The younger sister of actress Ann Sothern, Bonnie Lake made her mark in the entertainment world as one of the first female singer/songwriters in American popular music. Born in Iowa, Lake grew up in both Minneapolis and Hollywood, where she trained in classical music under the influence of her mother, opera singer and Hollywood vocal coach Annette Yde Lake. Her songwriting talent showed itself early in life. At age seventeen she signed with publisher Irving Mills and went to work on Tin Pan Alley. Soon her compositions were being recorded by such artists as the Dorsey Brothers, Louis Armstrong, and Benny Goodman. She also began her own recording career during this time, though her first release was not one of her own songs but a Vernon Duke number.
After a bout with illness Lake left New York in 1939 and returned temporarily to the West Coast where she worked with bandleader Johnny Cascales (later known as Johnny Richards). Back in New York she joined Jack Jenney's orchestra as arranger and vocalist. Lake and Jenney soon fell in love and married. When Jenney disbanded his group in 1940 to join Artie Shaw, Lake followed. She recorded several numbers while with Shaw, including the famous "This Time the Dream's on Me."
Shaw dissolved his orchestra after only a year, and Jenney formed a trio with Lake as vocalist and Lester Ludke on piano. The new group proved short-lived. In 1943 Jenney was called to active duty during WWII. Lake spent the war years on the West Coast dubbing vocals at Hollywood studios and working with various orchestras, including those of Bob Crosby and Gordon Jenkins. When Jenney was discharged from the service he began to organize a new band. Tragedy struck, though, when he died suddenly from complications after an appendectomy. It was during this time that Lake wrote her most famous song, ''The Man with the Horn,'' a number dedicated to and written with her husband.
After her husband's death Lake continued to write and sing, working often with Armed Forces Radio and appearing on several radio and television programs. She later returned to New York and formed her own production company, writing and performing jingles for various products. She married orchestra leader Russ Case in the late 1950s and recorded several songs with his band and with her own vocal group, Bonnie and Her Beaus. Lake also wrote two Broadway musicals, one co-written with Buddy Ebsen. Neither was ever produced.
Lake's career faltered as rock and roll came to dominate the music industry. She eventually went to work for Columbia Records, where she supervised remastering of previously-recorded music for 8-Track tape. She retired from the music industry in the 1970s. She was also a producer and actress, known for Femme Verite (2009) and The Big Record (1957). Bonnie Lake passed away in 1992.
After a bout with illness Lake left New York in 1939 and returned temporarily to the West Coast where she worked with bandleader Johnny Cascales (later known as Johnny Richards). Back in New York she joined Jack Jenney's orchestra as arranger and vocalist. Lake and Jenney soon fell in love and married. When Jenney disbanded his group in 1940 to join Artie Shaw, Lake followed. She recorded several numbers while with Shaw, including the famous "This Time the Dream's on Me."
Shaw dissolved his orchestra after only a year, and Jenney formed a trio with Lake as vocalist and Lester Ludke on piano. The new group proved short-lived. In 1943 Jenney was called to active duty during WWII. Lake spent the war years on the West Coast dubbing vocals at Hollywood studios and working with various orchestras, including those of Bob Crosby and Gordon Jenkins. When Jenney was discharged from the service he began to organize a new band. Tragedy struck, though, when he died suddenly from complications after an appendectomy. It was during this time that Lake wrote her most famous song, ''The Man with the Horn,'' a number dedicated to and written with her husband.
After her husband's death Lake continued to write and sing, working often with Armed Forces Radio and appearing on several radio and television programs. She later returned to New York and formed her own production company, writing and performing jingles for various products. She married orchestra leader Russ Case in the late 1950s and recorded several songs with his band and with her own vocal group, Bonnie and Her Beaus. Lake also wrote two Broadway musicals, one co-written with Buddy Ebsen. Neither was ever produced.
Lake's career faltered as rock and roll came to dominate the music industry. She eventually went to work for Columbia Records, where she supervised remastering of previously-recorded music for 8-Track tape. She retired from the music industry in the 1970s. She was also a producer and actress, known for Femme Verite (2009) and The Big Record (1957). Bonnie Lake passed away in 1992.
The younger sister of actress Ann Sothern, Bonnie Lake made her mark in the entertainment world as one of the first female singer/songwriters in American popular music. Born in Iowa, Lake grew up in both Minneapolis and Hollywood, where she trained in classical music under the influence of her mother, opera singer and Hollywood vocal coach Annette Yde Lake. Her songwriting talent showed itself early in life. At age seventeen she signed with publisher Irving Mills and went to work on Tin Pan Alley. Soon her compositions were being recorded by such artists as the Dorsey Brothers, Louis Armstrong, and Benny Goodman. She also began her own recording career during this time, though her first release was not one of her own songs but a Vernon Duke number.
After a bout with illness Lake left New York in 1939 and returned temporarily to the West Coast where she worked with bandleader Johnny Cascales (later known as Johnny Richards). Back in New York she joined Jack Jenney's orchestra as arranger and vocalist. Lake and Jenney soon fell in love and married. When Jenney disbanded his group in 1940 to join Artie Shaw, Lake followed. She recorded several numbers while with Shaw, including the famous "This Time the Dream's on Me."
Shaw dissolved his orchestra after only a year, and Jenney formed a trio with Lake as vocalist and Lester Ludke on piano. The new group proved short-lived. In 1943 Jenney was called to active duty during WWII. Lake spent the war years on the West Coast dubbing vocals at Hollywood studios and working with various orchestras, including those of Bob Crosby and Gordon Jenkins. When Jenney was discharged from the service he began to organize a new band. Tragedy struck, though, when he died suddenly from complications after an appendectomy. It was during this time that Lake wrote her most famous song, ''The Man with the Horn,'' a number dedicated to and written with her husband.
After her husband's death Lake continued to write and sing, working often with Armed Forces Radio and appearing on several radio and television programs. She later returned to New York and formed her own production company, writing and performing jingles for various products. She married orchestra leader Russ Case in the late 1950s and recorded several songs with his band and with her own vocal group, Bonnie and Her Beaus. Lake also wrote two Broadway musicals, one co-written with Buddy Ebsen. Neither was ever produced.
Lake's career faltered as rock and roll came to dominate the music industry. She eventually went to work for Columbia Records, where she supervised remastering of previously-recorded music for 8-Track tape. She retired from the music industry in the 1970s. She was also a producer and actress, known for Femme Verite (2009) and The Big Record (1957). Bonnie Lake passed away in 1992.
After a bout with illness Lake left New York in 1939 and returned temporarily to the West Coast where she worked with bandleader Johnny Cascales (later known as Johnny Richards). Back in New York she joined Jack Jenney's orchestra as arranger and vocalist. Lake and Jenney soon fell in love and married. When Jenney disbanded his group in 1940 to join Artie Shaw, Lake followed. She recorded several numbers while with Shaw, including the famous "This Time the Dream's on Me."
Shaw dissolved his orchestra after only a year, and Jenney formed a trio with Lake as vocalist and Lester Ludke on piano. The new group proved short-lived. In 1943 Jenney was called to active duty during WWII. Lake spent the war years on the West Coast dubbing vocals at Hollywood studios and working with various orchestras, including those of Bob Crosby and Gordon Jenkins. When Jenney was discharged from the service he began to organize a new band. Tragedy struck, though, when he died suddenly from complications after an appendectomy. It was during this time that Lake wrote her most famous song, ''The Man with the Horn,'' a number dedicated to and written with her husband.
After her husband's death Lake continued to write and sing, working often with Armed Forces Radio and appearing on several radio and television programs. She later returned to New York and formed her own production company, writing and performing jingles for various products. She married orchestra leader Russ Case in the late 1950s and recorded several songs with his band and with her own vocal group, Bonnie and Her Beaus. Lake also wrote two Broadway musicals, one co-written with Buddy Ebsen. Neither was ever produced.
Lake's career faltered as rock and roll came to dominate the music industry. She eventually went to work for Columbia Records, where she supervised remastering of previously-recorded music for 8-Track tape. She retired from the music industry in the 1970s. She was also a producer and actress, known for Femme Verite (2009) and The Big Record (1957). Bonnie Lake passed away in 1992.
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