Storm was born Josephine Owaissa Cottle in Bloomington in Victoria County, Texas. The youngest of five children, she had two brothers and two sisters. Her father, William Walter Cottle, died after a year-long illness when she was just seventeen months old, and her mother, Minnie Corina Cottle, struggled to raise the children alone. One of her sisters gave Josephine the middle name "Owaissa," a Norridgewock Amerindian word meaning "bluebird." Storm's mother Minnie took in sewing, then opened a millinery shop in McDade, Texas, which failed, and finally moved the family to Houston. Storm learned to be an accomplished dancer and became an excellent ice skater at Houston's Polar Palace. She performed in the drama club at both Albert Sidney Johnston Junior High School and San Jacinto High School.
When she was 17 years old, two of her teachers urged her to enter a contest on Gateway to Hollywood, broadcast from the CBS Radio studios in Hollywood, California. First prize was a one-year contract with a movie studio. She won and was immediately given the stage name Gale Storm. Her performing partner (and future husband), Lee Bonnell from South Bend, Indiana, became known as Terry Belmont.
In Gallatin, Tennessee in November 1954, a 10-year-old girl, Linda Wood, was watching Storm on a Sunday night television variety show, NBC's Colgate Comedy Hour, hosted by Gordon MacRae, singing one of the popular songs of the day. Linda's father asked her who was singing and was told it was Gale Storm from My Little Margie. Linda's father Randy Wood was president of Dot Records, and he liked Storm so much that he called to sign her before the end of the television show. Her first record, "I Hear You Knockin'," a cover version of a rhythm and blues hit by Smiley Lewis, sold over a million copies. The follow-up was a two-sided hit, with Storm covering Dean Martin's "Memories Are Made of This" backed with her cover of Gloria Mann's "A Teenage Prayer." That was followed by a hit cover of Frankie Lymon's "Why Do Fools Fall in Love." Storm's subsequent record sales began to slide but soon rebounded with a cover of her own labelmate Bonnie Guitar's haunting ballad "Dark Moon" that went to No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Storm had several other hits and headlined in Las Vegas and appeared in numerous stage plays. Amazingly, Storm only recorded for approximately two years with Dot and then gave up recording because of her husband's concerns with the time she had to devote to that career. Equally amazing, almost her entire recording career was based on her quickly recording cover versions of new hits by other artists (one, a cover of Joni James' "I Need You So," was never released). Many felt that Storm's covers often were better than the originals, and she developed a large following.
After winning the contest in 1940, Storm made several films for the studio, RKO Radio Pictures. Her first was Tom Brown's School Days, playing opposite Jimmy Lydon and Freddie Bartholomew. She worked steadily in low-budget films released during this period. In 1941 she sang in several Soundies, three-minute musicals produced for "movie jukeboxes."
Storm acted and sang in Monogram Pictures' popular Frankie Darro series, and played ingénue roles in other Monogram features with the East Side Kids, Edgar Kennedy and The Three Stooges, most notably in the film Swing Parade of 1946. Monogram had always relied on established actors with reputations, but in Gale Storm the studio finally had a star of its own. She played the lead in the studio's most elaborate productions, both musical and dramatic. She shared top billing in Monogram's Cosmo Jones, Crime Smasher (1943), opposite Edgar Kennedy, Richard Cromwell, and Frank Graham in the role of Jones, a character derived from network radio.
American audiences warmed to Storm and her fan mail increased. She performed in more than three dozen motion pictures for Monogram, experience which made possible her success in other media. She became an American icon of the 1950s, starring in two highly successful television series. It was also in this decade that her singing career took shape. She appeared on such variety programs as ABC's The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom.
n 1950, Storm made her TV debut in Hollywood Premiere Theatre on ABC. From 1952 to 1955, she starred in My Little Margie. The show, which co-starred former silent film actor Charles Farrell as her father, was originally a summer replacement for I Love Lucy on CBS, but ran for 126 episodes on NBC and CBS. The series was broadcast on CBS Radio from December 1952 to August 1955 with the same actors.
Storm's popularity was capitalized on when she served as hostess of the NBC Comedy Hour in the winter of 1956. That year she starred in another situation comedy, The Gale Storm Show (aka Oh! Susanna), featuring another silent movie star, ZaSu Pitts. The Gale Storm show ran for 143 episodes between 1956 and 1960. Storm appeared regularly on other television programs in the 1950s and 1960s. She was both a panelist and a "mystery guest" on What's My Line?
Storm was married and widowed twice. In 1941, she married Lee Bonnell (1918–1986), then an actor and later a businessman. They had four children: Peter, Phillip, Paul and Susanna. She married the second time in 1988 to Paul Masterson (1917–1996).
In her later years she struggled with alcoholism, in her own words:
During the 1970s I experienced a terribly low and painful time of dealing with alcoholism. I had Lee's unfailing support through the entire ordeal. My treatment and recovery were more than rugged. At that time, there was such a stigma attached to alcoholism, particularly for women, that it could be hazardous to your reputation and career. I thank God daily that I have been fully recovered for more than 20 years. During my struggle, I had no idea of the blessing my experience could turn out to be! I've had the opportunity to share with others suffering with alcoholism the knowledge that there is help, hope, and an alcohol free life awaiting them.
Storm was a great believer in the benevolence of God and was very much a Christian and later became an active member of the South Shores Church. She once said of this:
Life has been good and I thank God for His many blessings and the happy life He has given to me.
Storm made occasional television appearances in later years, such as Love Boat, Burke's Law, and Murder, She Wrote. In 1981, she published her autobiography, I Ain't Down Yet, which described her battle with alcoholism. She was also interviewed by author David C. Tucker for The Women Who Made Television Funny: Ten Stars of 1950s Sitcoms, published in 2007 by McFarland and Company.
Storm continued to make personal appearances and autographed photos at fan conventions, along with Charles Farrell from the My Little Margie series. She also attended events such as the Memphis Film Festival, the Friends of Old-Time Radio and the Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention.
Storm lived alone in Monarch Beach, California, near two of her sons and their families, until failing health forced her into a convalescent home, near San Francisco in Danville, California. She died there on June 27, 2009.
Storm has three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contributions to recording, radio, and television.
Teen Age Prayer
Gale Storm Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
How I adore him;
I've whispered to angels,
What I'd do for him;
He is the answer
To A TEENAGE PRAYER;
He wont go steady,
The crowd has told me,
To have him hold me,
Why wont you listen
To A TEENAGE PRAYER?
I wait by the window at seven,
And chill when my thrill passes by;
His kiss could send me to heaven,
Into his arms I could fly;
My girlfriend, Betty
Tells me he's lazy,
But I know Betty
Loves him like crazy,
He is the answer
To A TEENAGE PRAYER.
The lyrics of Gale Storm's "Teen Age Prayer" capture the innocent, yet intense feelings of adolescent love. The song expresses the singer's unwavering feelings for a boy who she perceives as the answer to her teenage prayers. Even though her friends are skeptical of the boy's commitment, she continues to hope that he will return her feelings. The young lover spends her time daydreaming and waiting by the window, hoping to catch a glimpse of her crush. Her devotion to him is unwavering, despite the warnings of her friend Betty.
The song serves as a powerful representation of the intense emotions that accompany teenage love. The singer's confident assertion that the boy she loves is the answer to her prayers is both hopeful and painfully naive. Her willingness to overlook the advice of her friends and wait for a boy who may never reciprocate her feelings is representative of the youthful naivety that is so common in teenage infatuation. The song is a reminder of the powerful emotions that emerge during adolescence and the timeless nature of first love.
Line by Line Meaning
My friends all know it,
Everyone I know is aware of how much I love him.
How I adore him;
I have strong feelings of love and admiration towards him.
I've whispered to angels,
I have shared my feelings with the divine beings above.
What I'd do for him;
I am willing to go above and beyond for his love.
He is the answer
To A TEENAGE PRAYER;
He is the person I have been praying for as a teenager, the one who makes my heart sing.
He wont go steady,
The crowd has told me,
The people around me have told me that he doesn't want to commit to a relationship.
But I keep praying
To have him hold me,
Despite that, I still pray that he will come to love me and hold me in his arms.
Why wont you listen
To A TEENAGE PRAYER?
I wonder why my wishes and prayers as a teenager are not being granted.
I wait by the window at seven,
I wait patiently by the window at seven, hoping to catch sight of him.
And chill when my thrill passes by;
I get nervous and exhilarated when he passes by me.
His kiss could send me to heaven,
Into his arms I could fly;
If I were to experience his kiss, I would feel such an intense and overwhelming love that I would feel like I am flying.
My girlfriend, Betty
Tells me he's lazy,
My friend named Betty tells me that he is a lazy person.
But I know Betty
Loves him like crazy,
Despite what she says about him, I am aware that she is deeply in love with him.
He is the answer
To A TEENAGE PRAYER.
Once again, I reiterate that he is the answer to my teenage prayers, the person I have been waiting for to complete my life.
Contributed by Emma H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@rockake
Thanks for posting. Revued in Billboard on Decemer, 3rd, 1955:
GALE STORM....Dot 15436.............................TEEN-AGE PRAYER
(Peer, BMI)
Miss Storm racks up a fine two-sided follow-up to her
current "I Hear You Knockin' " smash. "Teen-Age Prayer"
is already moving in other versions, but Miss Storm
gives a very convincing performance. Both sides have
what it takes to move out. A good juke buy.
@demonbarber14
Sometimes you just can't beat a 50s song when it comes to expressing your feelings!
@juliereminiec4937
demon, ,is it me.. or does teenage prayer sound like a slowed down ricochet
Gale storm sounds a lot like Teresea Brewer
@williamgable7554
Great flashback from the 50"s...Gale Storm was quite a heart throb then with a TV show and several hit songs. Her looks didn't hurt any!
@vincentmangual9314
Is This My Little Margie?
@eddieparker5114
EddieParker fantastic job on this one I have always like this gal her singing and show on tv great 50s singer 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👍👍😘😍🌹❤️
@demonbarber14
Awesome song! 50 odd years later, it's still relevant!
@ruthfeder7049
OMG!!! I FORGOT ABOUT THIS SONG,....IT'S BEEN YEARS,....THANK YOU FOR THIS UPLOAD!!!
@wareidav
Elegant little song. Love the lyrics. Love the arrangement. Love the strings. What a voice
@rockake
Thanks for posting. Revued in Billboard on Decemer, 3rd, 1955:
GALE STORM....Dot 15436.............................TEEN-AGE PRAYER
(Peer, BMI)
Miss Storm racks up a fine two-sided follow-up to her
current "I Hear You Knockin' " smash. "Teen-Age Prayer"
is already moving in other versions, but Miss Storm
gives a very convincing performance. Both sides have
what it takes to move out. A good juke buy.
@N772889g
beautiful