Photo: Pamela Blair | Pamela Blair (December 5, 1949 – July 23, 2023) was an American actress and singer best known for originating the role of Val in the musical A Chorus Line and several appearances on American soap operas.
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In 1974, Blair was invited by Michael Bennett to participate in the workshops from which A Chorus Line was developed. The character of “Valerie Clark” was in large part, based on her own life, although the surgical enhancement came from another dancer. “Val was based on Mitzi Hamilton, who actually underwent surgery to enhance her figure, and Pam Blair, whose mixture of angelic appearance and ribald tongue entertained Bennett enormously”. The angelic looking yet sexy Val has a foul mouth, and introduces the popular Broadway song “Dance: Ten; Looks: Three” which tells the story of an unattractive yet talented girl who uses plastic surgery to help her get cast in roles. The song is also known by its chorus, “Tits and Ass”. Val is one of the larger roles, and Blair received much attention. Along with the cast, Blair won the 1976 Theatre World Award for Ensemble Performance for the show.
Blair next originated the role of “Amber” (later “Angel”) in 1978’s The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. Her turn as an eager to work prostitute earned her a Drama Desk Award nomination. She can be heard on the cast recording as the lead in “Hard Candy Christmas”, although the song “Bus from Amarillo” was taken from her before the show opened. Further roles on Broadway include King of Hearts (in the Geneviève Bujold role), “Clelia” in The Nerd, and “Joanne” in A Few Good Men, directed by her then estranged husband, Don Scardino.
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Blair married actor and film director Don Scardino in 1984, and they divorced in 1991. She lived in Northern New Jersey for a time, and last resided in Arizona where she owned her own Therapeutic and Myofascial Massage Studio for athletes. Blair died in Phoenix on July 23, 2023, at the age of 73.
Read more of Ms. Blair’s biography here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pamela_Blair
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OTHER NOTABLE MUSICIANS’ DEATHS
Sorry to hear of the death of Chung Lim, a South Korean singer and actor, from colon cancer a the age of THIRTY-SEVEN (37). No wonder the USA’s Health Department has lowered the age for getting your colonoscopy! Time to get yours maybe?
Warning Signs of Suicide – National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 and 888-628-9454 for Spanish. Learn the signs of someone who may be contemplating suicide.
If you want to know more about any of the musicians we lost, please check them out at
http://www.wikipedia.com
July 2023
26: Sinéad O’Connor*, 56, Irish singer (“Nothing Compares 2 U”) and songwriter (“Mandinka”, “The Emperor’s New Clothes”), Grammy winner (1991); Surinder Shinda, 70, Indian Punjabi singer.
25: Michele Kalamera, 84, Italian actor and voice actor; Semyon Kaminsky, 82, Russian writer, entertainer and songwriter; Andreas Tsoukalas, 60, Greek singer.
24: Leny Andrade, 80, Brazilian singer and musician; Denis Badault, 65, French pianist, conductor and composer (Orchestre National de Jazz); Brad Houser, 62, American musician (Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, Critters Buggin), stroke; Dóris Monteiro, 88, Brazilian singer and actress; Cecilia Pantoja, 79, Chilean singer-songwriter.
23: Pamela Blair*, 73, American singer and actress (A Chorus Line, Annie, Beavis and Butt-Head Do America); Raymond Froggatt, 81, English songwriter (“Callow-la-vita”, “Big Ship”, “Rachel”) and singer; Otello Profazio, 88, Italian cantastorie, folk singer-songwriter, and author.
22: Peter Austin, 78, Jamaican singer (The Clarendonians); Vince Hill, 89, English singer (“Edelweiss”, “Take Me to Your Heart Again”); Eduard Labkovsky, 84, Russian singer; Knut Riisnæs, 77, Norwegian jazz musician; Arthur Rubin, 97, American singer and actor (The Patty Duke Show, The Producers).
21: Hafiz Abdelrahman, Sudanese flautist; Tony Bennett, 96, American singer (“I Left My Heart in San Francisco”, “Rags to Riches”, “Because of You”), 20-time Grammy winner; Mahabhashyam Chittaranjan, 84, Indian author and Telugu musician and composer.
20: Massimiliano Damerini], 72, Italian pianist.
19: Chung Lim, 37, South Korean singer and actor (Dream), colon cancer; Mark Thomas, 67, British composer (Twin Town, The Final Curtain, Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deaths_in_2023
Photo: Patricia Blair | https://www.facebook.com/PatriciaBlairOfficial/