Monday, Jan. 11, 1999

VIKKI CARR

When she needed a boost, Nat King Cole gave her one

It must be her for Saturday benefit performance for the Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestra

By DEBORAH MARTIN
Staff Writer

   Vikki Carr was delighted when the "Baywatch" folks asked her to play Hispanic lifeguard Manny Gutierrez's mother.
   Then they started describing the character.
   "They said, `She's a maid in this house.' I said, `Stop right there. Can't we get beyond housekeeper or gardener (roles for Hispanics)? Why can't she be educated, have a good job? To have that (housekeeper) be the only job she could get ...' I left that office thinking, `I blew this one.' I'm sorry, but this is ridiculous. Especially when they're trying to get the Hispanics to watch.
   "Then they called back. Now, she's computer savvy, runs this whole home and helps her boss with her company," Carr said.
   She played Teresa Gutierrez in two episodes and would gladly return to the role. She's done a fair amount of television over the years, and has performed in some well-received stage musicals. But acting has never been as important to her as music.
   Singing made her a star. Carr started singing professionally in Vegas in the '50s, playing small rooms in the wee hours. While she waited for her sets to begin, busboys sometimes snuck her into the more palatial venues. The star-struck young woman watched Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and other Rat Packers.
   "It was like I was watching a movie," she recalled.
   Sometimes, the tables would turn, and a superstar or two would be in the audience while she was on stage. One night, Nat King Cole and his noisy entourage turned out.
   "I'm singing and I'm singing and nobody's paying attention. Afterward, Nat King Cole came up to me, and he said, `I would like to apologize for my friends. Maybe you thought no one was listening, but I was. Please don't ever stop singing.' When you wonder, does what you say affect people, you can bet it does," she said.
   She took Cole's advice, performing and recording at every opportunity. She worked her way up to headliner status on the strength of such hits as "It Must Be Him" and "With Pen in Hand." She also listened to her heart, adding Latin rhythms and Spanish-language standards to her set list as a nod to her heritage.
   "We're talking about an audience that was primarily all Anglo. I'd tell them what the song was about, then I'd sing it. The response was incredible. Then, in 1969, 1970, my Anglo audiences started asking and suggesting, `Why don't you do an album in Spanish? Because when Vikki Carr sings, we understand everything.' Music is the universal language - you don't need to understand (the words) to know if it's a love song, if it's happy or sad," she said.
   The record company wasn't convinced.
   "I had a big fight with the record company in 1971, '72. They kept insisting, `No, it's not going to work,"' she recalled.
   She refused to give up. Eventually, she won, releasing "Que Sea El" in 1971 and "Vikki Carr en Espanol" the following year. She translated the songs for the liner notes to help those who didn't speak Spanish.
   The albums clicked with her fans and won her new fans across Latin America. She still tours there regularly.
   She keeps busy in the U.S., as well, though some of her activities may fall below the radar of her English-speaking fans. She just finished recording a special which PBS stations will air during pledge drives this year, and she recently did a salute to Judy Garland in New York's Carnegie Hall.
   "Many of my Anglo audiences felt I had retired. Now they say, `She's still around and she still sings great.' My executive assistant said maybe it's time for Vikki Carr retro - everything old is new again," she said.
   Performing isn't the only thing occupying her time. A chunk of her performing fees and her time goes to the Vikki Carr Scholarship Foundation, which has awarded scholarships to more than 200 Hispanic teens since 1976. Many of the students thank Carr for her help by serving on the foundation's board.
   "I don't know if all of those kids accomplish what they want to, but at least they got to try," she said.
   Her family keeps her busy, too. Five years ago, she married San Antonio physician Dr. Pedro DeLeon, and spends as much time with him and her stepchildren and grandchildren as she can.
   "I don't just live for my work, I try to also live. There's more to my life than just my work," she said.
   Vikki Carr Discography
   1963 Color Her Great
   1964 Hey Look Me Over (released in England)
   1964 Discovery
   1964 Discovery, Vol. II
   1965 Anatomy of Love
   1966 The Way of Today
   1967 Intimate Excitement
   1967 It Must Be Him
   1967 Great Performances, Vol. I (released in England)
   1968 Vikki
   1968 Don't Break My Pretty Balloon
   1969 For Once In My Life
   1969 That's All
   1969 With Pen in Hand (released in England)
   1970 Nashville By Carr
   1970 Unforgettable
   1971 The Ways to Love a Man
   1971 Que Sea El (UA Latino)
   1971 Love Story
   1971 Superstar
   1972 The Best of Vikki Carr
   1972 The First Time Ever (I Saw Your Face)
   1972 Vikki Carr En Espanol
   1973 Just for You (released thru Capitol Record Club)
   1973 Golden Songbook
   1973 Ms. America
   1973 Live at the Greek Theatre
   1973 Los Grandes Exitos De Vikki Carr (3 set)
   1974 The Very Best of Vikki Carr
   1974 One Hell of a Woman
   1975 The Very Best of Vikki Carr, Vol. II
   1975 Hoy
   1975 Live in Japan...The Story of a Woman (released in Japan)
   1976 The First Time/Love Story
   1977 Vikki Carr Collection (released in England)
   1977 Grand Prix 20 (released in Japan)
   1977 Golden Grand Prix 30 (released in Japan)
   1979 Vikki Carr Golden Double (released in Japan)
   1980 Y El Amor
   1981 El Retrato Del Amor
   1982 Vikki Carr
   1983 15 Autenticos Exitos
   1984 Vikki Carr (A Todos)
   1985 Simplemente Mujer
   1985 From the Heart (two record set)
   1986 Promesas
   1986 Esta Noche Vendras
   1987 Me Enloqueces
   1988 Esos Hombres
   1989 Set Me Free
   1991 Cosas Del Amor
   1992 Brindo a la Vida, Al Bolero y a Ti
   1994 Recuerdo A Javier Solis
   1996 Emociones
   1998 Vikki Carr con Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan
   Vikki Carr's office did not have release dates for the following albums: Vikki Carr Deluxe (released in Japan); Best 20 (released in Japan); Dos Corazones; Vikki Carr, The Best. The discography does not include Christmas releases or movie soundtracks.
   Who: Vikki Carr will perform with the Corpus Christi Youth Symphony.
   When: 8 p.m. Saturday
   Where: Selena Auditorium
   Tickets: $10 to $30 at the symphony office located in the Bayfront Plaza Convention Center. Tickets are selling quickly.
   Information: 883-6683
   

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