Cabaret Singer Mary Cleere Haran Passes Away at 58
By: Robert Diamond Feb. 05, 2011
BroadwayWorld.com has confirmed the sad news that that 58 year old cabaret singer Mary Cleere Haran passed away today at the age of 58 in Deerfield Beach, Florida after spending two days on life support following a biking accident.
Close friend and attorney for many years, Mark Sendroff told us that "she had exquisite taste and was as much a brilliant writer as she was a brilliant performer. She was unique and the very top in her field, creating a class for herself and was distinguished from all of her peers in her wit and her ability to swing, perform, entertain and amuse. She was truly one of a kind. "
Stephen Holden wrote yesterday, February 4, in the New York Times ArtsBeat blog she was "gravely injured in a biking accident on Thursday near Deerfield Beach, Fla., where she has been living for the last year, said a friend, Bridge McIntyre."
Mary Cleere Haran, was one of the most renowned singers of “The Great American Songbook,” has garnered rave reviews from audiences and critics alike for her witty, sophisticated performances. The San Francisco native, who has been compared to Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee and Rosemary Clooney, evokes the charm, style and wit of 1930s movie stars like Myrna Loy, Irene Dunne, Jean Arthur and Carole Lombard.
She has performed at some of the most prominent venues in the country, including Lincoln Center, Rainbow & Stars, The Russian Tea Room, The Cinegrill in Los Angeles, The Plush Room in San Francisco and the Bellevue Hotel in Philadelphia. She also performed for BroadwayWorld.com, at 'BroadwayWorld on Ice' for Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS. Her previous critically-acclaimed shows at Feinstein’s include “Mary Cleere Haran Sings Doris Day” (2007) – recently featured on CBS Sunday Morning – and “Lullaby of Broadway: The Harry Warren Songbook” (2005).
It was Haran’s love affair with classic movies of the 1930s and 1940s – most notably the black and white Warner Bros. films bursting with brassy, sassy Gold Diggers and Jazz Age Gershwin music – that sparked her love affair with American popular song. She cites Judy Garland, Ella Fitzgerald,Peggy Lee and Doris Day as primary sources of inspiration, but Hollywood’s Golden Age has made an indelible impression on Ms. Haran’s singing. She also boasts an impressive list of theater credits, making her Broadway debut in The 1940s Radio Hour and appearing Off Broadway in Manhattan Music, Swingtime Canteen and Heebie Jeebies. On TV, she had a recurring role onSidney Lumet’s drama “100 Centre Street” on A&E.
In addition to her illustrious performing career, Ms. Haran was a respected writer and researcher who has brought her talents to numerous PBS specials, including Michael Feinstein’s “The Great American Songbook,” “Remembering Bing,” “Irving Berlin’s America,” “When We Were Young: The Lives of Child Movie Stars,” “Satchmo,” a documentary about Louis Armstrong, and “Doris Day: A Sentimental Journey.” She was one of a select group asked to write on Frank Sinatra’s death in The New York Times. Her CDs have been praised by Entertainment Weekly, People Magazine and The New York Times. Her most recent release was Crazy Rhythm: Manhattan in the ‘20s.
Mary Cleere Haran sang "No Love, No Nothin'" and
"What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" at BroadwayWorld.com's 'BroadwayWorld on Ice' benefit
for Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS
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