Linda Hart
Encyclopedia
Linda Hart is an American
singer, musician, and actress, mainly appearing in musical theatre
.
television series. Hart attended Los Angeles City College
as a theatre major. During college, however, her family received a recording contract with Columbia Records
; Hart joined them and moved to Nashville
for the job. The group recorded several gospel albums, many nominated for Grammy Award
s and one a winner.
Solo work included appearances with The New Christy Minstrels as their only female leader, a stint on Johnny Cash
's ABC
television show, and opening act performances for country music
ians such as Hank Williams, Jr.
, Mel Tillis
, Roy Clark
, and The Oak Ridge Boys
. She joined Bette Midler
's backup troupe, the Staggering Harlettes, and later appeared in the Midler film Stella
and the television special of Gypsy: A Musical Fable
in 1993, which also starred Midler.
's Anything Goes
; for this role, she won a 1988 Theatre World Award
. Originally portraying Erma, she later played the role of Reno Sweeney. Subsequent roles included Sid Caesar & Company and Hairspray
.
On television she had a starring role in the short-lived sitcom The Winner
in 2006. Prior to this she had appeared in episodes of The Dukes of Hazard, Night Court
, Hill Street Blues
, Major Dad
, Touched by an Angel
, The Practice
, Desperate Housewives
, and others, starting in the early 1980s. Among her film appearances are Tin Cup
, Get Shorty
, and A Perfect World
.
She performed in the Seattle run of the musical Catch Me If You Can
as Carol at the 5th Avenue Theatre
, from July 28, 2009 to August 14, 2009, and returned to the role when the show premiered on Broadway in April 2011.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
singer, musician, and actress, mainly appearing in musical theatre
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
.
Biography
As a child, Hart sang in her church choir; at age seven, she joined her father (a preacher) and the rest of the family in The Harts, a weekly gospelGospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
television series. Hart attended Los Angeles City College
Los Angeles City College
Los Angeles City College, known as LACC, is a public community college in the East Hollywood section of Los Angeles, California. A part of the Los Angeles Community College District, it is located on Vermont Avenue south of Santa Monica Boulevard...
as a theatre major. During college, however, her family received a recording contract with Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
; Hart joined them and moved to Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
for the job. The group recorded several gospel albums, many nominated for Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s and one a winner.
Solo work included appearances with The New Christy Minstrels as their only female leader, a stint on Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
's ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
television show, and opening act performances for country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
ians such as Hank Williams, Jr.
Hank Williams, Jr.
Randall Hank Williams , better known as Hank Williams, Jr. and Bocephus, is an American country singer-songwriter and musician. His musical style is often considered a blend of Southern rock, blues, and traditional country...
, Mel Tillis
Mel Tillis
Lonnie Melvin Tillis , known professionally as Mel Tillis, is an American country music singer. Although he recorded songs since the late 1950s, his biggest success occurred in the 1970s, with a long list of Top 10 hits....
, Roy Clark
Roy Clark
Roy Linwood Clark is an American country music musician and performer. He is best known for hosting Hee Haw, a nationally televised country variety show, from 1969–1992. Clark has been an important and influential figure in country music, both as a performer and helping to popularize the genre...
, and The Oak Ridge Boys
The Oak Ridge Boys
The Oak Ridge Boys are an American country and gospel vocal quartet.The group was founded in the 1940s as the Oak Ridge Quartet. They became popular in southern gospel during the 1950s...
. She joined Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...
's backup troupe, the Staggering Harlettes, and later appeared in the Midler film Stella
Stella (1990 film)
Stella is a 1990 American drama film produced by The Samuel Goldwyn Company and released by Touchstone Pictures. The screenplay by Robert Getchell is the third feature film adaptation of the 1920 novel Stella Dallas by Olive Higgins Prouty....
and the television special of Gypsy: A Musical Fable
Gypsy (1993 film)
Gypsy is a 1993 musical television film directed by Emile Ardolino. The teleplay by Arthur Laurents is an adaptation of his book of the 1959 stage musical Gypsy: A Musical Fable, which was based on Gypsy: A Memoir by Gypsy Rose Lee....
in 1993, which also starred Midler.
Later career
Hart's Broadway debut was in the 1987 revival of Cole PorterCole Porter
Cole Albert Porter was an American composer and songwriter. Born to a wealthy family in Indiana, he defied the wishes of his domineering grandfather and took up music as a profession. Classically trained, he was drawn towards musical theatre...
's Anything Goes
Anything Goes
Anything Goes is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The original book was a collaborative effort by Guy Bolton and P.G. Wodehouse, heavily revised by the team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. The story concerns madcap antics aboard an ocean liner bound from New York to London...
; for this role, she won a 1988 Theatre World Award
Theatre World Award
The Theatre World Award, first awarded for the 1945-46 season, is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or off-Broadway.-History:...
. Originally portraying Erma, she later played the role of Reno Sweeney. Subsequent roles included Sid Caesar & Company and Hairspray
Hairspray (musical)
Hairspray is a musical with music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Scott Wittman and Shaiman and a book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, based on the 1988 John Waters film Hairspray. The songs include 1960s-style dance music and "downtown" rhythm and blues...
.
On television she had a starring role in the short-lived sitcom The Winner
The Winner (TV series)
The Winner, stylized on the title card as the winner, is an American television series that premiered on Fox on March 4, 2007. It is a comedy about a successful man named Glen Abbott looking back to the time when he was in his thirties and living with his parents in 1994 Buffalo, New York.Other...
in 2006. Prior to this she had appeared in episodes of The Dukes of Hazard, Night Court
Night Court
Night Court is an American television situation comedy that aired on NBC from January 4, 1984, to May 20, 1992. The setting was the night shift of a Manhattan court, presided over by the young, unorthodox Judge Harold T. "Harry" Stone...
, Hill Street Blues
Hill Street Blues
Hill Street Blues is an American serial police drama that was first aired on NBC in 1981 and ran for 146 episodes on primetime into 1987. Chronicling the lives of the staff of a single police precinct in an unnamed American city, the show received critical acclaim and its production innovations ...
, Major Dad
Major Dad
Major Dad is an American sitcom created by Richard C. Okie and John G. Stephens that originally ran from 1989 to 1993 on CBS, starring Gerald McRaney as Major John D. MacGillis and Shanna Reed as his wife Polly...
, Touched by an Angel
Touched by an Angel
Touched by an Angel is an American drama series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994 and ran for 211 episodes and nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and produced by Martha Williamson, the series stars Roma Downey, as an angel named Monica, and Della...
, The Practice
The Practice
The Practice is an American legal drama created by David E. Kelley centering on the partners and associates at a Boston law firm. Running for eight seasons from 1997 to 2004, the show won the Emmy in 1998 and 1999 for Best Drama Series, and spawned the successful and lighter spin-off series Boston...
, Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. Executive producer Cherry serves as Showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season include Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, George W...
, and others, starting in the early 1980s. Among her film appearances are Tin Cup
Tin Cup
Tin Cup is a 1996 romantic comedy film co-written and directed by Ron Shelton, and starring Kevin Costner and Rene Russo with Cheech Marin and Don Johnson in major supporting roles.-Synopsis:...
, Get Shorty
Get Shorty
Get Shorty is a 1990 novel by American novelist Elmore Leonard. In 1995, the novel was adapted into a film of the same name.-Plot summary:...
, and A Perfect World
A Perfect World
A Perfect World is a 1993 drama film directed by Clint Eastwood, and starring Kevin Costner as an escaped convict who befriends a young boy , and ends up embarking on a road trip with the child...
.
She performed in the Seattle run of the musical Catch Me If You Can
Catch Me if You Can (musical)
Catch Me If You Can is a musical with a libretto by Terrence McNally and a theatrical score by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman. It follows the story of con artist Frank Abagnale, Jr...
as Carol at the 5th Avenue Theatre
5th Avenue Theatre
The 5th Avenue Theatre is a landmark theater building located in Seattle, Washington, USA. It has hosted a variety of theatre productions and motion pictures since it opened in 1926. The building and land is owned by the University of Washington and was once part of the original campus...
, from July 28, 2009 to August 14, 2009, and returned to the role when the show premiered on Broadway in April 2011.