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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZANNETTE(b Annette Funicello, 22 October 1942, Utica NY; d 8 April 2013, Bakersfield CA) Singer, actress. Her family moved to the West Coast in 1946. She became a Mousketeer on the Mickey Mouse Club, Disney's kiddie TV show, in 1955; most Mousketeers were retired at a certain age, but Disney turned her popularity into a recording career: she had four top 20 singles '59-60, beginning with 'Tall Paul'. Three albums also charted, including Annette's Beach Party '63; her prettiness featured in movies (Bikini Beach, Muscle Beach Party) playing opposite Tommy Kirk or Frankie Avalon, the arrival of the Beatles' first movie in 1964 causing the instant demise of the genre. Another film was Back To The Beach in the 1980s, an attempt to cash in on nostalgia for the genre. She did TV ads, especially for Skippy peanut butter, and turned up on American Bandstand anniversary shows. Since around 1990 she fought multiple sclerosis. She appeared briefly in a 1995 TV movie based on her autobiography, A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes: The Annette Funicello Story. |