Biography of Dick Haymes

Big band balladeer Dick Haymes was born September 13, 1916 in Buenos Aires, Argentina; trained as a performer by his mother, herself a concert singer and vocal coach, he settled in the U.S. in 1936, initially landing work as a radio announcer. Bit roles in films (some as a stuntman) and on the vaudeville circuit followed, and in 1941 Haymes scored his big break, replacing Frank Sinatra in Harry James' orchestra; with his deep, rich baritone and superb phrasing, he immediately became an audience favorite, following subsequent stints with Benny Goodman and Tommy Dorsey by signing to Decca as a solo act in 1943. Haymes remained one of America's most popular crooners for the remainder of the decade, rattling off a string of hits including the chart-toppers "It Can't Be Wrong" and "You'll Never Know, " "It Might as Well Be Spring, " and "Room Full of Roses." He also enjoyed a fruitful duet partnership with Helen Forrest which yielded the smashes "Long Ago and Far Away, " "It Had to Be You" and "Together."Haymes launched his career as a Hollywood headliner in 1944 with a starring role in the musical Irish Eyes Are Smiling; despite leads in pictures like 1945's State Fair, 1947's The Shocking Miss Pilgrim and 1948's One Touch of Venus, he never achieved movie stardom commensurate with his popularity as a singer, however. In 1949 Haynes also endured a very public divorce from his wife, actress Joanna Dru; in all, he was married six times -- wife number four was Rita Hayworth -- and the turmoil of his personal life continued to dog him professionally for the remainder of his career. Furthermore, in 1953 he briefly left the U.S. only to return facing deportation as an illegal alien -- during World War II Haymes had avoided the draft by registering as a resident alien, a move which was the official explanation behind his immigration hassles a decade later (although it was rumored that Columbia Pictures' head Harry Cohn was actually at the root of the problem, wishing to see Haymes deported to keep the singer away from Cohn's prize star Hayworth).Haymes was eventually allowed to return to the U.S., but his career suffered irreparable damage; regardless, in 1955 he signed to Capitol, where under he cut two albums of standards, Rain or Shine and Moonbeams, which rank among the best work in his catalog. With fifth wife Fran Jeffries, he toured nightclubs for the remainder of the decade, but after their marriage collapsed in 1961 he relocated to Ireland, touring and recording throughout Europe before finally returning stateside in the early 1970s. The 1972 live LP Dick Haymes Comes Home! First Stop: The Cocoanut Grove documented his comeback, supported by the Les Brown Band of Renown; he proceeded to appear on a number of television variety series, and thanks to a sudden resurgence in big band music toured with Helen Forrest and Harry James. In 1978, Haymes recorded his final LP, As Time Goes By; he died of lung cancer on March 28, 1980. ~ Jason Ankeny