A multi Grammy-winning performer is playing in the Alamo City on Saturday. Her name is synonymous with radio hits and Television performances.
"Florencia Bisenta de Casillas Martinez Cardona de Leon."
Although you probably know her by this name: Vikki Carr.
"Even though my career was basically in English, I always did include songs in Spanish. I explained my heritage--my parents were from Mexico, Guadalajara, Chihuahua, Sonora. And that I was proud of my heritage and wanted to share my music."
That pride shines through when you speak to her. Carr was born in El Paso in 1941 in humble surroundings, but was raised in Southern California. By her early 20s she began recording and quickly found herself surrounded by well-known fans. Fans like Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra. Carr tells a funny tale about how she got Sinatra's attention.
"It was the night when Frank had gotten in a fight with a reporter and his hand was broken, and he really wasn't paying much attention until I started singing Tea for Two. But I did it in Spanish, as a ballad. And all of a sudden it was like his head went up and he sat back (at this point Carr breaks out in song, singing in Spanish) Siempre querido y Nunca..." Carr laughed.
"Then Dean Martin came in right afterwards and he says 'Aw, it's so great to see a nice Italian girl make it in the business!' And I said 'I'm Mexican American' and he said 'You're still Latin! We're gonna claim you anyway!'"
Carr's stories from that era are fascinating time capsules full of larger-than-life characters. Worth noting: she has sung for five Presidents.
"I sang for Nixon, I sang for Ford, Reagan, Bush, the father, and for a big event that they had in Miami it was all the Presidents too, including Latin America, and Clinton was there, too," she said. "When I think about the humble beginnings--born in El Paso, raised in Southern California, the eldest of seven children--to realize that I could also get to the White House. Not once, twice, three times, but at least four--it was an incredible experience for sure."
Her White House performance for Gerald Ford produced another fun story. It all started when she danced with the President.
"I couldn't follow him; it was like dancing with my dad. I kept stepping all over him and kept saying 'Sorry, Mr. President!' And afterwards I said, 'Gosh, if you're ever in California mi casa es su casa.' I said I would love to cook for you; what's your favorite Mexican dish and he said 'You!' Of course he told the press 'Don't put that in!' and what made the headlines? Oh gosh..."
She has used her fame to help others through scholarships with the Vikki Carr foundation. She tells the story of a man who approached her in Washington D.C. who said...'I've wanted to thank you for so many years.' I said for what and he said 'You gave me a scholarship in 1976.' And, he was our first Mexican-American Astronaut. So that was incredible."
She agreed she could claim that she had sent someone to space.
"Right. And also to the courts. Governor Schwarzenegger made a superior court judge out of one of my outstanding recipients."
She's adamant that the $350,000 in scholarship money that she's handed out over time is not a handout, but a hand up. She hopes it helps recipients find their passions.
"We all have a gift. And it's up to each one of us to discover what that gift is. And then to pursue it. I did so with my singing."
She will be singing Saturday night at the Tobin Center. The show will be divided into two segments. In the first she'll be backed by a Mariachi group.
"Mariachi Aztlan. They're young people who are from the Valley. They are phenomenal. I rehearsed with them and my mouth just dropped. Then in the second half of the show we're going to be touching upon some tributes to some people who have been important in my career. Nat King Cole. Frank Sinatra."
She performed to open the Tobin Center October a year ago, and now is back.
"I've been doing it for 58 years and am going to continue doing it until God sees fit to continue to bless me with my voice."
After nearly six decades at it Carr has no plans to stop.
We have more on Vikki Carr here.
For more on the Tobin Center performance go here.
