Gisele MacKenzie Biography

Fast Facts

• Studied violin at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto when she was in her teens
• Born to a doctor who played the violin and a mother who sang and played the organ, her musical talents were encouraged from a young age
• While studying classical music, she would play and sing popular songs on the piano after school
• Made the final decision of whether to be a singer or a concert violinist when her $3,000 violin was stolen from a parked car
• Met military bandleader Robert Shuttleworth at a party where she was performing for wartime sailors, and he later hired her to perform with his hotel orchestra
• Often played comedic duets on the violin with Jack Benny on "Your Hit Parade․"
• Was a regular on "Your Hit parade" from 1953 to 1957, joining such vocalists as Snooky Lanson, Russell Arms and Dorothy Collins to sing popular songs
• Her regional theater credits include "Mame," "Gypsy," "The King and I" and "Hello, Dolly!" along with other musicals
• Had pictorials published in "Sunday News" and "Song Hits" in 1952 and 1954 respectively
• Her popularity on Canadian radio earned her the informal title Canada's first lady of song