Keely Smith, the celebrated singer and performer who enjoyed a successful solo career and partnership with Louis Prima, passed away on December 16. Born Dorothy Jacqueline Keely in Norfolk, VA on March 9, 1928, she was 89 years old when she passed from apparent heart failure and is survived by two children, Toni and Luanne Prima.
Louis Prima was her first husband, whom she married in 1953 and with whom she won a Grammy in 1959. In fact, the two won the inaugural Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group award, for their Capitol Records smash hit “That Old Black Magic” which stayed on the charts for 18 weeks. As recounted in a retrospective released by Keely Records, Smith “went on, 42 years later, to receive a Grammy nomination for her 2001 album, Keely Sings Sinatra in the Traditional Pop Vocal category,” a testament to her talents. In addition to her body of work over the course of a career that spans seven decades, she was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, inducted into the Las Vegas Hall of Fame and presented with a Star on Walk of Stars in Palm Springs, where she made her home for the past 40 years.
“My sister Luanne and I are overwhelmed and deeply grateful by the love and respect shown our dear mother over the past few days. (We believe she would have been too). Mother was a champion of humanity, equal and fair rights for all. She was a true individual, she worked hard, lived life on her own terms and loved her friends and family deeply. Her memory lives on in her music and for us in our hearts. We will miss her everyday and treasure the time we had together,” Toni Prima said in a statement to the press.
Fans in the Los Angeles area will be able to pay respects to the late singer on Saturday, January 6 at Forest Lawn Memorial Park at 6300 Forest Lawn Drive. Those in New Orleans and elsewhere may make donations in her name to MusiCares by visiting https://www.grammy.
