Tacoma singer Helen Grayco, widow of zany composer Spike Jones, dies at 97

Helen Grayco began life as the daughter of Italian immigrants in Tacoma, but her singing talent soon propelled her into the Golden Age of big bands, television and music. As her star was rising, she married musical satirist Spike Jones, and the pair became a fixture on TV in the 1950s.

Grayco died Aug. 20 from cancer at her Los Angeles home, according to her daughter, Leslie Ann Jones.

On the radio

Helen Greco was born Sept. 20, 1924 to Rosina and Battista Greco, natives of Calabria, Italy. She was the 10th of 11 children.

Battista was a grocer. According to records from St. Rita of Casica Catholic Church, a G. Batta (short for Battista) Greco donated money to help build the Hilltop Tacoma church in 1922. The church was built by Italian immigrants.

Grayco (her stage name) honed her skills by listening to and imitating popular singers she heard on records and on the radio. Grayco’s talent eventually put her on the radio when she was just 8 years old, Leslie Ann Jones said.

It was probably one of those radio shows that brought her to the attention of the famous Crosby family.

Although Bing Crosby was a fellow native Tacoman, his family had moved to Spokane when he was just a young boy. Crosby’s older brother Larry heard Grayco sing and advised the family to take her to Hollywood. He gave the family a letter of introduction to Bing.

“He became very, very close to the family and took a very kind of direct interest in their well being,” Leslie Ann Jones said of Larry.

Grayco’s older sisters chaperoned her to California with her mother’s admonishment to take her to Sunday mass, according to Leslie Ann Jones.

Soon, the entire family had moved to California.

Rising stars

By 1932, Grayco was earning $50 per week ($1,000 in 2022 dollars) to star in “The Carnival Hour” on Los Angeles radio station KHJ.

At age 11, she appeared briefly in the 1935 Marx Brothers comedy film, “A Night at the Opera.” She also appeared in the 1938 Deanna Durbin film, “That Certain Age.”

In the 1940s, Grayco performed with some of the era’s biggest bands. In 1946, bandleader Stan Kenton hired her to tour with his orchestra and performances at the Hollywood Palladium.

Meanwhile, Spike Jones, who took popular standards and satirized them, was a rising star. In 1944, Jones had re-recorded the romantic ballad, “Cocktails for Two,” into a sound-effect-filled spoof. It turned into a major hit for Jones.

Meeting Spike Jones

It was at the Palladium sometime in 1946 where Jones first heard Grayco sing. He had come to the club looking for new talent for his band, City Slickers, according to Leslie Ann Jones.

At first, Grayco refused the offer to join Jones’ band, according to the Hollywood Reporter. She wasn’t a comedian, Grayco told Jones. But Jones convinced her she would be an interlude to his madcap musical arrangements.

“He always considered it a break from the comedy,” Leslie Ann Jones said. “It was different on the TV shows where she might actually participate in some of the banter.”

They married July 18, 1948.

Jones’ touring reviews eventually led to television shows in the 1950s. Meanwhile, Grayco continued to record and put out two albums, “After Midnight” (1957) and “Lady in Red” (1958).

Although the couple were popular TV performers in the late 1950s, Jones’ style of parody didn’t work as well on pop music in the 1960s.

“I just remember my father saying that he was running out of music to ruin because rock ‘n’ roll was already ruined,” Leslie Ann Jones said.

A heavy cigarette habit was also contributing to Jones’ declining health.

Jones died in 1965 at age 53.

Later life

After Jones’ death, Grayco turned her renowned home-entertaining skills into becoming co-proprietor of Gatsby’s restaurant in Brentwood, California. She ran the restaurant with her second husband, Bill Rosen, whom she married in 1968, and her brother Tony Greco.

Rosen died in 2002.

In the 1960s, Grayco served as Lady Kahlua, a national spokesperson for the coffee liqueur brand.

In addition to Leslie Ann Jones, the couple had two other children together, Spike Jones Jr. and Gina Marie Jones.

As his father’s health declined in the 1960s, Jones Jr., while still a teenager, would often lead his father’s band during performances and tried to keep the band going after the senior Jones died.

Leslie Ann Jones and Jones Jr. stayed in the family business.

Jones Jr. went on to become a television producer. He produced a variety of Hollywood awards shows, including the Emmys and received an honorary Emmy Award himself.

Leslie Ann Jones is director of music recording and scoring at Disney’s Skywalker Sound and has won numerous Grammy Awards for her engineering work.

Grayco is also survived by her step-daughter Linda Lee Jones and several grandchildren.