Singer Eydie Gorme Passes Away At 84

Popular singer Eydie Gorme died on Saturday at the age of 84. During her time, Gorme was known as a nightclub and television singer who had both a solo act and a duo with her husband, Steve Lawrence.

Eydie’s publicist, Howard Bragman, announced the singer’s death, though declined to disclose her illness. Eydie was born Edith Garmezano, the daughter of Sephardic Jews.

Gorme made a name for herself as a successful band singer and nightclub entertainer before making her television debut in 1953, reports USA Today.

She sang solos, duets, and also participated in comedy skits on Steve Allen’s local New York television show. The program became NBC’s Tonight Show the next year.

Lawrence had joined the cast the year before Gorme, and the young couple hit it off quickly. They were married in Las Vegas in 1957 and eventually performed for audiences there as well.

The New York Daily News notes that much of the couple’s materials included popular standards, though they were also known for performing songs from the new wave of 1960s writers.

The couple’s stage act, called Steve and Eydie, was well known in the nightclub venues, along with in Law Vegas. Their signature was bantering about their marriage, a gambit that also worked well for Sonny and Cher.

Among others, Eydie Gorme and her husband toured with Frank Sinatra and her career awards included a Grammy, an Emmy, and an induction with her husband into the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame.

After more than 50 years in the music business, Eydie retired in 2009. The couple had two sons, David and Michael, though the latter died in 1986 at the age of 23 from a heart condition.

Eydie’s husband released a statement about her death on Saturday, calling her “my partner on stage and in life for more than 55 years.” He added, “I fell in love with her the moment I saw her and even more the first time I heard her sing.”

There was no word on funeral arrangements for Eydie Gorme at this time.

[Image by NBC Television via Wikimedia Commons]