Texas Guinan

The bartender Guinan on Star Trek: The Next Generation was named for Texas Guinan. She returned to the screen three more times, playing Claire Quintana in the 1969 film Death of a Gunfighter, Glinda the Good Witch in The Wiz (1978), with Diana Ross and Michael Jackson, and co-hosting the 1994 MGM retrospective That's Entertainment! III. The number "All That Jazz" in the musical Chicago is thought to pay homage to her. Disenchanted with Hollywood by the mid-1950s, and increasingly focused on her nightclub career, she only made two major appearences in MGM films during the decade, 1950's Duchess of Idaho (which was also Eleanor Powell's film swan song), and the 1956 musical Meet Me in Las Vegas. She was portrayed in a number of movies, including Splendor in the Grass (1961). (As a result, most of Horne's film appearances were standalone sequences that had no bearing on the rest of the film, so editing caused no disruption to the storyline.) She was originally considered for the lead role in the 1951 version of Show Boat but Ava Gardner was given the role instead. She is interred in the Calvary Cemetery, Queens, New York. She later appeared in a number of MGM musicals, most notably Cabin in the Sky, but was never featured in a leading role due to her race and the fact that films featuring her had to be reedited for showing in southern states where theatres could not show films with African-American performers.

While on the road, she contracted amoebic dysentery in Vancouver, British Columbia and died there on November 5, 1933 apparently at age 49, exactly one month before Prohibition was repealed. She was the first African American performer to sign a long-term contract with a major Hollywood studio, and became famous in 1943 for her rendition of Stormy Weather in the movie of the same name. She turned this to her advantage by launching a satirical revue entitled Too Hot For Paris. While she has recorded and performed extensively with jazz musicians (notably Artie Shaw and Teddy Wilson), she is usually not considered a jazz singer because she does not improvise. She made a sally towards Europe, but her reputation preceded her, and she was denied entry at every European sea port at which she tried to disembark. Lena Calhoun Horne (born June 30, 1917) is an American popular singer. Guinan took her show on the road. Being Myself (1998; Blue Note).

During the Great Depression, Ms. An Evening with Lena Horne (1995; Blue Note) - Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album. Guinan returned to the screen with two sound pictures, playing slightly fictionalized versions of herself as a speakeasy proprietress in "Queen of the Night Clubs" in 1929 and "Broadway Through a Keyhole" in 1933. We'll Be Together Again (1994; Blue Note). She traditionally greeted her patrons with "Hello, suckers!". The Men in My Life (1988; Three Cherries). "Butter and egg men" referred to her well-off patrons, and she often demanded that the audience "give the little ladies a great big hand". The Lady and Her Music (1981; Qwest) - Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

Guinan is credited with coining a number of phrases. Lena: A New Album (1976; RCA). Ms. Lena and Michel (1975; RCA). Texas Guinan capitalized on her notoriety, earning $700,000 in ten months in 1926 while her clubs were routinely being raided. Nature's Baby (1971; Buddah). At this favorite hangout of the city’s wealthy elite, George Gershwin often played impromptu piano for wealthy guests such as Reggie Vanderbilt, Harry Payne Whitney, or Walter Chrysler, and celebrities Peggy Hopkins Joyce, Pola Negri, Jeanne Eagels, John Gilbert, and Rudolph Valentino, as well as socialites like Gloria Morgan and her sister Thelma, Vicountess Furness. Lena & Gabor (1970; Skye).

She steadfastly claimed that she had never sold an alcoholic drink in her life. Soul (1966; UA). Her aplomb made her a celebrity; arrested several times for serving alcohol and providing entertainment, she would always claim that the patrons had brought the liquor in with them, and that the club was so small that the girls had to dance so close to the customers. Merry from Lena (1966; UA). Guinan's own personality. Lena in Hollywood (1966; UA). The club became famous for its troupe of 40 scantily clad fan dancers, and also for Ms. Feelin' Good (1965; UA).

54th Street. Here's Lena Now! (1964; 20th Century). Upon the introduction of Prohibition, she opened a speakeasy in New York City called the "300 Club", at 151 W. Sings Your Requests (1963; Charter). She became the United States' first movie cowgirl, nicknamed "The Queen of the West." In addition to her film career, she also had a sojourn in France, entertaining the troops during World War I. Lena Goes Latin (1963; Charter). In 1917 "Texas" Guinan made her film début in the silent movie The Wildcat. Lovely & Alive (1963; RCA).

In 1906 she moved to New York City, where she found work as a chorus girl before making a career for herself in national Vaudeville and in New York theater productions. Lena on the Blue Side (1962; RCA). She toured regional Vaudeville with some success, but became known less for her singing than her entertaining "wild west"-related patter. At the Sands (1961; RCA). Guinan was born in Waco, Texas and studied music in Chicago before returning to her hometown with hopes of becoming a professional singer. Songs by Burke and Van Heusen (1960; RCA). Mary Louise Cecilia "Texas" Guinan (January 12, 1884 - November 5, 1933) was a saloon keeper, actress, and entrepreneur. Porgy & Bess (1959; RCA) - with Harry Belafonte.

Give the Lady What She Wants (1958; RCA). Jamaica [Original Cast Recording] (1957; RCA). At the Waldorf Astoria (1957; RCA). Stormy Weather (1956; RCA).

It's Love (1955; RCA). That's Entertainment! III (1994; MGM). The Wiz (1978; Universal Studios). Death of a Gunfighter (1969; Universal Studios).

Meet Me in Las Vegas (1956; MGM). Duchess of Idaho (1950; MGM). Words and Music (1948; MGM). Studio Visit (1946; MGM short subject).

Ziegfeld Follies (1946; MGM). Mantan Messes Up (1946; Toddy Pictures). Till the Clouds Roll By (1946; MGM). Boogie-Woogie Dream (1944; Official Films short subject).

Broadway Rhythm (1944; MGM). Swing Fever (1944; MGM). Two Girls and a Sailor (1944; MGM). Cabin in the Sky (1943; MGM).

I Dood It (1943; MGM). Stormy Weather (1942; 20th Century Fox). Thousands Cheer (1943; MGM). Panama Hattie (1942; MGM)*.

The Duke is Tops (1938; Million Dollar Pictures).