("My Sweetheart's the Man in the Moon", "It's in the Cards", "Merry-Go-Round", "Rock of Ages" forEllen Drew)
• Pacific Blackout (1941) ("I Met Him in Paris" forEva Gabor)
• I Wanted Wings (1941) ("Born to Love" forVeronica Lake)
• Road Show (1941) ("I Should Have Known You Years Ago" forCarole Landis)
• Zaza (1938) ("Hello, My Darling" forClaudette Colbert)

Wikimedia Commons has media related toMartha Mears.

• Martha Mears atIMDb
• "Pepper Rangers Gazette" with bio

• An episode of Armed Forces Radio Service'sPersonal Album featuring Martha Mears

• 1910 births
• 1986 deaths
• American voice actresses
• 20th-century American actresses
• 20th-century American singers
• People from Mexico, Missouri
• People from Moberly, Missouri
• 20th-century American women singers
• Moberly Area Community College alumni

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Articles with hCards
• All articles with unsourced statements
• Articles with unsourced statements from April 2021
• Articles with unsourced statements from November 2016
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