Jane froman alter ego
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Jane Froman was born to Anna T Barcafer and Elmer Ellsworth Froman in 1907. She spent her childhood in the small Missouri town of Clinton, Missouri, and her adolescence in the city of Columbia, Missouri, which she considered her hometown. Her parents separated when she was five. Jane began stuttering shortly after that, and it plagued her all of her life, except when she sang.
Although she had classical voice training, early in her career she was drawn to the songs of the era’s brilliant young songwriters, George and Ira Gershwin, Cole Porter, and Irving Berlin, who were inspiring a resurgence in popular music. In 1934, at age 27, she became the top-polled ‘girl singer’. The famous composer and producer, Billy Rose, when asked to name the top ten female singers, is reported to have replied, “Jane Froman and nine others”.
She was severely injured by an aircraft crash on February 22, 1943, when a USO plane carrying Jane and thirty-eight others crashed into the Tagus River in Lisbon, Portugal. One of fifteen survivors, Jane sustained horrible injuries: a cut below the left knee nea
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Jane Froman
Singer, Actress, Humanitarian
Year Inducted: 2015
Jane Froman was born in University City in 1907 and moved to Columbia with her mother when she was 12. Jane graduated from Christian College High School and two years later Christian College. After starring in the University of Missouri’s J-School Music Revue in 1926, she soon entered the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music in Ohio. While studying there, she landed a job with a local orchestra and made several radio show appearances.
Jane moved to New York City in 1933 where she appeared on Chesterfield’s “Music that Satisfies” radio program with Bing Crosby. In 1934 she was asked to join the Ziegfeld Follies, she married, became friends with superstar Fanny Brice and was voted the nation’s “top girl singer” on radio. The composer Billy Rose, when asked to name the top ten female singers at the time, replied, “Jane Froman and nine others.”
In February of 1943 she boarded a plane bound for a USO tour. The plane crashed near Lisbon Portugal and Jane was one of only 15 survivors. She suffered severe injur
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Jane Froman
Full Name: Ellen Jane Froman
Born: November 10, 1907
Died: April 22, 1980 (age 72)
Missouri Hometowns: Clinton, Columbia, University City
Region of Missouri: Central
Categories: Entertainers, Historic Mizzourians, Women
Introduction
Jane Froman was a popular singer and entertainer during the 1930s through the 1950s. Injured during a tragic plane crash in 1943, Froman overcame personal tragedy and debilitating injuries to become one of the most beloved performers of her time. She had her own television show in the 1950s, where she sang and performed. She also helped many charities that served sick children.
Early Years and Education
Ellen Jane Froman was born on November 10, 1907, in University City, Missouri. Her parents, Elmer Ellsworth Froman and Anna T. Barcafer, separated when Jane was five. Shortly thereafter, young Jane began to stutter, a problem she experienced all her life except when she sang. She spent her childhood in Clinton, Missouri, with her mother and the extended Barcafer family.
Froman and her mother
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