Beverly Sills on Merv Griffin singing Sigmund Romberg duet

In case the youtube link breaks, here's a kludgy recording:

Merv Griffin (1925-2007) and Beverly Sills (1929-2007) in conversation & song
Musical excerpt:
'Close as Pages in a Book' (Romberg/Fields)
"Beverly Sills - Made in America"
Deutsche Grammophon/Universal Classics
www.deutschegrammophon.com/dvd

Beverly Sills: In the early days when my lessons were very expensive in what is known in our city as an after hours club

Merv Griffin: Were you known as Bubbles Silverman then?

Sills: No, no, I

Griffin: Here's Bubbles!

Sills: No, siree, as a matter of fact it was the kind of the place where I didn't even have a last name! [laughs]

Sills: No, I was just "Ole Bev". And yes, I became expert at singing "Danny Boy."


[I couldn't find a video of Beverly Sills singing "Danny Boy" but I found Beverly Sills singing with the muppets in "Pigoletto"]






[ and I found a muppet trio singing "Danny Boy" - so six degrees of separation ]






Sills: It was during the time of "South Pacific" heyday, you know. It had just opened and it was a smash hit.


Griffin: We're going to do something for you. Just like being in one of those great East side, dimly lit cafes. And if you want to, you can put some money on the piano.


Sills: My mother didn't know what kind of club it really was. She just thought these are the hardships that young singers have to go through and that's fine.

Griffin: [singing] We'll be close as pages in a book, my love and I

Sills: [singing] So close, we can share a single look, Share every sigh

Griffin: [singing] So close that before I hear your laugh, Your laugh breaks through

Sills: [singing] And when a tear starts to appear, My eyes grow misty too

Sills: My singing teacher, I didn't dare tell her.  And my hour for lessons was 9 [ A.M.] o'clock. And of course the after hours club closed on a slow night at 2 [A.M.] and on a fast night at 3 [ A.M.]. And I used to stagger  into that singing lesson and she'd holler and yell at me because I seemed so comatose.

Sills: [singing]  Never to part


Sills and Griffin: [singing] Your life is my life, And while life beats away in my heart, We'll be close as pages in a book, Never to part


And here's Bing Crosby singing the entire "Close as Pages in a Book" song:





And here's José Ferrer portraying the "Close as Pages in a Book" composer, Sigmund Romberg, singing another one of his compositions "Fat, Fat, Fatima"

Joe the Plumber sues muppet mass murderer, Jones-Kelley

Joe the plumber is suing Muppet mass murderer, Helen Jones-Kelley.

Wurzelbacher alleges his constitutional rights were violated when the three then-state officials in the Democratic Strickland administration, including Department of Job and Family Services Director Helen Jones-Kelley, illegally accessed private information about him in state databases after Wurzelbacher became a prominent Obama foe embraced by McCain.

In addition to Jones-Kelley, the lawsuit names as defendants former department officials Fred Williams and Doug Thompson.

The lawsuit was filed by the legal watchdog group Judicial Watch on behalf of Wurzelbacher[...]Jones-Kelley resigned last year near the end of a month-long, unpaid suspension for mining state computers for confidential information on "Joe the Plumber." The Strickland administration fired Doug Thompson, deputy director of child support. Fred Williams, assistant agency director, resigned effective Jan. 31.

A report by Inspector General Thomas P. Charles found Jones-Kelley approved the database checks on Wurzelbacher for no legitimate government purpose. The checks came the day after McCain repeatedly mentioned Wurzelbacher by his nickname in a televised debate with Obama on Oct. 15.

Charles found that Williams and Thompson participated in Jones-Kelley's authorization of the checks and that Thompson later directed an employee to lie about the checks. That staff member reported the incident to Charles.

The agency's actions drew outrage from across the country after The Dispatch broke the story in October. The paper also reported that Jones-Kelley had used her state computer and e-mail to assist the Obama campaign, providing names of potential Dayton-area contributors and helping to arrange an event for Obama's wife, Michelle.

Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said "no American should be investigated for simply asking a question of a public official."

Fitton added that he believes this case is part of a pattern of Obama supporters targeting Obama opponents, and said what happened to Wurzelbacher will have a "chilling effect" on other Americans.

Good, clean-cut people treating Muppets with the proper respect due to them:




H/T Hillbuzz for outstanding fashion analysis

**EDIT**

Apparently, John Kerry should be afraid of Jones-Kelley, since he bears a striking resemblence to Guy Smiley: