Born 1918 in Buenos Aires, Argentinian singer, songwriter and actor Dick Haymes was one of the most popular male vocalists of the 1940s and early 1950s. He was the older brother of Bob Haymes, an actor, television host, and songwriter.
At the age of 17, Haymes moved to Los Angeles where he initially worked as a stunt man and film double. At the age of 19, he moved to New York City where he worked as a vocalist in a number of big bands. On September 3, 1942, Frank Sinatra introduced Haymes on radio as Sinatra’s replacement in the Tommy Dorsey band. Prior to joining Dorsey’s group, Haymes sang with the Harry James orchestra.
From 1944 to 1948, Haymes had his own radio program, The Dick Haymes Show, first on NBC and later on CBS. He paired repeatedly with The Andrews Sisters on a dozen or so Decca collaborations, including the Billboard hit “Teresa,” “Great Day,” “My Sin,” and a 1952 rendering of the dramatic ballad “Here in My Heart,” backed by the sisters and Nelson Riddle’s lush strings. His duets with Patty Andrews were also well received, both on Decca vinyl and on radio’s Club Fifteen with the sisters, which he hosted in 1949 and 1950.
Haymes also joined Bing Crosby and The Andrews Sisters for 1947 session that produced the Billboard hit “There’s No Business Like Show Business,” as well as “Anything You Can Do (I Can Do Better)”. His popular renditions of tender ballads such as “Little White Lies” and “Maybe It’s Because” were recorded with celebrated arranger Gordon Jenkins and his orchestra and chorus.
Haymes died from lung cancer in 1980, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. He was 61 years old. Take a look at these vintage photos to see portraits of a young and handsome Dick Haymes in the 1940s and 1950s.
