Ed Ames died. He was the youngest member of a popular singing group in the 1950s, The Ames Brothers. Ed Ames later became an actor and was successful on television. He was 95.
The last survivor of the four singing brothers, Ames died May 21 from Alzheimer’s disease, his wife, Jeanne Ames, said Saturday.
“He had a wonderful life,” She said
Ames is best remembered for his role in the 1960s adventure show, Adventures of Mingo. “Daniel Boone” Fess Park played the frontiersman. He also starred in a piece on “The Tonight Show” that — thanks to his painfully uncanny aim with a hatchet — became one of the show’s most memorable surprise moments.
Ames appeared as a guest star in TV series like “Murder, She Wrote” The following are some examples of how to get started: “In the Heat of the Night,” Musicals such as the popular song “Sing a Song” were performed on tour. “Try to Remember” The song that became his most successful single. “My Cup Runneth Over.”
In the 1950s, his brothers and he were part of many pop quartets. They included the Four Aces Four Lads Gaylords Hilltoppers Lancers Four Knights Ink Spots. But the Ames Brothers — Ed, Joe, Gene and Vic — had a unique tone: they were basses and baritones, not tenors.
They are a great way to listen to their recordings. “Rag Mop,” “Sentimental Me” The following are some examples of how to get started: “Undecided” The band became a big hit, and began a successful career, appearing on TV shows, recording over 40 albums, playing in nightclubs, auditoriums, and other venues across the nation.
Rock had become a major force by the end of 1950s. ‘n’ The rock charts had been dominated by the roll and the singing quartets were in decline. The Ameses were tired of constant travels and being away from their growing family. Ed was finally done when he returned home unannounced and his wife called out to their three-year-old girl: “Who is it?” The girl replied: “One of the Ames Brothers.”
“That did it,” He told a journalist. “My brothers and I agreed that we had all had it and should go our separate ways.” The group, which was earning $20,000 a week, played its last engagement at the Sahara in Las Vegas on New Year’s 1961.
Ed’s efforts to establish himself as a solo singer were not immediately successful and he turned to acting. He almost lost his house before he found a role in a production of Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible.”
The long-running musical “The Fantasticks,” He sang “Try to Remember,” He adopted it as his theme song. He joined the traveling company of Gower Champion’s “Carnival” and transferred to the New York company until the show’s final performance.
In a role which presaged his role on “Daniel Boone,” He then gained attention as the stoic Native American on Broadway in 1963 “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” with Kirk Douglas and Gene Wilder in the adaptation of Ken Kesey’s novel.
Ames has toured extensively and earned big money at Las Vegas casinos as well as in hotel supperclubs. “Man of La Mancha,” “Fiddler on the Roof,” “South Pacific” The following are some examples of how to get started: “I Do, I Do.”
“I Do, I Do” His biggest hit song, “My Cup Runneth Over,” Gold record winner in 1967. In 1968, he had another big hit with “Who Will Answer?”
He was running on “Daniel Boone” The longest sustained burst in laughter ever recorded was due to him. “The Tonight Show.”
In a 1965 show, he was persuaded by his producer to demonstrate the skills that he acquired as Mingo. Ames’s target was a silhouette of a cowboy painted on wood. He threw the hatchet. It landed on squarely on the cowboy’s crotch.
Ames was born Edmund Dantes Urick, in Malden, Massachusetts. He is the youngest child of 11, four of whom died as children. Their parents were Ukrainian immigrants, and their mother taught them to read Shakespeare as well as to appreciate the music they heard on Saturdays from the Metropolitan Opera broadcasts.
The Urick brothers were formed by the four youngest Urick boys. They began singing in local events. Ed was in high school at the time they began singing at nightclubs, but he could pass as 21 because he had a deep, husky voice and was six feet tall.
Abe Burrows, a comedy writer in New York, suggested a name change for Urick because it was difficult to remember. Ames was the brothers’ choice.
Ed was the most famous of the four brothers. Vic died in 1978. Gene in 1997. Joe in December 2007.
Ames had three children with his first wife Sara Cacheiro: Sonja Ronald Linda. The couple divorced back in 1978. He then married Jeanne Arnold in 1998.
This report was written by the late Bob Thomas, Associated Press writer from Los Angeles.