London's 35-year acting career began in films in 1944 and included playing opposite Gary Cooper in Man of the West (1958) and Robert Mitchum in The Wonderful Country (1959). She achieved continuing success in the TV medical drama Emergency! (1972–1979), co-starring her real-life husband, Bobby Troup, and produced by her ex-husband, Jack Webb, in which London played the female lead role of nurse Dixie McCall. She and Randolph Mantooth, who played one-half of her medical students, a paramedic, in the series, were very close to her family, until her death in 2000.
Born in Santa Rosa, California, she was the daughter of Jack and Josephine Peck, who were a vaudeville song-and-dance team. When she was fourteen the family moved to Los Angeles. Shortly after that, she began appearing in movies. She graduated from the Hollywood Professional High School in 1945.
London began singing under the name Gayle Peck in public in her teens before appearing in a film. She was discovered by talent agent Sue Carol (wife of actor Alan Ladd), while working as an elevator operator. Her early film career, however, did not include any singing roles.
London recorded 32 albums in a career that began in 1955 with a live performance at the 881 Club in Los Angeles. Billboard named her the most popular female vocalist for 1955, 1956, and 1957. She was the subject of a 1957 Life cover article in which she was quoted as saying, "It's only a thimbleful of a voice, and I have to use it close to the microphone. But it is a kind of oversmoked voice, and it automatically sounds intimate."
London's debut recordings were for the Bethlehem Records label. While shopping for a record deal, she recorded four tracks that would later be included on the compilation album Bethlehem's Girlfriends in 1955. Bobby Troup backed London on the album, for which London recorded the standards "Don't Worry About Me", "Motherless Child", "A Foggy Day", and "You're Blasé".
London's most famous single, "Cry Me a River", was written by her high-school classmate Arthur Hamilton and produced by Troup. The recording became a million-seller after its release in December 1955 and also sold on reissue in April 1983 from the attention brought by a Mari Wilson cover. London performed the song in the film The Girl Can't Help It (1956), and her recording gained later attention in the films Passion of Mind (2000) and V for Vendetta (2006). The song "Yummy Yummy Yummy" was featured on the HBO television series Six Feet Under and appears on its soundtrack album. London's "Must Be Catchin'" was featured in the 2011 premiere episode of the ABC series Pan Am. Her last recording was "My Funny Valentine" for the soundtrack of the Burt Reynolds film Sharky's Machine (1981).
Other popular singles include "Hot Toddy", "Daddy", and "Desafinado". Recordings such as "Go Slow" epitomized her career style: her voice is slow, smoky, and playfully sensual.
She was married to Jack Webb, of Dragnet fame. Her obvious beauty and self-poise (she was a pinup girl prized by GIs during World War II) contrasted with his pedestrian appearance and stiff-as-a-board acting technique (much parodied by impersonators). This unlikely pairing arose from his and her love for jazz; their marriage lasted from July 1947 to November 1953. They had two daughters, one who was killed in a traffic accident in the 1990s and one who survived London. In 1954, having become somewhat reclusive after her divorce from Jack Webb, she met jazz composer and musician Bobby Troup at a club on La Brea Blvd. They married on December 31, 1959 and remained married until Troup's death in February 1999. Together, they had one daughter and twin sons.
London suffered a stroke in 1995, and was in poor health until her death in Encino, California, at the age of seventy-four, survived by four of her five children. She died on18th October 2000, and was buried in Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles.
How Did He Look
Julie London Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You saw him dancing last night in some cafe.
Gee, I haven't seen him in a year so so,
And theres so many things I'm dying to know.
How did he look? Did he look happy?
While they were dancing did he whisper things in her ear?
And did he light her cigarette, was he attentive?
What was she like? Was she attractive?
Was there a smile upon his face or did he seem bored?
Not that I really care, I know that our love affair can never be
But how did he look, and did he ask about me?
The song "How Did He Look" by Julie London is a nostalgic song about a former fiancé who the singer ran into after a year or so of not seeing him. The lyrics are filled with curiosity and longing as the singer asks about his state of mind and actions during his night out dancing with another woman. The singer is seen trying to understand the situation and her own feelings towards her former love.
The initial line sets the tone for the song and the singer's emotional state. She is taken aback by the chance encounter with her former fiancé and wants to know more about him. The second line describes the scene that the singer walks into, seeing her former love dancing with another woman at a café. This sets her off on a journey of wanting to find out how he looks, how he acted, and what he was feeling.
In the second verse, the singer asks about the man's behavior towards the new woman during their dance, and if he was giving her the same attention and affection that he used to give to the singer. She also asks if he enquired about her, which shows that the singer still has feelings for him and is curious about the possibility of them reconnecting. Overall, the lyrics depict a sense of longing, a need for closure, and a desire to understand the truth about the relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
So you ran into my former fiance.
You recently saw an ex-partner of mine.
You saw him dancing last night in some cafe.
You observed him dancing with someone else in a cafe last night.
Gee, I haven't seen him in a year or so,
It has been roughly a year since I last encountered him.
And theres so many things I'm dying to know.
I am curious about many things regarding his current life.
How did he look? Did he look happy?
Was he in a content state or did he appear miserable?
While they were dancing did he whisper things in her ear?
Did he say things in a low tone to the person he was dancing with?
And did he light her cigarette, was he attentive?
Was he engaged and caring to the individual he was with and even lit a cigarette for them?
The way he used to be with me.
I am aware of how he acted when we were together in the past.
What was she like? Was she attractive?
What was the appearance and character of the person he was dancing with?
Was there a smile upon his face or did he seem bored?
Did he have a smile on his face or did he appear dissatisfied and uninterested?
Not that I really care, I know that our love affair can never be
I have come to terms with the dissolvement of our relationship and it does not ultimately affect me
But how did he look, and did he ask about me?
I remain curious as to his appearance and whether or not he inquired about me.
Writer(s): G. Shelley, A. Silver
Contributed by Mackenzie M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.