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ANDY MURCIA |
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 BARBARA McNAIR ...in her prime |
Our memories of Barbara
as a warm, lovely woman
By ANN JILLIAN & ANDY MURCIA
of TheColumnists.com
Earlier this month we heard the bad news that Barbara McNair, the beautiful singer, actress and TV personality of the 1960s, had succumbed to cancer at age 72. It touched us personally because we knew her not only as a performer, but had met her as a show business colleague.
McNair, who died in Los Angeles on Feb.
4, had not been much on view lately, but she had a fabulous run,
especially in the late 1950s and throughout the 1960s when she
was a recording star, TV star, Broadway star and movie star.
She was born in Chicago, Illinois and raised in Racine, Wisconsin.
She was musically trained, but she also blossomed into a spellbinding
beauty, which helped make her much in demand during the 1960s
when African-American women first began to get sizeable leading
roles in movies and television.
McNair started out performing in supper clubs and showrooms, but her first big break was a week-long booking on the "Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts" television show in 1948, the show's first year on TV. That led to bookings in some of the nation's most popular clubs, such as The Purple Onion and the Coconut Grove. Soon she was appearing on TV's best showcases for talent, including "The Ed Sullivan Show," "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson" and "The Dean Martin Show."
At various times, she recorded for Coral, Signature and Motown records. On Broadway, she appeared in "The Body Beautiful," then, in 1962, she replaced Diahann Carroll as the female lead in "No Strings" on Broadway. She also came back to appear in the 1973 revival of "The Pajama Game."
McNair made her movie debut in "Spencer's Mountain" as a singer at a wedding, but landed her first leading role in "If He Hollers, Let Him Go" (1968) opposite Raymond St. Jacques. The following year she co-starred with Elvis Presley and Mary Tyler Moore in "Change of Habit," playing a nun.
Perhaps her most successful gig in movies was when she was cast as the wife of Detective Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier) in "They Call Me MISTER TIBBS" (1970) and "The Organization" (1971), the two sequels to the Oscar-winning 1967 film "In the Heat of the Night."
In 1969, McNair starred in her own syndicated television program, "The Barbara McNair Show" (1969-71). For a time in the 1960s, she even appeared as a recurring character, Aunt Bettina, on ABC's daytime soap "General Hospital."
In more recent years, McNair appeared mostly in episodic television. Her last movie was "Neon Signs" in 1996.
She had a loyal following of fans who turned out to hear her sing at the many cabaret performances she did once she stopped getting the bigger movie and TV roles. We understand that she had quite a bit of heartbreak in her private life, including several broken marriages. One husband, Rick Manzie, was even shot and killed in their home in Las Vegas in 1976. Her last husband, who was by her side when she died, was Charles Blecka.
Andy, Ann's manager, recounts their personal
contact with Barbara McNair, which began in Las Vegas in the
1980s:
"Ann was appearing at the MGM hotel there and I was asked
if she could make an appearance on a local telethon. We were
taken to a hotel showroom where all the acts were gathered. We
all waited while the director worked out the appearance details.
It was a light-hearted day, beverages and snacks were served
and we all just hung out until called.
"I spotted Barbara McNair sitting quietly in a first row
seat. She wore no make up, was dressed quite lady-like and was
looking beautiful. I pointed her out to Ann, who recognized her
at once. Barbara looked almost lonely sitting there while all
the other performers chatted with each other loudly. So, Ann
and I made our way over to her and introduced ourselves.
"Both Ann and I immediately felt Barbara’s warmth as a person. She invited us to sit with her. We exchanged compliments and chatted about our days in Chicago, where Barbara had spent lots of time. We spoke of family and it was easy to see Barbara placed real value on her family.
"In that short afternoon visit, we decided the lady had class and courage. You knew at once that she was a real person, so unlike the many show biz whack jobs we’ve met over the years in this business. This lady had seen it all and yet both her feet were solidly on the ground. Ann and I both came away from that single meeting with Barbara knowing we liked her very much."
Though we only spent quality time with her on that one occasion, we both really liked Barbara and were deeply saddened to learn of her death. She will be missed by many and we both hope she may rest in peace.
©2007 by Ann Jillian Murcia and Andy
Murcia. This column first posted Sept. 19, 2007.
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