KEELY SMITH : THERE'S A HOUSE PARTY TONIGHT: FROM OUR ARCHIVES POST (121)

POST (121) on KEELY SMITH From March 2008

Keely Smith and Louis Prima were one of the favorite Lounge Acts acts of Frank Sinatra and his Rat Pack in Vegas.

I thought Keely was terrific and had an amazing voice. Make that HAS an amazing voice that has only gotten better with time. Keely performed at J.F.K.'s inauguration and in the 2000's she's recording CD's and making appearances on television shows sans Louie who passed some time ago in 1978. So many of the songs she and Louie recorded were high energy and positive. They were good time party songs, fun in Vegas songs, and "There's A House Party Tonight," is one of my favorites! Now, we searched for a video of Keely and Louie and this song to no avail, but we didn't want to miss posting about them. House parties, be it Vegas, Palm Springs, or Los Angeles, were the rage. They were private parties. Parties of the rich. Elvis' kind of party.

Link above to a NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO site that features an interview with Keely.

From YouTube a Video of Louie and Keely in the mid to late fifties singing "When You're Smiling." Keely's stone face is in direct contrast to Louie and the band's energetic performance, and that's exactly what's so funny about it!

On March 22 2011 we substituted the historical music YouTube video below, which is not of the song "There's A House Party Tonight," but does document Keely's act with Louis! You could say she's the "straight man" to his exuberance!

Hello to DAVE DUTTON, bookseller and long time friend

Dave Dutton, the bookseller, who had a very dusty, literary, independent bookstore called Dutton's books in Los Angeles' on Laurel Canyon, is out of the local book business. For a man who loves the arts, it's not easy to be retired at all and I know Dave is indulging his interests in art, literature, and so much else. Dave has been a friend of mine for years, his shop a frequent stop, and when he found out we were writing a memoir he was so supportive. Dave always said that when we get our memoir published he'd throw us a book signing. It's been a couple years since his shop closed and I think of him often. Hello Dave!

http://www.npr.org/templates/rundowns/rundown.php?prgId=17 This is the link for NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO and in their archives for March 22, 2006 is an archived interview (audio) about DAVE DUTTON!

Day to Day, "March 22, 2006 · Small, independent Dutton's book store is closing its doors after 46 years in North Hollywood, Calif. Gloria Hillard profiles the shop and its owner, a man who has devoted his life to books. Dave Dutton took over from his father as a young man, but will soon shutter Dutton's Books -- a refuge for older, sometimes forgotten tomes."