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.
Lonely Girl
Julie London Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Who I'd love because I'm such a lonely, lonely girl;
I'd like to be the girl
Some guy like to call his one and only, only girl.
He doesn't have to be especially handsome,
As long as he cares for me and he's kind of romance-some!
It's because I'm such a lonely, lonely girl,
Lonely girl,
Lonely girl.
Julie London's Lonely Girl is a poignant song that tells the story of a young woman who longs for the affection of someone special. The lyrics speak to the universal feeling of loneliness that many of us experience at some point in our lives. In the first verse, she expresses her desire to meet a boy who she can love, and who will love her in return. She confesses her loneliness and her longing to be the "one and only" girl for someone.
The second verse is one of the most powerful in the song, as she reveals that the boy she's looking for doesn't have to be handsome or wealthy, just kind and romantic. This is a reflection on the fact that the simplest things in life can often bring us the greatest joy, and that it's the little things that make a relationship special. She begs the listener to understand why she cries, repeating the phrase "lonely girl" three times over, leaving no doubt in the listener's mind how lonely she feels.
The beauty of Lonely Girl is its simplicity. It's a song that speaks to the heart, conveying a message that many of us can relate to. It's a song about longing, hope, and the search for love, and it's delivered with honesty and sincerity. Julie London's performance is both haunting and sublime, capturing the essence of the song perfectly.
Line by Line Meaning
I'd love to meet some boy
I wish I could meet a boy.
Who I'd love because I'm such a lonely, lonely girl;
I want to fall in love because I feel very lonely.
I'd like to be the girl
I want to be the kind of girl who
Some guy like to call his one and only, only girl.
a guy would want to call his own and only girl.
He doesn't have to be especially handsome,
I don't require him to be extremely good-looking,
As long as he cares for me and he's kind of romance-some!
as long as he loves me and is a bit romantic!
Please try to understand why I cry,
I want you to understand why I am crying,
It's because I'm such a lonely, lonely girl,
it's because I am feeling incredibly lonely,
Lonely girl,
a lonely girl,
Lonely girl.
a lonely girl.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BOBBY TROUP
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind