A memoir by Beverly D’Angelo undoubtedly would be as engaging and entertaining as its subject, but the actress has nixed the idea so far.
D’Angelo told entertainment outlet The A.V. Club in 2017 that her story won’t hit bookstores until “my past becomes more interesting than my present.”
It’s hard to imagine the 74-year-old Upper Arlington native is holding back tales that will top living on a commune, marrying an Italian duke or performing at a Toronto topless bar.
Whatever D’Angelo is holding back must be some real “tea,” as the young’uns say, and it’s bound to be hot and steamy when she finally spills it. The memories are sure to be as sharp as the storyteller, who can still sing her high school fight song 57 years after graduating.
Speaking
of singing, a recent Dispatch story noted D’Angelo’s vocal displays in early roles such as her lauded turn as Patsy Cline in 1980’s “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” She won a CMA Award for that, by the way. But did you know she used to be in a rock band?
Before acting, D’Angelo built a musical résumé dating back to her teens. Had she stayed the course, she might have been a world-class castanet player – that’s a thing she did. Or she could still be leading a square dance band, another thing she did.
Now that you know these fun facts about the multitalented Ms. D’Angelo, let’s look at some of her other musical undertakings.
Baby got backup
While living in Canada in the early 1970s, D’Angelo was a backup singer for American rockabilly musician Rompin’ Ronnie Hawkins, front man for the Hawks.
Fun fact: After striking out on their own, the Hawks found fame as The Band, whose popular songs include “The Weight” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.”
The naked truth
D’Angelo had a stint singing jazz standards at the Zanzibar Tavern, a topless bar in Toronto. Every 40 minutes, she’d cue, “Gentlemen, it’s swing time,” and two women would mount trapezes and swing over the patrons’ heads, she told the A.V. Club.
For the record, D’Angelo didn’t perform topless – that wouldn’t happen until years later in “National Lampoon’s Vacation.” She opted for a black evening gown because apparently, nudity was too much to bare.
The play’s the thing
While with a small Canadian repertory company, D’Angelo played Ophelia in a production of the “Hamlet”-inspired “Kronborg: 1582.” She was the only original cast member kept on board when the musical was revised as “Rockabye Hamlet” for Broadway in early 1976.
Fun facts: The Broadway cast included Meat Loaf as the Priest. Horatio was played by Rory Dodd, who dueted on the late Bonnie Tyler's No. 1 hit, "Total Eclipse of the Heart," immortalizing the line "turn around, bright eyes" for eternity.
Later that year, D’Angelo made her TV debut in the mini-series “Captains and the Kings.” Film roles quickly followed, leading to her big break in 1983 with the first “Vacation” movie.
Hit the road, Bev!
In the 1990s, D’Angelo’s jazz band, Blue Martini, which included her brother Jeff on bass, often played late-night shows at venues like Hollywood’s famed Viper Room, owned by Johnny Depp at the time.
Blue Martini is no longer active, but D’Angelo still finds opportunities to exercise her vocal cords. Singing “Too Many Secrets,” she was part of the all-star “Walkin’ After Midnight: The Music of Patsy Cline” concert at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium in 2024.
With her musical experience, which also included session work, why didn’t D’Angelo choose singing over acting? She told Entertainment Weekly in 1991 that her versatility worked against her in a business “predicated on having a particular style.”
Now that the music industry is less genre-restrictive, maybe it’s time for D’Angelo to get back on the touring circuit. After all, she's gonna need some more stories for that memoir.
Contact features and entertainment reporter Belinda M. Paschal at bpaschal@dispatch.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Think you know Beverly D'Angelo? These fun facts will change your tune
