Baker, Bonnie (b. 1917)

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Baker, Bonnie (b. 1917)

American singer of the 1940s, whose greatest hit was "Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny." Name variations: called Wee Bonnie Baker because of her height. Born Evelyn Nelson in Orange, Texas, on April 1, 1917; marriedBilly Roger (her accompanist), in 1950; children: one daughter, Sharon.

With a baby voice that matched her diminutive size—4′5″—Bonnie Baker rose to fame with her recording of the old song "Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny," and hit her stride in the 1940s. During her heyday, one critic called her sound "sex in a high chair."

Born Evelyn Nelson and raised in Texas, Baker learned to sing on her own, gaining her early experience at school proms and parties. After struggling along on the professional club circuit, her big break came in 1936, when she was hired by bandleader Orrin Tucker as his vocalist. He changed her name to Bonnie Baker, and, after some teasing from the musicians about her size, the "Wee" was added. In 1939, while on tour, Baker sang the 1917 song "Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny" and recorded it during an engagement at Chicago's Palmer House. Returning from a month of one-nighters, she found that the recording had swept the East Coast. Tucker and Baker were then signed for spots on the popular radio show "Your Hit Parade" and were featured in the 1941 movie You're the One.

After a number of other hits, including "Billy," "My Resistance Is Low," and "You'd Be Surprised," Baker left Tucker and went solo, singing with such notables as Stan Kenton and Tony Pastor. She toured for the USO with an all-girl band and in 1943 appeared in a second movie, Spotlight Scandals. After the war, she joined "Ken Murray's Blackouts," where she met and became good friends with comedienne Marie Wilson .

Baker married her accompanist Billy Rogers in 1950, and the couple had a daughter. Though she continued to tour, the musical tastes of the country were changing and quality bookings became harder to find. She cut a final album for Warner Bros. in 1958. After a major heart attack in 1963, Baker retired for good and moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida.