Born in tiny North, South Carolina to Mamie Kitt, who was of Cherokee and African-American descent, and an American father (surname Kitt) of German and Dutch descent, she was raised by her maternal aunt Anna Mae Riley, whom she believed was her mother up until after Riley's death, when she was sent to live in New York City with her real mother.
Kitt began her career as a member of the Katherine Dunham Company and made her film debut with them in Casbah (1948). A talented singer with a distinctive voice, her hits include Let's Do It, C'est Si Bon (It's So Good), Just an Old Fashioned Girl, Monotonous, Love for Sale, I'd Rather Be Burned as a Witch, Uska Dara, Mink, Schmink, Under the Bridges of Paris, and arguably her most recognizable hit, the sexily sung Christmas song Santa Baby. She sang quite a few songs in French, a language she picked up during her years performing in Europe, but she never lost her American accent, which made her French songs sound rather amusing to native French speakers. She dabbled in other languages as well, which she demonstrated in many of the live recordings of her cabaret performances.
In 1950, Orson Welles gave her her first starring role, as Helen of Troy in his staging of Dr. Faustus. A few years later, she was cast in the revue New Faces of 1952, introducing "Monotonous", "C'est Si Bon" and "Santa Baby", three songs with which she continues to be identified. During her run, 20th Century Fox filmed a version of the play. Welles and Kitt allegedly had a torrid affair during her run in Shinbone Alley, which earned her the nickname by Welles as "the most exciting woman in the world". In 1958, Kitt made her feature film debut opposite Sidney Poitier in The Mark of the Hawk. Throughout the rest of the 1950s and early 1960s, Kitt would work on and off in film, television and on nightclub stages. In the late 1960s television series Batman, she played Catwoman after Julie Newmar left the role. This was the role for which she would best be remembered, owing to her purring feline drawl.
In 1968, however, Kitt encountered a substantial professional setback after she made anti-war statements during a White House luncheon that reportedly made First Lady Lady Bird Johnson weep uncontrollably. Professionally exiled from the U.S., she devoted her energies to overseas performances before returning to New York in a triumphant turn in the Broadway spectacle Timbuktu! (a version of the perennial Kismet set in Africa) in 1978. In the musical, one song gives a 'recipe' for mahoun, a preparation of cannabis, in which her sultry purring rendition of the refrain "constantly stirring with a long wooden spoon" was distinctive.
In 1984, she returned to hit music with a dance song, Where Is My Man; the first certified Gold record of her career. Kitt found new audiences in nightclubs across the country, including a whole new generation of gay male fans, and she responded by frequently giving benefit performances in support of HIV/AIDS organizations.
In 2000, Kitt again returned to Broadway in the short but notable run of the revival of the 1920s-themed, The Wild Party, opposite Mandy Patinkin and Toni Collette. In 2003, she replaced Chita Rivera in Nine. In recent years she had also appeared as the Wicked Witch in the North American national touring company of The Wizard of Oz.
One of her more unusual roles was as Kaa the python in a 1994 BBC Radio adaptation of The Jungle Book. Kitt lent her distinctive voice to the role of Yzma in Disney's The Emperor's New Groove and also did other voiceover work such as the voice of Queen Vexus on the animated TV series My Life as a Teenage Robot. She continued her role as Yzma on the spin-off TV series of The Emperor's New Groove, The Emperor's New School.
In recent years, Kitt's annual appearances in New York made her a fixture of the Manhattan cabaret scene. She took the stage at venues such as the Ballroom and, more recently, the Café Carlyle to explore and define her highly stylized image, alternating between signature songs (such as "Old Fashioned Millionaire"), which emphasized a witty, mercenary world-weariness, and less familiar repertoire, much of which she performed with an unexpected ferocity and bite that presented her as a survivor with a seemingly bottomless reservoir of resilience - her version of Here's to Life, frequently used as a closing number, was a sterling example of the latter. This side of her later performances is reflected in at least one of her recordings, Thinking Jazz, which preserves a series of performances with a small jazz combo that took place in the early 1990s in Germany, and which includes both standards (Smoke Gets in Your Eyes) and numbers (such as Something May Go Wrong) that seem more specifically tailored to her talents; one version of the CD includes as bonus performances a fierce, angry Yesterdays and a live take of "C'est Si Bon" that good-humoredly satirizes her sex-kitten persona.
Personal life
Kitt was married to John William McDonald, an associate of a real-estate investment company, from 1960 to 1965. They had one child, a daughter, Kitt (b. 1962, married Charles Lawrence Shapiro); and two grandchildren, Jason and Rachel Shapiro.
Eartha Kitt died of colon cancer on Christmas Day, December 25, 2008.
Let’s Do It
Eartha Kitt Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Even educated fleas do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
In Spain the best upper sets do it
Lithuanians and Letts do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
Not to mention the Finns
Folks in Siam do it
Think of Siamese twins
Some Argentines, without means do it
People say in Boston even beans do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
Romantic sponges they say do it
Oysters down in Oyster Bay do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
Cold Cape Cod clams, 'gainst their wish, do it
Even lazy jellyfish do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
Electric eels, I might add, do it
Though it shocks 'em I know
Why ask if shad do it
Waiter, bring me shadroe
In shallow shoals, English soles do it
Goldfish in the privacy of bowls do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
Do It, a song by Eartha Kitt, is a quirky and humorous take on the act of falling in love. The song speaks about how different species, nationalities, and even inanimate objects fall in love. The song is an ode to the universality of love, and how nothing can escape its grasp. Throughout the song, Kitt lists examples of how animals, insects, and people across the world do it, and how everyone should fall in love too.
The song starts with the line "Birds do it, Bees do it, Even educated fleas do it," which refers to the natural instinct of all living beings to procreate. Kitt then goes on to mention how upper-class Spaniards and Lithuanians, as well as the Dutch, Finns, and people of Siam, all fall in love. She then lists how even people with no means in Argentina do it, and how people in Boston believe that even beans fall in love. Kitt's humorous take on how animals and inanimate objects fall in love, like romantic sponges, oysters down in Oyster Bay, cold Cape Cod clams, lazy jellyfish, and electric eels, adds a lightheartedness to the song.
Overall, the song is a fun and playful take on the topic of falling in love. Kitt's voice adds charm and elegance to the song, and the witty lyrics make it a timeless classic.
Line by Line Meaning
Birds do it, Bees do it
Even animals like birds and bees engage in romantic relationships.
Even educated fleas do it
Even small creatures like fleas are able to find love.
Lets do it
The singer suggests that the listener engage in love and romance too.
Lets fall in love
The singer wants the listener to experience the feeling of falling in love.
In Spain the best upper sets do it
Even the wealthiest and most elite in Spain engage in love and romance.
Lithuanians and lets do it
Even people from Lithuania can find love like anyone else.
The Dutch in old Amsterdam do it
Even people in the historic city of Amsterdam are capable of finding love.
Not to mention the Finns
The Finns are another group of people who can experience love and romance.
Folks in Siam do it
Even people in Siam, now Thailand, can find love like anybody else.
Think of Siamese twins from Argentines
Even Siamese twins from Argentina experience the romantic feeling of love.
Without means do it
Even people who may not have financial stability can still find love.
People say in Boston beans do it
According to some people, even beans in Boston are capable of finding love.
Romantic sponges they say do it
Even simple creatures like sponges are capable of experiencing romance and love.
Oysters down in oyster bay do it
Even oysters in places like Oyster Bay can find love.
Cold Cape Cod clams against their wish do it
Even clams in Cape Cod can find love, whether they want to or not.
Even lazy jellyfish do it
Even the lazy behavior of jellyfish does not prevent them from experiencing love.
Electric eels I might add do it
Even electric eels can engage in love and romance.
Though it shocks them I know
The electric shock produced by eels does not prevent them from finding love.
Why ask if shall do it in shallow shoals
The singer questions why there is any doubt in the ability of shallow shoals to experience love.
English soles do it
Even fish like English soles can experience love like any other creature.
Goldfish in the privacy of bowls do it
Even goldfish, confined to small bowls, have the ability to experience love.
Lets do it
The singer once again suggests that the listener engage in love and romance.
Lets fall in love (x2)
The singer strongly encourages the listener to experience the feeling of falling in love.
Lyrics © TuneCore Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc., Actual Music, S.L.
Written by: Cole Porter
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind