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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W XYZ ALL NAMES
M.
MOSIER, ENID (ALT. VIVIAN BONNELL)
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W XYZ ALL NAMES
M.
MOSIER, ENID (ALT. VIVIAN BONNELL)
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BIOGRAPHY
Vivian Bonnell (born Enid Mosier) was born on May 23, 1924 in Antigua, British West Indies. She was an actress and singer who came to fame on Broadway as calypso singer Enid Mosier in Truman Capote's "House of Flowers" (1954), starring opposite Pearl Bailey. She went on to record a couple calypso albums as "Enid Mosier and her Trinidad Steel Band" with her fellow cast members, Michael Alexander, Roderick Clavery, and Alphonso Marshall (Austin Stoker), who she later married. After changing her name to Vivian Bonnell, she appeared in dozens of films including memorable roles in "For Pete's Sake" as Loretta and "Ghost" as Ortisha (the woman at the séance), as well as guest appearances on TV shows like "Sanford and Son", "Married With Children", "Moesha", and "The Jeffersons". She was married to Austin Stoker. She died on November 18, 2003 in Los Angeles, California, USA. |
No Cover; No Minimum Album Back Cover/ Biography
Astute chroniclers of the show business scene are shedding he crocodile tears and bemoaning the fact that the cafe business is way off. Such diverse reasons as TV, rising costs, the atom bob, sputnik and miniature golf are cited at the drop of an option. But, at the same time that the bigger and brassier night clubs are experiencing their difficulties the smaller, more intimate boîtes are reproducing like rabbits and doing SRP business throughout the expanse of our land. Such establishments as The Blue Angel in New York City, The Black Orchid in Chicago, The Avant Garde and The Purple Onion in San Francisco are packing the aficionados in nightly. In great demand in bistros such as these is the unique talent of Enid Mosier.
The gamin-like Miss Mosier projects a fascinating combination of qualities, graphically illustrated in the Decca collection—“No Cover, No Minimum”—her debut on the label. Enid belts, she swings, she makes you laugh, she makes you cry. One minute the listener is certain Enid Mosier is a naive little girl—the next minute, a hardened sophisticate. The vacant stare and dead-pan expression that have proven so effective visually, shine through
vocally in several interpretations, namely the humour-filled Mosier treatments of “Darts” and the evergreen, “Show Me The Way To Go Home”, given a completely refreshing reading. All in all, “No Cover, No Minimum” seems to be Enid’s commentary on our mad Twentieth Century civilisation. To listen to the dozen selection, a deft combination of old standards and new contenders, is to know and love the deceptively simple artistry of Enid Mosier.
Enid Mosier studied dancing with Katherine Dunham, Pearl Primus and Asadata Dafora and made her Broadway debut to great acclaim in a non-singing role in "St. Louis Woman". A trip to Europe that lasted three years followed the demise of the show, and during this period Enid's vocalistics gained her a huge following in France, Germany, Holland, Switzerland, Spain and the British Isles. The Harold Arlen-Truman Capote musical, "House Of Flowers" brought Enid back to Broadway and night after night, she and Ada Moore stopped the show cold with their classic treatment of "Two Ladies in De Shade of De Banana Tree". Now married to her superb drummer, Alfonso Marchall, Enid is delighting audiences from coast-to-coast. "No Cover - No Minimum" is needed to enjoy a most rewarding visit with this great performer.
Astute chroniclers of the show business scene are shedding he crocodile tears and bemoaning the fact that the cafe business is way off. Such diverse reasons as TV, rising costs, the atom bob, sputnik and miniature golf are cited at the drop of an option. But, at the same time that the bigger and brassier night clubs are experiencing their difficulties the smaller, more intimate boîtes are reproducing like rabbits and doing SRP business throughout the expanse of our land. Such establishments as The Blue Angel in New York City, The Black Orchid in Chicago, The Avant Garde and The Purple Onion in San Francisco are packing the aficionados in nightly. In great demand in bistros such as these is the unique talent of Enid Mosier.
The gamin-like Miss Mosier projects a fascinating combination of qualities, graphically illustrated in the Decca collection—“No Cover, No Minimum”—her debut on the label. Enid belts, she swings, she makes you laugh, she makes you cry. One minute the listener is certain Enid Mosier is a naive little girl—the next minute, a hardened sophisticate. The vacant stare and dead-pan expression that have proven so effective visually, shine through
vocally in several interpretations, namely the humour-filled Mosier treatments of “Darts” and the evergreen, “Show Me The Way To Go Home”, given a completely refreshing reading. All in all, “No Cover, No Minimum” seems to be Enid’s commentary on our mad Twentieth Century civilisation. To listen to the dozen selection, a deft combination of old standards and new contenders, is to know and love the deceptively simple artistry of Enid Mosier.
Enid Mosier studied dancing with Katherine Dunham, Pearl Primus and Asadata Dafora and made her Broadway debut to great acclaim in a non-singing role in "St. Louis Woman". A trip to Europe that lasted three years followed the demise of the show, and during this period Enid's vocalistics gained her a huge following in France, Germany, Holland, Switzerland, Spain and the British Isles. The Harold Arlen-Truman Capote musical, "House Of Flowers" brought Enid back to Broadway and night after night, she and Ada Moore stopped the show cold with their classic treatment of "Two Ladies in De Shade of De Banana Tree". Now married to her superb drummer, Alfonso Marchall, Enid is delighting audiences from coast-to-coast. "No Cover - No Minimum" is needed to enjoy a most rewarding visit with this great performer.
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AUDIO
"Darts" from the album No Cover; No Minimum (Decca, 1958) |
"Hey, Come Ring, Diamond" from the album Enid Mosier and her Trinidad Steel Band" (Michael Alexander, Roderick Clavery, and Alphonso Marshall) |
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Darts!
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Hey, Come Ring, Diamond
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FILMOGRAPHY
| Film/TV Movie | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Leadbelly (dir., Gordon Parks) | Old Lady | 1976 |
| California Dreaming (dir., John Hancock) | Alma | 1979 |
| Teachers (dir., Arthur Hiller) | Nurse | 1984 |
| Amazon Women on the Moon (dir., Joe Dante, Carl Gottlieb, Peter Horton, John Landis, and Robert K. Weiss) | Theater Customer 3 | 1987 |
| Summer School (dir., Carl Weiner) | Mrs. Green | 1987 |
| Elvis and Me (dir.,Larry Peerce) | Alberta | 1988 |
| Ghost (dir., Jerry Zucker) | Ortisha | 1990 |
| Switched at Birth (dir., Warris Hussein) | Nurse Ford | 1991 |
| Christmas in Connecticut (dir., Arnold Schwarzenegger) | Nora | 1992 |
Filmography courtesy aveleyman.com
TELEVISION APPEARANCES
Television appearances courtesy tviv.org
DISCOGRAPHY
PHOTOGRAPHS
Enid Mosier and her Trinidad Steel Band at the Village Vanguard.
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Enid Mosier as Pansy in "House of Flowers" (centre rear line up).
HI-FI CALYPSO. Album by Enid Mosier and her Trinidad Steel Band (LP COVER)
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DOCUMENTS
House of Flowers playbill cover. Via playbillvault.com
Found on Newspapers.com
Found on Newspapers.com
Found on Newspapers.com
Found on Newspapers.com
Found on Newspapers.com
Found on Newspapers.com
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Enid Mosier in House of Flowers playbill. Via playbillvault.com
Found on Newspapers.com
Found on Newspapers.com
Found on Newspapers.com
Found on Newspapers.com
Found on Newspapers.com
Found on Newspapers.com
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VIDEOS
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ADDITIONAL SOURCES
Schenectady Gazette - Aug 17, 1968 https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=gnwuAAAAIBAJ&sjid=HYoFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4032%2C3395477
Sunday Herald - Aug 2, 1959 https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=VFozAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fwAGAAAAIBAJ&pg=5054%2C2064500
St. Petersburg Times - Jun 24, 1952 https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7otaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=gE8DAAAAIBAJ&pg=5221%2C3194630
Schenectady Gazette - Aug 17, 1968 https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=gnwuAAAAIBAJ&sjid=HYoFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4032%2C3395477
Sunday Herald - Aug 2, 1959 https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=VFozAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fwAGAAAAIBAJ&pg=5054%2C2064500
St. Petersburg Times - Jun 24, 1952 https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7otaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=gE8DAAAAIBAJ&pg=5221%2C3194630
