Barbara McNair
| Barbara McNair | |
|---|---|
McNair in 1967.
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Barbara Jean McNair |
| Born |
March 4, 1934 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Origin | Racine, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Died | February 4, 2007 (aged 72) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1956–2007 |
| Labels | |
| Associated acts | |
| Website | barbaramcnair |
Barbara Jean McNair (March 4, 1934 – February 4, 2007) was an American singer and actress.
Born in Chicago, Illinois, McNair's family moved to Racine, Wisconsin shortly after her birth. With her parents' persuasion, McNair began singing in school productions and during church services. McNair studied music at the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago.
McNair's big break came with a win on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts, which led to bookings at The Purple Onion and the Cocoanut Grove. Described by the New York Times as “a gorgeous looking woman with a warm, easy, communicative personality and a voice that can range from softly intense ballads to the edges of gospel", Barbara soon became a popular headliner and a guest on such television variety shows as The Steve Allen Show, Hullabaloo, The Bell Telephone Hour, and The Hollywood Palace.
Among her hit records while recording for the Coral, Signature, Motown, and TEC Recording Studios labels, were "You're Gonna Love My Baby" and "Bobby".
In the early 1960s, McNair made several musical shorts for Scopitone, a franchise of coin-operated machines that showed what were the forerunners of today's music videos. In 1967 McNair traveled with Bob Hope to Southeast Asia to perform for U.S. troops during the Vietnam War. McNair's acting career began on television, as a guest on series such as Dr. Kildare, The Eleventh Hour, I Spy, Mission: Impossible, Hogan's Heroes and McMillan and Wife. McNair posed nude for Playboy in the October 1968 issue. She caught the attention of the movie-going public with her much-publicized nude sequences in the gritty crime drama If He Hollers Let Him Go (1968) opposite Raymond St. Jacques, then donned a nun's habit alongside Mary Tyler Moore for Change of Habit (1969), Elvis Presley's last feature film. She portrayed Sidney Poitier's wife in They Call Me Mister Tibbs! (1970) and its sequel, The Organization (1971), and George Jefferson's deranged ex-girlfriend Yvonne in The Jeffersons (1984).
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