Author: Barbara Quarshie

Fred Trump was an American real estate developer and businessman who died in 1999 with a net worth of $200-300 million. After adjusting for inflation, that equates to around $300-$450 million today. Fred Trump made money by developing residential properties. Fred began his career in home construction and sales with his mother, Elizabeth Christ Trump.…

Fred Trump Sr. was an American real estate developer and businessman. He was a member of the Trump family and the father of Donald Trump, the 45th President of the United States. Fred Trump became ill with pneumonia in mid-1999 and was admitted to Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New Hyde Park, where he…

Big Mama Thornton was an American R&B singer and songwriter who had a successful career spanning the 1940s to the early 1980s. Because of her size and her robust, powerful voice, she was dubbed “Big Mama.” She is best known for her gutsy 1952 rhythm and blues recording of “Hound Dog,” which Elvis Presley later…

Big Mama Thornton, an American R&B singer and songwriter, died on July 25, 1984, at the age of 57. On July 25, 1984, medical personnel discovered Thornton’s body in a Los Angeles boarding house. She died of heart and liver problems caused by her long-term alcohol abuse. As a result of her illness, she lost…

Hound Dog was originally written by  Lyricist Jerome Leiber and composer Michael Stoller. Jerome Leiber and Michael Stoller were songwriting and record-producing partners from the United States. They achieved success as the writers of crossover hit songs such as “Hound Dog” (1952) and “Kansas City” (1954). Later in the 1950s, particularly with The Coasters, they…

One of the original writers of Elvis Presley’s 1956 hit “Hound Dog,” Mike Stoller, claims that the song was never stolen from blues singer and songwriter Big Mama Thornton. Stoller and his writing partner, the late Jerry Leiber, wrote “Hound Dog” within 15 minutes of hearing Thornton sing when they were teenagers. Thornton first recorded…

Big Mama Thornton was an R&B singer and songwriter from the United States. Thornton’s career took off after she relocated to Houston in 1948. She signed a recording contract with Peacock Records in 1951 and appeared at the Apollo Theater in 1952. In 1952, she recorded “Hound Dog,” the first record produced by its writers…

“Hound Dog” was recorded for the first time by Big Mama Thornton. Big Mama Thornton was born in Montgomery, Alabama. She began her professional career at the age of 14 in 1941. She signed her first record contract with Peacock Records in 1951 and was soon paired with another of its artists, bandleader Johnny Otis,…

Big Mama Thornton was an R&B singer and songwriter from the United States who was famous for recording the song “Hound Dog,” which became her biggest hit, spending seven weeks at the top of the Billboard R&B chart and selling nearly two million copies. Years of heavy drinking began to harm Thornton’s health in the…

Big Mama Thornton was an R&B singer and songwriter from the United States. In 1952, she was the first to record Leiber and Stoller’s “Hound Dog,” which became her biggest hit, spending seven weeks at the top of the Billboard R&B chart and selling nearly two million copies. On July 25, 1984, medical personnel discovered…