Grace Moore

Grace Moore - Opera Singers, Family and Personal Life

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Grace Moore's Personal Details

Grace Moore was an American opera singer who starred both in the Metropolitan Opera stage, Broadway and films

InformationDetail
BirthdayDecember 5, 1898
Died onJanuary 26, 1947
NationalityAmerican
FamousFilm & Theater Personalities, Actresses, Theater Personalities, Singers, Opera Singers
Nick namesThe Tennessee Nightingale
SpousesValentin Parera
Cause of death
  • Accident
Birth PlaceCocke County, Tennessee, U.S.
GenderFemale
FatherRichard Lawson Moore
MotherJane Stokely
Sun SignSagittarius
Born inCocke County, Tennessee, U.S.
Famous asOpera Singer & Actress
Died at Age48

Grace Moore's photo

Who is Grace Moore?

Grace Moore was an American opera singer who starred both in the Metropolitan Opera stage, Broadway and films. She was often called by her nickname ‘The Tennessee Nightingale’ because of her lovely voice. She was famous for her performances in Broadway during the 1920s. She studied singing in her young days and initially struggled to become an established opera singer by singing at various functions. Though she had limited acting talent she was able to put meaning into what she sang with her wonderful voice though it was not technically perfect. She performed in the New York nightclubs to make a living and money for her musical lessons. She also performed in Paris and London and had taken part in many Italian operas where she played the role of a soprano. She was also gorgeous in her looks and had a large number of admires wherever she performed. She was also notorious for getting involved with her male co-stars several times. The opera became more popular among the masses through her films. She was nominated for the ‘Academy Award for Best Actress’ for one of her films she made for ‘Columbia Pictures’.

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Childhood & Early Life

Grace Moore was born as Mary Willie Grace Moore in a small town named Slabtown, currently a part of Del Rio, in Cocke County, Tennessee, USA on December 5, 1898.

Her father was Richard Lawson Moore and her mother was Jane Stokely.

Her family moved to Knoxville and then to Jellico, Tennessee, when she was quite young.

She attended the ‘Jellico High School’ and then studied briefly at the ‘Ward-Belmont College in Nashville.

She also attended the ‘Wilson-Green School of Music’ in Chevy Chase, Maryland.

She studied music and singing in college and went to Washington D.C. and New York for further training.

In 1919, at the age of 17, she sang at a recital with Giovanni Martinelli, who later became the director of the ‘Metropolitan Opera’.

Career

Grace Moore auditioned for the ‘Metropolitan Opera’ twice but failed in both attempts. She had to sing at nightclubs to earn money for her music lessons.

During this period she appeared in the musicals ‘Suite Sixteen’, ‘Just a Minute’ and ‘Up in the Clouds’.

She got a singing job in the Broadway musical ‘Hitchy Koo’ produced by Jerome Kern in 1920 and also sang in ‘Town Gossip’ later.

She moved to Paris for two years to continue her studies with the money she earned with this job.

After returning to America she sang two numbers ‘What’ll I Do’ and ‘Listening’. The second number became the one of the five best selling numbers in the country.

She went to France in 1925 and trained under operatic coach Richard Barthelemy at the suggestion of Mary Garden.

During one of Grace’s visit to Milan, Italy in 1927, Giulio Gatti-Cazzaza, the director of the ‘Metropolitan’ heard her sing and signed her up to sing at the ‘Metropolitan’. She made her debut on February 7, 1928 as ‘Mimi’ in Giacomo Puccini’s ‘La Boheme’ and later sang for Charles Gounod’s ‘Romeo et Juliette’.

For sixteen seasons she stayed with the ‘Metropolitan’, she sang in the title roles of several Italian and French operas such as ‘Carmen’, ‘Tosca’, ‘Manon’ ‘Faust’, ‘Pagliacci’, ‘Gianni Schicchi’, ‘Louise’ and others.

She performed for the first time at the ‘Opera-Comique’ in Paris on September 29, 1928 in the role of ‘Mimi’ in ‘La Boheme’.

She signed up with MGM in 1930 and moved to Hollywood to play the role of the legendary singer Jenny Lind in the film ‘A Lady’s Morals’. The film did not do very well because of a bad script and loss of popularity of Hollywood musicals.

Her next film was ‘New Moon’ in 1931 where she co-starred with Lawrence Tibbett, who also sang for the ‘Metropolitan Opera’. The film adaption of the Sigmund Romberg operetta was a bit clumsy and did not succeed at the box office.

The continuous box-office failures depressed her very much and she became a food addict. MGM dropped her as she had gained a lot of weight due to her irregular food habits.

She pulled herself up after being dropped by unceremoniously by MGM, lost all her extra weight and promptly joined Broadway to star in the operetta ‘The Dubarry’ in 1932 which became a great hit.

In 1934 Harry Cohn, the president of the fledgling ‘Columbia Pictures’, liked her role in ‘Dubarry and signed her up for the musical ‘One Night of Love’. It was a fine musical score, directed excellently and became an artistic and financial success. The record became a number one hit and Grace Moore became a major film star with this musical. The film won five ‘Academy Award’ nominations in 1935 including the ‘Best Actress’ for Grace. She eventually went on to make six more musicals for ‘Columbia Pictures’ such as ‘Love Me Forever’ in 1935, ‘The King Steps Out’ in 1936, ‘When You’re in Love’ and ‘I’ll Take Romance’ in 1937.

On June 6, 1935 she performed for the royal command performance at ‘Covent Garden’ in London where she re-enacted the role of ‘Mimi’ in Giacomo Puccini’s ‘La Boheme’.

Her last film was an adaptation of Gustave Charpentier’s opera titled ‘Louise’ in 1938 in which she was coached by the composer himself.

She returned to the stage in 1938 and to ‘Metropolitan for a short duration. She performed on the radio and toured Europe. She also went on tours for the USO during the Second World War.

She performed at concerts all over Europe and the United States during the 1930s and the 1940s and sang songs in German, Italian, French, Spanish and English languages.

Her most famous roles as an Italian lyric soprano were ‘Mimi’ in ‘La Boheme’, ‘Gilda’ in ‘Rigoletto’ and ‘Manon’ in ‘Madama Butterfly’.

Major Works

Grace Moore published her autobiography ‘You’re Only Human Once’ in 1944.

Awards & Achievements

Grace Moore received the ‘Gold Medal Award’ from the ‘American Society of Arts and Science’ and won a nomination for the ‘Academy Award for Best Actress’ in 1935.

The King of Denmark awarded the ‘Ingenito et Arti’ to her in 1936.

She was honored as the chevalier of the French ‘Legion d’Honneur’ in 1939.

She was made an honorary Colonel on the staff of the Governor of Tennessee and a life member of the ‘Tennessee State Society of Washington, D.C.’

Personal Life & Legacy

She was married to a Spanish actor named Valentin Parera in 1931 but had no children.

Grace Moore died at 48 in an airplane accident on January 26, 1947. She had boarded the KLM DC3 for Stockholm, Sweden, after performing in Copenhagen the night before.

In 1953 ‘Warner Bros’ released a film biography in which Kathryn Grayson played the role of Grace Moore in the film.

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Grace Moore biography timelines

  • // 5th Dec 1898
    Grace Moore was born as Mary Willie Grace Moore in a small town named Slabtown, currently a part of Del Rio, in Cocke County, Tennessee, USA on December 5, 1898.
  • // 1919
    In 1919, at the age of 17, she sang at a recital with Giovanni Martinelli, who later became the director of the ‘Metropolitan Opera’.
  • // 1920
    She got a singing job in the Broadway musical ‘Hitchy Koo’ produced by Jerome Kern in 1920 and also sang in ‘Town Gossip’ later.
  • // 1925
    She went to France in 1925 and trained under operatic coach Richard Barthelemy at the suggestion of Mary Garden.
  • // 1927 To 7th Feb 1928
    During one of Grace’s visit to Milan, Italy in 1927, Giulio Gatti-Cazzaza, the director of the ‘Metropolitan’ heard her sing and signed her up to sing at the ‘Metropolitan’. She made her debut on February 7, 1928 as ‘Mimi’ in Giacomo Puccini’s ‘La Boheme’ and later sang for Charles Gounod’s ‘Romeo et Juliette’.
  • // 29th Sep 1928
    She performed for the first time at the ‘Opera-Comique’ in Paris on September 29, 1928 in the role of ‘Mimi’ in ‘La Boheme’.
  • // 1930
    She signed up with MGM in 1930 and moved to Hollywood to play the role of the legendary singer Jenny Lind in the film ‘A Lady’s Morals’. The film did not do very well because of a bad script and loss of popularity of Hollywood musicals.
  • // 1931
    Her next film was ‘New Moon’ in 1931 where she co-starred with Lawrence Tibbett, who also sang for the ‘Metropolitan Opera’. The film adaption of the Sigmund Romberg operetta was a bit clumsy and did not succeed at the box office.
  • // 1931
    She was married to a Spanish actor named Valentin Parera in 1931 but had no children.
  • // 1932
    She pulled herself up after being dropped by unceremoniously by MGM, lost all her extra weight and promptly joined Broadway to star in the operetta ‘The Dubarry’ in 1932 which became a great hit.
  • // 1935
    Grace Moore received the ‘Gold Medal Award’ from the ‘American Society of Arts and Science’ and won a nomination for the ‘Academy Award for Best Actress’ in 1935.
  • // 6th Jun 1935
    On June 6, 1935 she performed for the royal command performance at ‘Covent Garden’ in London where she re-enacted the role of ‘Mimi’ in Giacomo Puccini’s ‘La Boheme’.
  • // 1936
    The King of Denmark awarded the ‘Ingenito et Arti’ to her in 1936.
  • // 1938
    Her last film was an adaptation of Gustave Charpentier’s opera titled ‘Louise’ in 1938 in which she was coached by the composer himself.
  • // 1938
    She returned to the stage in 1938 and to ‘Metropolitan for a short duration. She performed on the radio and toured Europe. She also went on tours for the USO during the Second World War.
  • // 1939
    She was honored as the chevalier of the French ‘Legion d’Honneur’ in 1939.
  • // 1944
    Grace Moore published her autobiography ‘You’re Only Human Once’ in 1944.
  • // 26th Jan 1947
    Grace Moore died at 48 in an airplane accident on January 26, 1947. She had boarded the KLM DC3 for Stockholm, Sweden, after performing in Copenhagen the night before.
  • // 1953
    In 1953 ‘Warner Bros’ released a film biography in which Kathryn Grayson played the role of Grace Moore in the film.

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Grace Moore's FAQ

  • What is Grace Moore birthday?

    Grace Moore was born at 1898-12-05

  • When was Grace Moore died?

    Grace Moore was died at 1947-01-26

  • Which age was Grace Moore died?

    Grace Moore was died at age 48

  • Where is Grace Moore's birth place?

    Grace Moore was born in Cocke County, Tennessee, U.S.

  • What is Grace Moore nationalities?

    Grace Moore's nationalities is American

  • What is Grace Moore nick names?

    Grace Moore's nickNames is The Tennessee Nightingale

  • Who is Grace Moore spouses?

    Grace Moore's spouses is Valentin Parera

  • What is Grace Moore's cause of dead?

    Grace Moore dead because of Accident

  • Who is Grace Moore's father?

    Grace Moore's father is Richard Lawson Moore

  • Who is Grace Moore's mother?

    Grace Moore's mother is Jane Stokely

  • What is Grace Moore's sun sign?

    Grace Moore is Sagittarius

  • How famous is Grace Moore?

    Grace Moore is famouse as Opera Singer & Actress