Tying up loose ends before the fun
starts at Clooney Music Festival

Column by The Post's Nick Clooney - September 19, 2003

The column in this corner a few weeks back about the Rosemary Clooney Music Festival in Maysville got quite a bit of response by phone and mail. I was able to answer most of the questions directly, but a few of them came in messages with no return addresses.

Now we are down to the last hours before the festival begins, so this is the only way left to answer the remaining questions.

"Didn't there used to be a show on Friday night before the big concert on Saturday? Do they still have it?"

Absolutely. And it's free. It will be on the main stage at the intersection of Third and Market in downtown Maysville. The "street party" starts tonight at 7 and lasts until 9. The performers are Phil Dirt and the Dozers -- love that name -- and I'm told they are a retro rock group.

The show is free, but if you want to get something to eat, various Maysville service clubs present "cookouts on the sidewalk" and you can buy whatever looks good.

"Are you sure we can't get tickets in advance for the Kathryn Crosby talk Saturday morning? Can we get reservations? How much are the tickets? How far is the place she's talking from the concert stage?"

Kathryn Crosby, Bing's widow, will have a really extensive showcase of the Clooney-Crosby connection. I just got the rundown and there are video excerpts we'll see that I didn't even know existed.

First things first. The show starts at 10 a.m. and will go for two hours or more. The cost is $20 per person. The money goes to the "Rescue the Russell Theater" fund. Tickets will be available only at the door of the Opera Theater on Second Street, no more than three blocks from the outdoor concert stage. The Opera Theater, where the Maysville Players present their productions, is large enough to handle a good-sized crowd.

Kathryn is bringing Bob

DeFlores, who, in addition to being a Crosby family friend, is a noted film archivist. He is bringing a number of clips featuring Rosemary on TV and in movies, with and without Bing. There is even a clip from "The Stars Are Singing," Rosemary's first movie which premiered right there in Maysville at the Russell Theater.

Most fascinating to me -- as it would have been to Rosemary -- is the fact that Bob found a rare video of our sister Betty. It is something called a "Snader Telescription" and has Betty singing "Let a Smile Be Your Umbrella." I've never seen it and I can hardly wait to get a look.

When you come in the theater door, you'll get a form with your program. You can use it to ask questions of Kathryn, Bob, or, for that matter, me. Kathryn also will read some passages from her book about Bing.

"I see Mrs. Crosby will be there Saturday morning. Will there be anything going on the rest of the day between then and Linda Ronstadt's show?"

Yes. When Kathryn's presentation is finished, the Limestone Chorale will have a performance at the Opera Theater starting at 2:30 p.m. They are excellent.

Before that, at noon, the Mason County High School Orchestra will have piano and string selections at the old high school auditorium on Second Street.

From 11:30 to 2:30 there will be a picnic in the parking lot of the Opera Theater sponsored by the Maysville Players, and there will be music, too.

At 3 p.m. Woody Wood's big band will give a free concert at the Second Street Mall. Just follow the sound of the music. At the main stage, doors open at 5:30 with dinner at 6:30.

A couple of last-minute changes. Rosemary's husband, Dante DiPaolo, who has many friends in the tri-state, had to cancel his appearance because his mom had a nasty fall and is hospitalized.

On the other hand, Rosemary's daughter-in-law Debby Boone and Rosemary's daughter, Monsita Botwick, will be on hand to do some introductions.

That's about it. Unless Isabel makes an unexpected, unwelcome and uninvited appearance, I'll see you in Maysville this weekend.

Still have questions? Try (606) 564-9411 until 5 p.m. or so and ask for Duff Giffen

Ronstadt remembers Rosie
By Rick Bird, Cincinnati Post - September 19, 2003

The relationship started around 1988 with a simple, but eloquent, letter from Rosemary Clooney to Linda Ronstadt asking if she would please sing at a benefit.

The two had never met. It would be the beginning of a special friendship perhaps only forged among those rare women singers who have both the bane and blessing of becoming pop music icons.

"I always say, 'I was in Girl Singers' Anonymous, and Rosemary Clooney was my sponsor,'" Ronstadt said in an interview with The Post this week. "She was like that for a lot of us."

Ronstadt comes to Rosemary's hometown of Maysville, Ky., today as the headliner of the Rosemary Clooney Music Festival.

For Ronstadt, the appearance amounts to a pilgrimage to the hometown of the woman who made it a habit in her later years to befriend a new generation of "girl singers."

Ronstadt remembers that after that first invite, the two had dinner.

"About 15 minutes into dinner, she pointed at me with her little finger and said, 'I'm going to tell you something. You are going to be in my life for the rest of it.' And I was. She will be in my life for the rest of it, too."

Ronstadt, who rarely grants interviews these days, said her first memory of Rose-mary was when Ronstadt was "6 years old sitting on the floor in Tucson, Ariz. -- I remember hearing a radio show. She was singing 'Hey There.'"

Since the Maysville festival was established, Rosemary had urged Ronstadt to perform, but it never worked out because of her family commitments.

After Clooney's death in June 2002, playing the festival took on more urgency for Ronstadt. This year she canceled another date to come and sources said she is performing free.

Ronstadt will come armed with arrangements of standards done by Nelson Riddle as both a tribute to the famed arranger and Rosemary.

And there lies the other soulful connection between the two singers. Clooney had a lifelong professional and personal relationship with Riddle.

Ronstadt hooked up with him in the mid-'80s to record what would become a series of three albums covering classic pop standards. At the time, it was unheard of for rock singers to sing the songs of their parents' era.

While Ronstadt never met Clooney until after Riddle died, she would hear the famed arranger and bandleader constantly talk about Rosemary.

"She was the love of his life. Nelson talked to me all the time about her," Ronstadt saidRonstadt would go on to keep surprising her fans in the '80s and '90s with recordings that explored her Mexican and country roots.

They were not always well-received by the public and critics. Ronstadt suggested that is perhaps why Rosemary understood her so well.

"She had been to all the places and seen all the bends and twists in the road. As her nephew George said, 'There are no dragons. Aunt Rosemary killed them all,'" Ronstadt said.

"When I'd come off the road and have all those things happening that happen to girl singers with irregular lives, like a sick child, I could talk to her. Even if you didn't talk to Rosemary, she knew what you were thinking."

'We're all Clooneys'
Rosemary Clooney Music Festival Saturday in Maysville
By Jeanne Houck, Kentucky Post - September 19, 2003

Ever wonder what it's like to be part of a big-time show business family?

Come on-a Rosemary's town Saturday, says Maysville Mayor David Cartmell.

That's when as many as 5,000 people are expected to gather for the fifth annual Rosemary Clooney Music Festival, and, Cartmell said, "This is the one day all year we're all Clooneys.''

Rosemary Clooney, a native of Maysville, died in 2002 at the age of 74. But the music and film star's career will be honored by a slate of entertainers headed by singer Linda Ronstadt, who will perform with the Lexington Philharmonic Orchestra on a stage in front of the historic Russell Theater Saturday night.

"I feel it is the premier music festival in the state,'' Cartmell said, adding, "so many people from abroad come to this festival.

"People from Japan. Some of the first tables sold this year were sold to people from India.''

For the first time in the history of the festival that some call "Clooney fest," Maysville, population about 9,000, will not be shouldering financial burdens such as paying entertainers.

Lundy's Special Events of Lexington, which has produced the festival since its inception, has agreed to foot the bill.

The business is a subsidiary of The Lundergan Group, whose officers, Jerry and Charlotte Lundergan, are from Maysville.

Maysville is located along the Ohio River about 50 miles from downtown Cincinnati.

"Maysville has been a constant reminder of what is right in our world, and only brings a smile to our faces upon our return,'' Jerry Lundergan said.

"We promised Rosemary before her passing that this production would continue as long as funding was available.''

A portion of the festival proceeds will go to the restoration of the Russell Theater, where Rosemary Clooney debuted her first film, "The Stars are Singing."

The Russell Theater was built by Maysville businessman Col. M. C. Russell, who wanted a theater to match his flamboyant personality.

Opened in 1930, it is an architectural fantasy of Moorish columns, terra cotta lions' heads, with lots of tile, stucco and marble. In 1983, it closed, having fallen into disrepair. A non-profit group bought it in 1995, hoping to save it.

The "Rescue the Russell'' project went a long way toward gaining her participation in the festival. In 1999, the festival's first year, Rosemary performed in front of the Theater.

Mayor Cartmell said fundraising efforts have brought in nearly $400,000 so far -- including a $225,000 grant from the state. But he expects it to take years to reach the $2 million-plus needed.

Meanwhile, the restoration project will get a special boost from Kathryn Crosby.

At 10 a.m. Saturday at the Opera House Theater on Second Street, Crosby will show clips of movies and television shows her husband, Bing Crosby, did with Rosemary.

Rosemary's widower, Dante DiPaolo, will join Crosby on stage for the program, which costs $20 per person.

The main event is later that evening, when Rosemary's brother, Nick Clooney, hosts a dinner and the concert.

Clooney -- a columnist for The Post, broadcast journalist and television personality -- is expected to be joined by his son, George Clooney, the actor, director and producer, and Rosemary's son, Miguel Ferrer, star of the "Crossing Jordan'' television series.

Tickets for the concert, scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. in front of the Russell Theater, and the dinner there before the show range in cost from $90 to $250. They can be purchased by calling 1-606-564-9419.

But everyone is welcome to go to Market Street and attend the concert for free.

"Just bring your lawn chairs,'' Cartmell said.

The mayor said the people and money the festival attracts benefits the entire city, not just the Russell Theater.

"It doesn't do anything but help to have a music festival where Miguel Ferrer and George and Nick come back,'' he said.

But Cartmell said Maysville is just as good for the Clooney family as the Clooney family is for Maysville.

"I just think Maysville was a very nurturing community for them, and I just don't think they forgot it,'' he said.

"Not many towns close off the main drive and light up things and bring in the Lexington Philharmonic to back up Linda Ronstadt.''

ABOUT THE FESTIVAL

When: Saturday

What: 10 a.m. Bing/Rosemary movies and TV showing with Kathryn Crosby at the Russell Theater ($20); 5:15 p.m. dinner (tickets range from $90 to $250); 8 p.m. concert featuring Linda Ronstadt and The Lexington Philharmonic.

Who's expected: Singer Linda Ronstadt, Kathryn Crosby, the Lexington Philharmonic Orchestra, Nick Clooney, George Clooney, Miguel Ferrer, jazz singers Meg Clifton and Mary Ellen Desmond, Nelson Riddle family members.

Special guests to grace festival

Column by The Post's Nick Clooney - September 1, 2003

Happy Labor Day, everyone.

Since this is also the first day of September, it seems an appropriate time to update you on the Rosemary Clooney Music Festival in Maysville, now less than three weeks away.

As many of you know, Linda Ronstadt will be this year's headliner. Any words of praise about Linda at this point would be gilding the lily. Suffice to say, she is one of the important singers of her generation and this will be an increasingly rare opportunity to see and hear her in person.

It should also be mentioned that Linda was a great friend and admirer of Rosemary, which is why she agreed to appear at the festival.

As usual, Third and Market in Maysville will be closed to traffic, a stage will be set up, tables put in place almost a full block back to Limestone. There's some construction under way on Market, but that, I'm told, won't give us any problem. Dinner will be served, then we relax and watch the show as twilight falls on Maysville's historic downtown.

In addition to Linda -- who will be accompanied by the Lexington Philharmonic Orchestra -- we will see a portion of a show I wrote about in this corner in April. The Kentucky Repertory Jazz Band organized a salute to Rosemary at the University of Kentucky, finding some rare arrangements of the Tony Pastor Band in the 1940s featuring the Clooney Sisters, Rosemary and Betty. There were two good singers, a blonde and a brunette, and a boy singer to take care of Tony's contributions. It was fun and I know you'll enjoy it.

There is something new this year and it is being done specifically for the Save the Russell Theater fund.

On Saturday morning at 10 o'clock, Kathryn Crosby, the widow of Bing Crosby and a friend of Rosemary, will appear at the Opera House Theater on Second Street in Maysville. She will talk about the special chemistry between Bing and Rosemary in performance. She will bring clips of movies and TV shows Rosemary and Bing did together and give the audience some background on them. Kathryn will be joined by Bing's film archivist, who knows chapter and verse on all of Bing's work.

Joining Kathryn on stage will be Dante di Paolo, Rosemary's widower. Dante, as some of you know, was one of the great dancers of Hollywood's golden era. When he was a child performer, he was even in a musical with Bing Crosby. I understand we'll have a clip of that.

Organizers tell me they have also found a rare early film of my sister Betty in performance and are bringing it along. I am anxious to see that. I have been asked to act as a sort of moderator of this event and, of course, I'm glad to do it.

Kathryn has agreed to appear for two hours, from 10 to noon, and she will take questions from the audience. The admission is 20 dollars per person and, as noted, proceeds go to the Russell restoration. I'm told tickets will be available only at the door. After the show, Kathryn will sing copies of her newest book about Bing.

As far as the dinner and concert that evening is concerned, the number to call for tickets or information is (606) 564-9411. They answer that phone at the Maysville City Office, then you ask for Duff Giffen, who has been a part of this concert from the beginning.

Rosemary's longtime friend and manager Allen Sviridoff tells me that Maysville's Jerry Lundergan has booked some surprise guests to perform during dinner, so it looks as though it is going to be another great night of entertainment .

Rosemary's oldest friend, Blanche Chambers, who used to dance while Rosemary sang right on that street corner when they were kids, will be there, sitting at our table.

Of course, Nina and I won't be sitting much. We'll be walking around saying hello to old friends and, I hope, meeting new ones.

Each year, we of the Clooney persuasion feel this event is a sort of reunion of our extended family with lots of laughs, lots of conversation and, of course, lots of world-class music.

Rosemary wouldn't have it any other way.