Chicago resident and playwright Cathy Earnest has authored stage plays such as Another Bone (2012) and her ongoing work, The Bicycle. She has also taught college-level literature and writing at institutions such as DePaul University in Chicago. Outside of the theater, Cathy Earnest is a pianist with an ensemble group though the Old Town School of Folk Music. The school recently paid homage to the music of prolific British singer Petula Clark.
Petula Clark is most widely known for her rendition of the song ‘I Know a Place’ (1965), but the performer’s career in entertainment spans several decades. Much of Ms. Clark’s early work was defined by the films that she made as a teenager and as a child actor. In total, she played 30 roles in films including Medal for the General (1944), I Know Where I Am Going (1945), London Town (1946), and The Hugget Family Films (1948-1949), among others.
Her early career also involved music. Her first gig was for WWII troops where she sang over radio broadcasts and in concert. In 1942, she performed ‘Mighty Lak a Rose’ on the program It’s All Yours; the audience response was so great that she was asked to perform with stars such as Michael Redgrave and Vera Lynn at the London’s Prince Edward Theater, formerly the Queensbury All-Service Club. Petula Clark rose to such a level of fame that she was dubbed the British Shirley Temple.
After film, Petula Clark embarked on a full-time career in music where, over the course of 70 years, she has amassed a number of awards. Songs such as ‘Downtown’ and ‘Don’t Sleep in the Subway’ earned her Grammy nominations and awards in 1964, 1965, and 1967. She also won a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Film Musical 1969 for Finian’s Rainbow (1968). Outside of the US, Petula Clark has consistently won awards in Britain, France, and other countries.
Cathy Earnest 