If they were alive today.....

...it would be the birthday of the following notables:




Had Karen Carpenter been able to conquer her personal demons, she would be 61 today.  It's a shame that she is largely remembered for the way her story ended, rather than the great body of work she created in her brief, yet brilliant career.  Hers was a unique and wonderful voice and hopefully, posterity will give her her due as the great artist that she was--rather than as a "victim" (of the anorexia to which she succumbed in 1983).
 
Here's a rare, bootleg recording of her performing "Rainy Days and Mondays" in 1971 at Carnegie Hall in New York:







Interesting to discover that Kurt Weill (R) and Marc Blitzstein (below) were born on the same day, five years apart (they'd be 111 and 106, respectively).  They had several successful musical collaborations; none more successful than their Threepenny Opera, which featured their most famous song, "Mack the Knife".

 


Lovely, graceful and greatly talented Jennifer Jones would be 92 today.  A Best Actress Oscar winner in 1943 for her luminescent performance in Song of Bernadette, she gave many memorable performances in some great films (Since You Went Away, Carrie, Beat the Devil, Madame Bovary, to name a few).



And a special nod to Desi Arnaz, who'd be 94 today.  As the years have progressed, he's finally started to receive the credit he is due for being the real "brains" behind I Love Lucy--as well as the television empire known as Desilu, which produced many hugely successful TV shows in the 1950's and 60's (Star Trek, The Andy Griffith Show, Mission: Impossible, The Dick Van Dyke Show, My Three Sons, The Untouchables, to name just a few).  And though Lucille Ball deserves every plaudit she's received for her wonderful work on Lucy, next time you stumble across a rerun of the show, watch him instead of her.  He was a truly great comic actor, especially considering English was (obviously) not his first language.  His singing, perhaps, is an acquired taste, but I certainly acquired it years ago.  Desi:  We salute you!  You were one of the greats.  And though they divorced in 1960, according to their children, Lucy and Desi never stopped loving one another.  Here's a nice montage, saluting them both: