Maria Grazia Morgana Messina (June 4, 1930 – March 22, 2018), better known as Morgana King, was an American jazz singer and actress.[1][2][3] She began a professional singing career at sixteen years old. In her twenties, she was singing at a Greenwich Village nightclub when she was recognized for her unique phrasing and vocal range, described as a four-octave contralto range. She was signed to a label and began recording solo albums. She recorded dozens of albums well into the late 1990s.
Morgana King | |
---|---|
Born | Maria Grazia Morgana Messina June 4, 1930 Pleasantville, New York, U.S. |
Died | March 22, 2018 Palm Springs, California, U.S. | (aged 87)
Occupation(s) | Singer, actress |
Years active | 1946–1998 |
Spouses | |
Children | 1 |
Musical career | |
Genres | |
Instrument | Vocals |
Labels | Ascot, EmArcy, Mainstream, Mercury, Muse, Paramount, Reprise, Savoy, United Artists, Verve, Wing |
King had her debut and breakout role in film as Mama Corleone in The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather Part II (1974).[4][5] She had roles in three additional films including her last performance in A Brooklyn State of Mind in 1997.
She was twice married to fellow jazz musicians, first to Tony Fruscella and later to Willie Dennis. Morgana died on March 22, 2018, in Palm Springs, California.[6]
Early life
editKing was born Maria Grazia Morgana Messina in Pleasantville, New York. Her parents were from Fiumefreddo di Sicilia, Province of Catania, Sicily, Italy.[7] She grew up in New York City with five siblings.[8] Her father, who owned a coal and ice business, played the piano and guitar by ear.[9][10] Her family experienced a difficult financial period after her father died.[8]
Around the age of thirteen her vocal gifts were recognized when she was overheard singing the aria "I'll See You Again" from Noël Coward's operetta Bitter Sweet. At age 16 she developed a love for big bands.[11][12] A scholarship to the Metropolitan School of Music soon followed.
Singing debut
editHer professional singing career began at age sixteen as Morgana King.[13] When she sang in a Greenwich Village nightclub in 1953, a record label executive took an interest after being impressed with the unique phrasing and multi-octave range. Three years later in 1956, her first album, For You, For Me, For Evermore, was released.[14]
Film debut
editIn the first appearance of Leonard G. Feather's Encyclopedia of Jazz (1960), Morgana King stated that her ambition was "… to become a dramatic actress."[15] She began her acting career in The Godfather, directed by Francis Ford Coppola,[16] as Carmela Corleone, wife of Don Vito Corleone. In the film, she sang the song "Luna mezzo mare". King appeared as herself in the television documentary The Godfather: Behind the Scenes (1971).[17] She reprised the role in The Godfather Part II (1974), where her character dies aged 62, due to natural causes.[4][5][18][19]
Career
editSinging
editKing headlined clubs, concert halls and hotels, and toured throughout the United States, Europe, Australia and South America; e.g.: Basin Street;[20] bla-bla café;[21] Blue Note;[22] Blue Room at the Supper Club;[23] Café Leon;[24] Club Bali;[25][26] Cotton Club;[27][28] Fat Tuesday's;[29] Jilly's;[30] Joe Howard's Place;[31] Kenny's Castaways;[32] Lainie's Room;[33] Les Mouches;[34] Lush Life;[35] Mr. Sam's;[36] Rainbow Grill;[37] Reno Sweeney;[38] Scullers;[39] Sniffen Court;[40] Sweet Basil;[41] The Metropole;[42] Town Hall;[43][44] the Waterbury Hotels;[45] and Trude Heller's.[46]
A few of the venue performances during her active career: the March 1956 Easter Jazz Festival at Town Hall in New York City;[44] she opened Trude Heller's in July 1957 and returned throughout her career for anniversary performances;[46] four months later, in November 1957, along with seven female jazz instrumentalists, she performed at the Jazz Female concert held at Carnegie Recital Hall;[47] the Schaefer Music Festival in June 1976;[48] A Tribute to Billie Holiday at the Hollywood Bowl in July 1979;[49] the AIDS Research – Benefit Bash in 1983,[50] the Benefit for the Theater Off Park in May 1988;[51] the 2nd annual WPBX Jazz Festival at the Fine Arts Theater in August 1989.[52] While performing in Lisbon, Portugal, she was interviewed by the television show host Henrique Mendes at the television station RTP (the sole television station at that time)."[53]
Musicians
editA limited list of artists who performed and/or recorded with Morgana King over the years of her career are Ben Aronov,[54][55] Ronnie Bedford,[56] Ed Caccavale (drums), Clifford Carter,[57] Don Costa,[58] Eddie Daniels,[59] Sue Evans,[60] Larry Fallon,[61] Sammy Figueroa,[62] John Kaye (percussion), Helen Keane,[63] Art Koenig,[64] Steve LaSpina,[65] Scott Lee,[66] Jay Leonhart,[67] Ray Mantilla,[68] Bill Mays,[69] Charles McCracken,[70] Ted Nash,[71] Adam Nussbaum,[72] Warren Odze,[73] Joe Puma,[74] Don Rebic,[75] Jack Wilkins,[76] Joe Williams (bass), and Torrie Zito.[77][78][79][80][81]
Recording
editHer repertoire contains more than two hundred songs on more than thirty albums.[78][79][80][81] Most of her recordings and re-issues have not remained in the catalogs.[82][83][84][85][86]
In 1964, she received a Grammy Award nomination for Best New Artist. The award went to the Beatles.
The UCLA Music Library's Jimmy Van Heusen papers include a letter dated September 5, 1965 pertaining to "songs… to be given to Morgana King."[87] She recorded three songs by Van Heusen: "Here's That Rainy Day" (on It's a Quiet Thing, 1965), "Like Someone in Love" (on Stardust, 1986; and Another Time, Another Space, 1992) and "Imagination" (on Looking Through The Eyes Of Love, 1998). King's 1967 single "I Have Loved Me A Man" appeared in the US "Easy Listening" survey and the Australian Top 20, according to the Kent Music Report.
Television
editBeginning with The Andy Williams Show and The Hollywood Palace in 1964. For more than a decade she performed on television talk and variety shows including The Mike Douglas Show, The Dean Martin Show and The David Frost Show.[53][88]
Retirement
editKing announced her retirement from performing during an engagement at the Cotton Club in Chicago on Friday, December 10, 1993, and added that her recording would not be affected by the decision.[89] She continued to perform after that date at the Ballroom,[90] Maxim's,[91] Mirage Night Club (a benefit jazz session),[92] and Roosevelt Hotel's Cinegrill.[93] Her last film appearance was in the film A Brooklyn State of Mind (1997).
Personal life
editRelationships and family
editMorgana King married twice. Her first marriage (when she was 17 years old) was to jazz trumpeter Tony Fruscella[94][95][96][97] (1927–1969), which ended in divorce after nine years; they had a daughter, Graysan (1950–2008).[98] During their marriage, the couple frequently had "Sunday dinner with Charlie Parker and his family."[99]
Her second marriage, in 1961, was to jazz trombonist Willie Dennis (né William DeBerardinis; 1926–1965),[100][101] whom she met during an off-night visit to the Birdland Jazz Club[102] where she went to hear Sam Donahue's group. He had performed with both Gerry Mulligan[103] and Charles Mingus[104] and recorded the 1953 album release, Four Trombones[105] on Mingus' record label, Debut Records. He had toured extensively with Benny Goodman,[106] Woody Herman[107] and Buddy Rich.[108]
She traveled to Brazil with Dennis to experience this "new" music style when he toured with Rich in 1960. She said the experience was "an introduction to myself."[10] Their close collaboration was suddenly shattered in 1965 with his death from an automobile accident in New York's Central Park.[109][110] It's a Quiet Thing (Reprise, 1965) is a memorial to him.
After Dennis's death, King relocated and lived for more than two decades in Malibu, California. She accepted Frank Sinatra's offer to record three albums on his record label Reprise Records (It's a Quiet Thing (1965), Wild Is Love (1966) and Gemini Changes (1967)).[111]
Death
editKing owned a condo in Palm Springs, California.[112] She died, aged 87, of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in Palm Springs on March 22, 2018.[113][114]
Influence
editThere have been reports that, as a child, King lived near a synagogue and was intrigued by the singing of the cantor. Some have theorized that King's unique singing style was due, in part, to the singing of a cantor that she carried in her memories. King's voice is notable for its four-octave contralto range.[13][36][115][116][117][118] She continued to pursue new forms of expression and presentation by exploring current music trends, which can be heard and read from the list of songs and composers on more than thirty albums. She ventured into new creative areas throughout her career, all the while keeping contact with her musical point of origin in jazz. Her distinctive sound has its criticism and detractors.[35][89][119][120]
In literature, the Library of Jazz Standards by Ronny Schiff (2002)[121] recognizes Morgana King as one of the performers who made famous the songs "Imagination" (Van Heusen, Burke), "Like Someone in Love" (Van Heusen, Burke) and "Will You Be Mine" (Adair, Dennis). Also, there is the occasional mention of her in fiction.[122][123][124][125][126]
King has been credited with composing "Moe's Blues", a song recorded by Beverly Kenney on Beverly Kenney Sings for Johnny Smith (1955),[3] and "Simply Eloquent", with Monte Oliver, which appears on an album of the same title, initially released in 1986 by Muse Records. In 1991, she produced a set of seminars called Morgana King Fine Arts Series. The seminars brought together small groups for recurring meetings every few months held at select venues including Lincoln Center. One of the functions of the series was to familiarize participants with performance methodologies. There was a panel available to critique the performances.[8]
Her signature song is "A Taste Of Honey", originally released on the album With A Taste of Honey (Mainstream Records, 1964). Her most re-issued songs are "My Funny Valentine", from Everything Must Change (Muse, 1978), and the title track of For You, For Me, For Evermore (EmArcy Records, 1956).[78][79][80][81]
Discography
editFilmography
editYear | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1972 | The Godfather | Mama Corleone | |
1974 | The Godfather Part II | ||
1978 | Nunzio | Mrs. Sabatino | |
1987 | A Time to Remember, aka Miracle in a Manger | Mama Theresa | |
1997 | A Brooklyn State of Mind | Aunt Rose | (final film role) |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1964 | The Andy Williams Show | Variety show | Performed "Corcovado" with Andy Williams (sn 2, ep 4). |
1964 | The Hollywood Palace | Variety show | Performed "A Taste Of Honey (sn 3, ep 6)" |
1965 | The Mike Douglas Show | Talk show | Herself (sn 4, ep 28) |
1966 | The Hollywood Palace | Variety show | Herself (sn 4, ep 3) |
1966 | The Hollywood Palace | Variety show | Herself (sn 4, ep 7) |
1966 | The Dean Martin Show | Variety show | Performed "Mountain High, Valley Low". Also performed "Loch Lomond" and "Goodnight, Irene" with Dean Martin. (sn 1, ep 27) |
1967 | The Mike Douglas Show | Talk show | Herself (sn 5, ep 87) |
1968 | The Rosey Grier Show | Talk show | Herself |
1968 | The Pat Boone Show | Variety show | Herself |
1968 | The Woody Woodbury Show | Talk show | Herself |
1968 | The Dean Martin Show | Variety show | Performed "I Have Loved Me A Man". Also performed "So Long", "Now Is The Hour" and "Auld Lang Syne" with Dean Martin. (sn 3, ep 29) |
1968 | The Dean Martin Show | Variety show | Performed "When The World Was Young" (sn 4, ep 8) |
1969 | Playboy After Dark | Variety show | Herself (sn 1, eps 3 & 12) |
1970 | The David Frost Show | Talk show | Herself |
1971 | The Godfather: Behind the Scenes | Documentary | Herself |
1971 | The Mike Douglas Show | Talk show | Herself (sn 9, ep 114) |
1971 | The Virginia Graham Show | Talk show | Herself |
1972 | The David Frost Show | Talk show | Herself (sn 4, ep 130) |
1972 | The Virginia Graham Show | Talk show | Herself |
1972 | The Mike Douglas Show | Talk show | Herself (sn 10, ep 105) |
1972 | The Mike Douglas Show | Talk show | Herself (sn 10, ep 165) |
1973 | The Mike Douglas Show | Talk show | Herself (sn 10, ep 170) |
1974 | The Mike Douglas Show | Talk show | Herself |
1976 | Jigsaw John: Thicker Than Blood | Series | Zoe Pappas |
1977 | The Godfather Saga | Mini-series | Mama Corleone (ep numbers 1.1 through 1.4) |
1985 | Deadly Intentions | TV movie | Anna Livanos |
1993 | All My Children | Soap opera | Promotional title "The Summer of Seduction" Mrs. Manganaro |
Videography
editYear | Title | Format | Available |
---|---|---|---|
1992 | The Godfather Trilogy: 1901–1980 | Archive footage | No |
2001 | Gordon Willis on Cinematography (Uncredited: Carmela Corleone) | Archive footage | No |
2004 | The Godfather: Widescreen Edition | DVD | Yes |
The Godfather Part II (1974): Widescreen; Dubbed; Re-mastered | DVD | Yes | |
2005 | A Tribute To Billie Holiday: Recorded Live At the Hollywood Bowl (1979) | DVD: Morgana King interview and performances: "Easy Living", As Time Goes By" and "God Bless The Child" | No |
A Brooklyn State of Mind | DVD | Yes | |
A Brooklyn State of Mind | DVD | Yes | |
2006 | The Godfather Part II: Restored | DVD | Yes |
2008 | The Godfather: The Coppola Restoration | DVD | Yes |
The Godfather: Restored Trilogy | BD, DVD | Yes |
Notes
edit- D'Acierno, Pellegrino. The Italian American Heritage, A Companion to Literature and Arts (1998), p. 434; ISBN 0-8153-0380-7
- Inman, David. Television Variety Shows, Histories and Episode Guides to 57 Programs (2005), pp. 250–51, 293; ISBN 0-7864-2198-3
- Meil, Eila. Casting Might-Have-Beens, A Film by Film Directory of Actors Considered For Roles Given To Others (2005) p. 102; ISBN 0-7864-2017-0
- Ross, Wallace A. Best TV & Radio Commercials, Volume 1 (1967), pp. 103, 153
- Shaw, Arnold. 52nd Street: The Street Of Jazz (1977), pp. 321, 338; ISBN 0-306-80068-3
- Shilts, Randy. And The Band Played On (2007); p. 331; ISBN 0-312-37463-1
- Thomas, Sam. Best American Screenplays 3, Complete Screenplays (1995), pp. 7, 62; ISBN 0-517-59104-9
- Review, The Godfather New York Times, March 16, 1972 by Vincent Canby.
- Rolling Stone January 3, 1974 Archived July 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Issue 151
- Singing, 20th century. History.com Encyclopedia
- Westways Volume 69 (1967), p. 55
References
edit- ^ Liner notes by Joel Dorn – Morgana King album The Complete Reprise Recordings (2000).
- ^ Liner notes by Ed Osborne – Morgana King re-issue album It's A Quite Thing (2006).
- ^ a b Beverly Kenny Sings For Johnny Smith. Toshiba EMI Japan 1955 song "Moe's Blues", track listing 11.
- ^ a b Nichols, Peter M. The New York Times Guide to the Best 1000 Movies Ever Made (2004), p. 390; ISBN 0-312-32611-4
- ^ a b Maltin, Leonard Leonard Maltin's 2009 Movie Guide (2008), p. 530; ISBN 0-452-28978-5
- ^ Genzlinger, Neil (August 15, 2018). "Morgana King, Jazz Singer and 'Godfather' Actor, Is Dead at 87". The New Yorker. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
- ^ Vernon Scott (May 3, 1971). Singer in 'Godfather' Role. The Deseret News
- ^ a b c Morgana King's Songs Offer Relief. Chicago Sun-Times, November 13, 1992, p. 19, Weekend Plus
- ^ Leonard Feather & Ira Gitler. The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz (2007) p. 385; ISBN 0-19-532000-X
- ^ a b "Morgana King Charms Her Audience With Style." New York Times, January 20, 1970
- ^ "Noël Coward Society". Noelcoward.net. December 16, 1969. Archived from the original on December 9, 2011. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ "Bitter Sweet". Musical-theatre.net. Archived from the original on September 26, 2011. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ a b JAZZ: Morgana King, New York Times September 2, 1985
- ^ Andy Gregory, Eur. International Who's Who in Popular Music (2002), p. 278; ISBN 1-85743-161-8
- ^ Feather, Leonard. Encyclopedia of Jazz Horizon Press, ISBN 978-0-8180-1203-7.
- ^ "Zoetrope". Zoetrope. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ "The Godfather: Behind the Scenes": IBDb by Morgana King
- ^ Ben Fong-Torres (March 14, 1974). "Morgana King won't play dead" Archived July 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. Rolling Stone, Issue 156 by
- ^ "The Godfather: Part II (1974)" – via www.imdb.com.
- ^ "Morgana King opened to a packed house". Billboard, September 25, 1954, vol 77, p. 39
- ^ Ross, Sandy. bla-bla café; ISBN 0-9777227-0-8.
- ^ Stephen Holden, (January 30, 1987). "Morgana King, the Blue Note" New York Times
- ^ Stephen Holden, (March 5, 1993). "Where Stardust Dreams Are, Always" New York Times
- ^ Jazz vocalist Morgana King appeared at the Café Leon Down Beat, 1961, p. 55
- ^ The InTowner 'U' Street – Club Bali.pdf Archived May 10, 2008, at the Wayback Machine Scenes from the Past…
- ^ 'U' Street Jazz Club Bali Venues
- ^ "Cotton Club… Morgana King" by Lynn Voedisch. Chicago Sun-Times, October 30, 1992
- ^ Lloyd Sachs (June 10, 1992). "… jazz vocalist, Morgana King, will perform at the Cotton Cotton." Chicago Sun-Times.
- ^ "Morgana King will sing tonight [at] Fat Tuesday's". The New York Times, February 14, 1986
- ^ Morgana King Down Beat, 1960 page 69
- ^ "Morgana King" Down Beat, Volume 28 (1961), p. 48
- ^ Morgana King, Kenny's Castaways. The New York Times, March 24, 1974
- ^ Morgana King—Lainie's Room. The New York Times, April 9, 1978 Arts and Leisure Guide
- ^ Morgana King, singer at Les Mouches. The New York Times, May 13, 1979 Arts and Leisure Guide
- ^ a b Cabaret: "Morgana King at Lush Life". The New York Times, March 29, 1982
- ^ a b Stephen Holden (July 4, 1986). "Cabaret: Morgana King". The New York Times
- ^ Dramatic Singing by Morgana King. The New York Times, January 26, 1972 Review
- ^ Morgana King at Reno Sweeney. New York Magazine, December 19, 1977, p. 32.
- ^ "A Feast For Boston's Jazz Fans." by Fernando Gonzalez, The Boston Globe, April 13, 1990
- ^ Morgana King's instrumental group. The New York Times, July 8, 1963
- ^ Going Out Guide. The New York Times, December 20, 1980 Farther Downtown
- ^ "Morgana King, jazz singer, at The Metropole." The New York Times, March 17, 1967 Cabaret Tonight.
- ^ "The Town Hall". The-townhall-nyc.org. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ a b "Jazz Ensembles Sound Seasonal Note With an Easter Festival at Town Hall." The New York Times, March 31, 1956.
- ^ Waterbury hotels. The New York Times, January 3, 1988 Connecticut Guide.
- ^ a b Morgana King… Trude Heller's. The New York Times, July 5, 1977 and July 10, 1977 Going Out Guide, Arts and Leisure Guide
- ^ Women Offer Jazz Concert. New York Times, November 30, 1957
- ^ "Schaefer Festival Opens On June 14 With Mancini." The New York Times, May 25, 1976
- ^ "A Tribute to Billie Holiday, Hollywood Bowl, July 1979". Amazon. September 9, 2009. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ Jet September 26, 1983, v. 65, no. 3, p. 45.
- ^ Robert E. Tomasson (May 22, 1988) "Social Events, Harlem Celebrations". New York Times
- ^ 'Long Island Guide'. The New York Times, July 30, 1989 Anniversary Fair.
- ^ a b "Morgana King". IMDb.
- ^ Ben Aronov at Allmusic
- ^ John S. Wilson (Oct 29, 1984) "Music: Noted In Brief; Ben Aronov Plays Solo Jazz Piano". New York Times,
- ^ Ronnie Bedford at Allmusic
- ^ "Clifford Carter". Clifford Carter. Archived from the original on April 24, 2019. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ Don Costa at Discogs
- ^ "Eddie Daniels". Eddiedanielsclarinet.com. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ Sue Evans at Allmusic
- ^ "Larry Fallon". Larry Fallon. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ "Sammy Figueroa". Sammy Figueroa. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ Helen Keane Archived August 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine at University of Pittsburgh
- ^ Art Koenig at Concerned Musicians, Local 802 Archived May 20, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Steve LaSpina". Steve LaSpina. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ "Scott Lee". Scottleemusic.com. Archived from the original on October 8, 2011. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ "Jay Leonhart". Jay Leonhart. Archived from the original on November 29, 2011. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ "Ray Mantilla". Mantillamusic.com. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ "Bill Mays". Bill Mays. Archived from the original on October 8, 2011. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ Charles McCracken at Allmusic
- ^ Ted Nash at Allmusic
- ^ Adam Nussbaus at Allmusic
- ^ Warren Odze at Iridium Jazz Club
- ^ Joe Puma at Classic Jazz Guitar Archived January 14, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Don Rebic". Don Rebic. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ "Jack Wilkins". Jack Wilkins. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ Torrie Zito at Jazz Professional Archived May 13, 2003, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c Morgana King at Allmusic
- ^ a b c Morgana King at Amazon.com
- ^ a b c Morgana King at MTV
- ^ a b c Morgana King at Yahoo! Music
- ^ King profile at Napster[permanent dead link ]
- ^ King profile at Rhapsody
- ^ King profile at MP3
- ^ King at Amazon.com: MP3 Downloads
- ^ King profile at Vinyl Revolution Archived July 17, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ UCLA Libraries: Archives Special Collections, Coll. no. 127-M, Box 121, Folder 52
- ^ Morgana King at TV.com
- ^ a b Lloyd Sachs (December 13, 1993). "Morgana King Says Show Was Her Last". Chicago Sun-Times
- ^ Stephen Holden (May 26, 1994). "Morgana King Still Offers Sensuality and Honey". New York Times
- ^ A Dearth of Song And Dance. The Record, September 18, 1997 by Bill Ervolino
- ^ Bob Herbert (May 20, 1996) "In America, Bird & Max". New York Times
- ^ Don Heckman (June 6, 2000). "Morgana King, Still Unique in Rare Appearance". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ Tony Fruscella profile at Jazz Discography Archived June 10, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Tony Fruscella at Allmusic.com
- ^ Vladimir Bogdanov, Chris Woodstra, Stephen Thomas All Music Guide to Jazz, The Definitive Guide to Jazz Music (2002), p. 443; ISBN 0-87930-717-X
- ^ New York Times obituary for Tony Fruscella, August 14, 1969
- ^ Liner Notes on I Just Can't Stop Loving You (1991).
- ^ Yanow, Scott The Trumpet Kings (2001), p. 162; ISBN 0-87930-640-8
- ^ Berendt, Joachim Ernst The New Jazz Book, A History and Guide (1962), p. 314
- ^ Porter, Lewis John Coltrane, His Life and Music (1999) p. 59; ISBN 0-472-08643-X
- ^ "Birdland". Birdlandjazz.com. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ "Gerry Mulligan". Gerry Mulligan. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ "Charles Mingus". Mingusmingusmingus.com. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ Jenkins, Todd S. I Know What I Know, The Music of Charles Mingus (2006), p. 24; ISBN 0-275-98102-9
- ^ Crow, Bill From Birdland to Broadway, Scenes from a Jazz Life (1993), p. 195; ISBN 0-19-508550-7
- ^ Down Beat Vol 25 1958, p. 8
- ^ "Buddy Rich". Buddy Rich. Archived from the original on January 1, 2006. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ^ Jack, Gordon Fifties Jazz Talk, An Oral Retrospective (2004), p. 85; ISBN 0-8108-4997-6
- ^ Liner notes for the album, It's A Quiet Thing.
- ^ Gavin, James (April 25, 2019). "Morgana King Remembered". JazzTimes. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
- ^ Meeks, Eric G. (2014) [2012]. The Best Guide Ever to Palm Springs Celebrity Homes. Horatio Limburger Oglethorpe. p. 36. ISBN 978-1479328598.
- ^ "Morgana King, jazz singer who played Brando's wife in 'The Godfather,' dies at 87". Washington Post.
- ^ "Morgana King, Jazz Singer and Brando's Wife in 'The Godfather,' Dies at 87". The Hollywood Reporter. August 14, 2018.
- ^ "… Remarkable, four-octave voice, has a distinctive and compelling vocal style…". New York Times, May 18, 1973 by John Rockwell
- ^ Stephen Holden (February 20, 1983). "Pop: Morgana King, Singer, at Tuesday's."The New York Times
- ^ New York Magazine, December 24, 1973 p. 52
- ^ "Overdue Ovation: Morgana King". JazzTimes. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
- ^ " "Electrified Sounds Blur Intimate Style Of Morgana King" New York Times, November 3, 1974
- ^ "Sentiment, and a Strong Sense of Challenge." New York Times, October 17, 1965
- ^ Schiff, Ronny Library of Jazz Standards (2002); ISBN 0-8256-2757-5
- ^ Cott, Jonathan. Back To A Shadow In The Night, Music Writings and Interviews, 1968–2001 (2003), p. 330; ISBN 0-634-03596-7
- ^ Gibson, Margaret. Sweet Poison (1995), p. 157; ISBN 0-00-647962-6
- ^ Palmer, Michael. The Society (2005), p. 197; ISBN 0-553-80204-6
- ^ Price, Richard Bloodbrothers (1999) p. 52; ISBN 0-312-42869-3
- ^ Monique Guillory, Richard C. Green Soul: Black Power, Politics, and Pleasure (1997), p. 83; ISBN 0-8147-3085-X