Molly Bee American country singer Date of Birth: 18.08.1939 Country: USA

1. Biography of Molly Bee
2. Early Career
3. Rise to Stardom
4. Transition to Other Entertainment Ventures
5. Comeback and Later Years

Biography of Molly Bee

Molly Jean Beachboard, known professionally as Molly Bee, was an American country singer who rose to fame as a popular teen star in the 1950s. She was born on August 18, 1939, and grew up in Tennessee before moving to Tucson, Arizona with her family.

Early Career

Molly's singing career began at a young age when she caught the attention of singing cowboy Rex Allen. At the age of ten, Molly's mother took her to a local concert to see Rex perform, but Molly decided to sing for him. Impressed by her rendition of "Lovesick Blues," Rex invited the young talent to perform on his radio show.

A year after that, the Bee family relocated to Hollywood, where Molly regularly appeared on the Los Angeles country show "Hometown Jamboree," hosted by Cliffie Stone. She became a regular on the show during her teenage years and gained a large following of fans. Molly's popularity was so high within the country show that it was sometimes referred to as the "Molly Bee Show." She also frequently appeared on the children's TV program "The Pinky Lee Show" for three years.

Rise to Stardom

When Molly turned thirteen, she signed a contract with Capitol Records and released her first single titled "Tennessee Tango." However, it was not until the end of 1952, when she recorded the song "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus," that she felt she had achieved significant success. In 1953, Molly released the song "Don't Start Courtin' in a Hot Rod Ford," a duet with Tennessee Ernie Ford. The following year, Molly left "The Pinky Lee Show" to join Ford's TV show.

Continuing her ascent in her career, Molly released several more hits, including "Young Romance," "Don't Look Back," and "5 Points of a Star." She also made frequent appearances on various TV shows. By the late 1950s, Molly was performing in large live concerts, drawing crowds of fans.

Transition to Other Entertainment Ventures

In the early 1960s, Molly began exploring her talents in other areas. She appeared in several musical plays such as "Finian's Rainbow," "The Boy Friend," and "California Gold" and starred in films like "Chartreuse Caboose" and "The Young Swingers." Throughout her career, Molly also appeared in the horror musical "Hillbillys in a Haunted House" and TV programs like "City Toast" and "Hee Haw." She played Ellis Bronson in the comedy "Summer Love" and Julie Ann in the film "Going Steady."

However, her music career declined when Molly signed with Liberty Records in 1962. After two unsuccessful years, Molly moved to MGM in 1965 and released the album "It's Great... It's Molly Bee." Her biggest success on the new label came the following year with the release of "Losing You" / "Miserable Me."

Comeback and Later Years

In the late 1960s, Molly Bee fell victim to drug addiction and took a hiatus from the spotlight to get her life back on track. She made a comeback in 1975 with the release of the album "Good Golly Ms. Molly" on Cliffie Stone's Granite record label. The comeback proved successful, leading to the release of two singles, "She Kept on Talking" and "Right or Left at Oak Street," which charted in the country music scene.

In 1982, Molly released her final album, "Hello Out There," before retiring from the music industry. She passed away on February 7, 2009, at the age of 69, leaving behind a legacy as a talented country singer and teen star of the 1950s.