Christy, June

Christy, June (b. Shirley Luster)

(1925–90) vocalist; born in Springfield, Ill. A singer associated with West Coast jazz, she began with prominent Chicago society bands before joining Stan Kenton's orchestra in 1945. After Kenton disbanded in 1949, she worked as a single and recorded her classic album Something Cool in 1953. She toured occasionally in the U.S.A. and abroad until her retirement in the late 1960s.

The Cambridge Dictionary of American Biography, by John S. Bowman. Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995. Reproduced with permission.