Annie Ross Memorabilia
- Reference:GB 2607 ar/1-8
- Dates of Creation:c. 1900 - 2014
- Name of Creator:
- Language of Material:English
- Physical Description:13 Boxes Jazz
Scope and Content
Items and memorabilia relating to the life and career of jazz singer and actress Annie Ross, mostly relating to her early film career, including:
- Personal photographs c. 1920-2010
- Clothing
- Audio and Video Recordings 1930-2014
- Press clippings c.1996-2012
- Personal effects
- Performance ephemera c.1900-2012
Administrative / Biographical History
Annie Ross was born Annabelle McCauley Allan Short in Surrey, England, on 25 July 1930. She was the daughter of musical hall performers and vaudevillians John "Jack" Short and Mary Dalziel Short (née Allan). Her brother was the actor, comedian, musician and impresario Jimmy Logan.
At a young age Ross moved to the United States of America where she lived with her aunt 'Ella Logan' who was a popular musical theatre performer. Ross began her career as a child actress and singer, signed to MGM. Still as a youngster she starred alongside Judy Garland in Presenting Lily Mars (1943), playing Garland's character's sister.
Ross' career in Jazz took off in the 1950s after which she would perform extensively in the United States and in the UK, opening a jazz club in London in the 1960s (Annie's Room). In 2009 Ross was awarded the ASCAP Jazz Wall of Fame award, and the National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters Award came the following year. A documentary about Ross' life entitled 'No One But Me' premiered at the Glasgow Film Festival in 2012. She died in 2020.
Access Information
Open. Appointment necessary E-mail: archives@rcs.ac.uk
Acquisition Information
The estate of Annie Ross.
Custodial History
Bequeathed to the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland's Archives & Collections in November 2020.
Related Material
James Dickson Carr Library
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
75 Avenue E
Piscataway, NJ 08854-8040Subjects
Personal Names
Corporate Names