Ina Ray Hutton

Ina Ray Hutton (born Odessa Cowan; March 13, 1916 – February 19, 1984) was an American singer, bandleader, and the elder sister of June Hutton. She led one of the first all-female big bands.

Biography

A native of Chicago, Hutton began dancing and singing on stage at the age of eight.

In 1934, she was approached by Irving Mills and vaudeville agent Alex Hyde to lead an all-girl orchestra, the Melodears, As part of the group's formation, Mills asked her to change her name. The group included trumpeter Frances Klein, Canadian pianist Ruth Lowe Sandler, saxophonist Jane Cullum, guitarist Marian Gange, trumpeter Mardell "Owen" Winstead, and trombonist Alyse Wells.

The Melodears appeared in short films and in the movie Big Broadcast of 1936. They recorded six songs, sung by Hutton, before disbanding in 1939. and performed on the radio. After this band broke up, she started another male band a couple years later.

Race Although Hutton and some members of her family are thought to have been white, historians have theorized that she and her family were of mixed white and African-American ancestry. In 1920, Hutton herself was listed in the US Census as "mulatto" and in 1930 as "negro".

Personal life She was married and divorced five times and had no children: Charles Doerwald, a traveling salesman. They eloped and were married July 29, 1939. However, Doerwald's divorce from his current wife was not final and his marriage to Hutton was annulled. Louis P. Parisotto, saxophonist with Hutton's all-male band. Married October 27, 1943. Divorced December 3, 1946. Randy Brooks, trumpeter. Married April 10, 1949. Divorced June 1957. Michael Anter, owner of a beauty salon in Las Vegas. Married May 31, 1958. Divorced 1960. John "Jack" Franklin Curtis, owner of a tool company. Married April 13, 1963. Divorced December 29, 1979.

Discography Ina Ray Hutton and Her Melodears (Vintage Music, 2001) The Definitive Collection (Fantastic Voyage, 2011)