Paul Jabara | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Jabara at the premiere ofThe Rose in 1979 | |
| Born | Paul Frederick Jabara (1948-01-31)January 31, 1948 Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
| Died | September 29, 1992(1992-09-29) (aged 44) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1960s–1992 |
Paul Frederick Jabara (January 31, 1948 – September 29, 1992) was an American actor, singer, and songwriter.[1] He wroteDonna Summer's Oscar-winning "Last Dance" fromThank God It's Friday (1978), as well as "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)", Summer's international hit duet withBarbra Streisand. He also co-wrotethe Weather Girls' iconic hit "It's Raining Men" withPaul Shaffer.
Jabara was born in Brooklyn, New York to aLebanese family.[2][3] He graduated fromFort Hamilton High School in 1965, and briefly attended Long Island University in Brooklyn. His sisters, Delores and Claudette, also graduated from that high school.
 | This sectionneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Paul Jabara" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(August 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Jabara's Broadway debut was in the original cast of the stage musicalHair. He originated the role of King Herod in the London production ofJesus Christ Superstar.[3]
In 1969, he appeared inJohn Schlesinger's filmMidnight Cowboy, as a hippie handing out pills ("Up or Down?") at the counterculture party.
He moved to Los Angeles in the 1970s[3] and acted in a number of films during the decade. He took over the role of Frank-N-Furter in theLos Angeles production ofThe Rocky Horror Show whenTim Curry left the production to film the movie version in England. He also appeared in Schlesinger's 1975 filmThe Day of the Locust, where he sang a cover of theMarlene Dietrich song "Hot Voo-Doo" in drag.
Jabara played the role of a lovelorn and nearsighted disco-goer named Carl in the 1978 filmThank God It's Friday. He contributed the song "Last Dance" to the film's soundtrack, which went on to win anAcademy Award andGrammy Award.[3] He also contributed as a singer on two tracks on the original soundtrack.
In 1981, Jabara starred in another John Schlesinger film, the comedyHonky Tonk Freeway, as truck driver/songwriter T. J. Tupus, hauling lions and a rhino.
Jabara wrote the book, music, lyrics and starred in the aborted Broadway musicalRachael Lily Rosenbloom (And Don't You Ever Forget It) when he was 24 years old.[4] The musical starredEllen Greene, and played theBroadhurst Theatre in New York City in 1973. It closed in previews prior to its official opening and was never reviewed by the press. No recording was made of the score, which featured both Jabara's trademark disco music and traditional Broadway-style numbers.[5]
In 1976, Jabara contributed a song to the 20th Century Fox motion picture sound track ofMother, Jugs & Speed, starringBill Cosby,Raquel Welch andHarvey Keitel. The upbeat, disco-flavored "Dance", both written and sung by Jabara, was popular in clubs featuring high energy dance music.[6]
Jabara released his debut albumShut Out in 1977. Jabara's solo albums on the disco labelCasablanca Records include three duets with Donna Summer: "Shut Out" (1977), "Something's Missing (In My Life)" (1978) and "Never Lose Your Sense of Humor" (1979).
Donna Summer performed his song "Last Dance" for the 1978 filmThank God It's Friday winning Jabara theGrammy Award forBest R&B Song, theAcademy Award forBest Original Song.[3] It also won theGolden Globe Award forBest Original Song.
In 1979, withBruce Roberts, he co-wrote Barbra Streisand's top 3 hit "The Main Event/Fight",[4] and the pair wrote their biggest success with the international smash "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)",[4] recorded as a duet by Streisand and Donna Summer.
In 1981, he wrote "No Jinx" forBette Midler as the theme tune to her movieJinxed!.Diana Ross scored a 1982 UK top hit with his song "Work That Body".[4]
In 1982, Two Tons O' Fun, renaming themselves asthe Weather Girls, agreed to record his song "It's Raining Men", previously rejected by Summer, Streisand,Cher and Ross. The song became an international hit, topping the US Dance chart and peaking at No. 2 in the UK. That song was re-recorded in 1998 byRuPaul andMartha Wash as "It's Raining Men... The Sequel" and later byGeri Halliwell in 2001, when it reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart.
The original Weather Girls recording of "It's Raining Men" was included on Jabara's 1983 albumPaul Jabara & Friends, which included one of the early recordings by then 19-year-oldWhitney Houston on "Eternal Love" (previously recorded byStephanie Mills) as well as a Jabara/Diana Ross co-write "Ladies Hot Line". Other songs Jabara had covered by major artists include "Hope" byBilly Preston (1981), "Two Lovers" byJulio Iglesias (1984)[4] and "This Girl's Back in Town" by Raquel Welch (1987).
In 1986, Jabara released his final album, the concept musicalDe La Noche: The True Story – A Poperetta, featuring guest vocals from Leata Galloway,Diva Gray andPattie Brooks.
In 2005, a workshop of a musical titledLast Dance played New York City. It was a musical assembled from Jabara's well known disco songs and told the story of a modern-day teenager who goes back in time to spend one night atStudio 54.
On September 29, 1992, Jabara died from complications fromAIDS[7] in Los Angeles, California at the age of 44. Amemorial service was held on October 4, 1992, at theForest Lawn Cemetery, in the Hollywood Hills.[4] Jabara is buried atGreen-Wood Cemetery.[8]
He died at his Los Angeles home and was survived by his sisters, Delores Jabara and Claudette Hadad. At the time of his death, major outlets includingThe New York Times and theLos Angeles Times were simply told by a spokesman and Claudette, respectively, that he had died due to "a long illness".[3][4] This was possibly due tostigma of AIDS.[9][10]
On June 14, 2014, Jabara was featured in the first gay-themed tour of Green-Wood Cemetery.[11][12]
