Cass Elliot

Ellen Naomi Cohen † (September 19, 1941 - c. July 29, 1974 [aged 32]), better known online as Cass Elliot, was an American singer. Elliot was a member of the singing group the Mamas & the Papas. 
==History==
Ellen Naomi Cohen was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on September 19, 1941, the daughter of Philip and Bess Cohen. http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1994-04-02/news/1994092046_1_cohen-mama-cass-bess Elliot had a brother, Joseph, and a younger sister, Leah. Elliot's early life was spent with her family in Alexandria, Virginia, and the family moved to Baltimore when Elliot was 15, where they had briefly lived at the time of Elliot's birth. https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/eddi-fiegel/dream-a-little-dream-of-me
Elliot adopted the name "Cass" in high school. She assumed the surname "Elliot" some time later, in memory of a friend who had died. http://archives.waiting-forthe-sun.net/Pages/Articles/lizard_king_remembered.html Elliot became interested in acting while attending Forest Park High School. She won a small part in the play The Boy Friend in 1959 under the name Ellen Cohen. https://www.newspapers.com/image/375155515/ She left high school shortly before graduation and moved to New York City to further her acting career. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USibFMyk3Rw
After leaving high school to pursue an entertainment career in New York, Elliot toured in the musical The Music Man in 1962 under the name Cass Elliot, but lost the part of Miss Marmelstein in I Can Get It for You Wholesale to Barbra Streisand. Elliot sometimes sang while working as a cloakroom attendant at The Showplace in Greenwich Village, but she did not pursue a singing career until she moved to the Washington, DC, area to attend American University. https://www.newspapers.com/image/163185650/
America's folk music scene was on the rise when Elliot met banjoist and singer Tim Rose and singer John Brown, and the three began performing as the Triumvirate. In 1963, James Hendricks replaced Brown, and the trio was renamed the Big 3. http://www.casselliot.com/biography.htm
Tim Rose left the Big 3 in 1964, and Elliot and Hendricks teamed with Canadians Zal Yanovsky and Denny Doherty to form the Mugwumps. This group lasted eight months, after which Cass performed as a solo act for a while. https://jwa.org/thisweek/sep/19/1943/birth-of-mama-cass-elliot Doherty joined the New Journeymen, a group that also included John Phillips and his wife Michelle. In 1965, Doherty persuaded Phillips that Elliot should join the group, which she did while the group members and she were vacationing in the Virgin Islands. http://www.wfma.net/journey.htm
With two female members, the New Journeymen needed a new name and they agreed on the Mamas & the Papas. The group lasted from 1965 to 1968. According to Doherty, as written on his website, Elliot had the inspiration for the band's new name. https://americansongwriter.com/behind-the-band-name-the-mamas-the-papas/
After the breakup of the Mamas and the Papas, Elliot embarked on a solo singing career. Her most successful recording during this period was 1968's "Dream a Little Dream of Me" from her solo album of the same name, released by Dunhill Records. https://www.npr.org/2000/03/26/1072082/dream-a-little-dream 
==Death==
Elliot attended the 31st birthday party of Mick Jagger at his home. After the party, Elliot went to a brunch in her honor presented by Georgia Brown. While there, according to biographer Eddi Fiegel, Elliot was blowing her nose frequently, coughing and having trouble breathing. Next she attended a cocktail party hosted by American entertainment journalist Jack Martin. She seemed in high spirits but also appeared physically exhausted and sick. Elliot left that party at 8:00 p.m. on Sunday, July 28, saying she was tired and needed to get some sleep. https://flashbak.com/the-death-of-cass-elliot-and-keith-moon-at-harry-nilssons-macabre-mayfair-flat-422551/
Elliot returned to an apartment in Mayfair owned by singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson who allowed her to stay there. Several hours after Elliot left Jack Martin's cocktail party, she died in her sleep at age 32. According to Keith Simpson, who conducted her autopsy, she died of a heart attack, and there were no drugs in her system. https://archive.today/20121209050952/http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F70E11F93E5E1A7493C4A91783D85F408785F9
===Legacy===
Elliot received the 2,735th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on October 3, 2022. https://variety.com/2022/music/news/cass-elliot-mamas-papas-hollywood-walk-of-fame-star-1235390478/
==Discography==
===Albums===
*Dream a Little Dream (1968)
*Bubblegum, Lemonade, and Something for Mama (1969)
*Make Your Own Kind of Music (1969)
*Mama's Big Ones (1970)
*Dave Mason & Cass Elliot (1971)
*Cass Elliot (1972)
*The Road Is No Place for a Lady (1972)
*Don't Call Me Mama Anymore (1973)
==References==
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