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Sylvia Murphy

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sylvia Murphy
BornSeptember 24, 1931[1]
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
DiedFebruary 24, 2021(2021-02-24) (aged 89)[1]
OccupationSinger
Years active1949–1964

Sylvia Murphy (September 24, 1931 – February 24, 2021)[1] was a Canadian singer who was popular on radio and television programs on the CBC from 1949 to 1964.

Biography

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She was the oldest child of Celia (née Zoddickson) and John Murphy. Her mother was from a Belarusian Jewish family and her father was of Irish Catholic descent, but both were natives of Liverpool, England. They met in Montreal after both emigrated there separately.[1]

Murphy got her start in nightclubs, and then was the featured singer on the radio programs Coca-Cola Refreshment Time and Club O'Connor with Billy O'Connor. She moved to television with a break on Cross-Canada Hit Parade and later became the singer for Jack Kane's Orchestra on the Jack Kane Show, Music Makers[2] and Music '60. She was also a regular performer on the Wayne and Shuster Hour.

She was married first to Mark Simon, son of a Montreal cigar manufacturer, and then to broadcaster and author Charles Templeton. Her children with Templeton were comic-book artist Ty Templeton and internet entrepreneur Brad Templeton. Templeton also became stepfather to her children with Simon, TV host and director Deborah Burgess; and prominent tax attorney Michael Templeton, a partner at McMillan LLP. She later married William C. Tate, GM of Garrett Manufacturing Limited, a leading aerospace manufacturer. They had a son, Bruce Tate.[1]

Murphy died on February 24, 2021, after contracting COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario. She was 89.[3]

References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Morrow, Martin (March 4, 2021). "Popular singer Sylvia Murphy found a national audience on 1950s TV". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  2. "CBC Television Series 52-82 Mus-Mys". Queen's University. Archived from the original on 2010-05-29. Retrieved 2009-02-10.
  3. "Sylvia Murphy loved glamour, lipstick and pearls. But it was her love of her family that made her a true star". Toronto Star. March 4, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
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