Actress. She was an American musical theatre and television actress as well as a comedian and singer. She had a successful 74-year show business career. During World War II, while still in her teens, she performed in a Cleveland USO stage production of "Stage Door Canteen" in 1941. Born Catherine Gloria Balotta to Italian immigrants, she made her Broadway debut with the revue "Three to Make Ready" in 1946. From there, she showcased in the musicals "Once in a Lifetime," "Touch and Go," "Annie Get Your Gun," and the burlesque show "Top Banana." Ballard made her television debut on Henry Morgan's Great Talent Hunt, a short-lived program hosted by Henry Morgan, which first aired on January 26, 1951. During the 1950s and 1960s, she graced nearly every talk or variety show on television including those for Ed Sullivan and Johnny Carson. She appeared in Rogers and Hammerstein's "Cinderella" in 1957 along with "Wonderful Town" in 1958, "Carnival" in 1961, "Cole Porter Revisited" in 1965, "The Mothers-in-Law" in 1967, "Which Way to the Front?" in 1970, "Freaky Friday" and "The Ritz" both in 1976. In later years she starred in "Nunsense," "The Pirates of Penzance," "High Spirits," "Funny Girl," "The Full Monty," and the female version of "The Odd Couple." She announced her official retirement in 2015 at the age of 89 and died four years later of renal disease.
Actress. She was an American musical theatre and television actress as well as a comedian and singer. She had a successful 74-year show business career. During World War II, while still in her teens, she performed in a Cleveland USO stage production of "Stage Door Canteen" in 1941. Born Catherine Gloria Balotta to Italian immigrants, she made her Broadway debut with the revue "Three to Make Ready" in 1946. From there, she showcased in the musicals "Once in a Lifetime," "Touch and Go," "Annie Get Your Gun," and the burlesque show "Top Banana." Ballard made her television debut on Henry Morgan's Great Talent Hunt, a short-lived program hosted by Henry Morgan, which first aired on January 26, 1951. During the 1950s and 1960s, she graced nearly every talk or variety show on television including those for Ed Sullivan and Johnny Carson. She appeared in Rogers and Hammerstein's "Cinderella" in 1957 along with "Wonderful Town" in 1958, "Carnival" in 1961, "Cole Porter Revisited" in 1965, "The Mothers-in-Law" in 1967, "Which Way to the Front?" in 1970, "Freaky Friday" and "The Ritz" both in 1976. In later years she starred in "Nunsense," "The Pirates of Penzance," "High Spirits," "Funny Girl," "The Full Monty," and the female version of "The Odd Couple." She announced her official retirement in 2015 at the age of 89 and died four years later of renal disease.
Bio by: Stories Of The Gilded Age
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