She is best known for her 1954 solo recording '"Little Things Mean a Lot" — a song that stayed at the U.S. number one spot for nine consecutive weeks, charted in the U.S. for almost seven months, hit #1 on the UK singles chart, and sold more than two million copies. AllMusic called the recording a "monster hit", music historian Jonny Whiteside said the song "ably characterizes Kallen’s impressive, and graceful, transition from classic big band swing to modern post-war pop".
Voted "most popular female singer" in 1954 in both Billboard and Variety polls, Kallen lost her voice at the Palladium in 1955 at the top of her career and left singing for four years, suffering paralyzed vocal cords. After testing her voice under a pseudonym in small town venues, she ultimately returned and went on to achieve 13 top-ten career hits.
Kallen performed at numerous prominent live venues including Manhattan's Copacabana, Morris Levy's Versailles, the Capitol Theater, the Maisonette Room at the St. Regis, the Cafe Rouge at the Hotel Pennsylvania and the Plaza Hotel's Persian Room. As well, she starred on Broadway in Finian's Rainbow; in the 1955 film The Second Greatest Sex and on numerous television shows including The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, The Big Beat with singer-host Richard Hayes, American Bandstand, and Fred Allen's Judge for Yourself. In 1951, Kallen appeared with Buster Crabbe as the Queen and King of Winter at the Lake Placid resort.
During the height of her popularity, three imposters billed themselves as "Kitty Kallen". When one of them — Genevieve Agostinello — died in 1978, it was incorrectly reported that Kallen herself had died. On February 8, 1960, Kallen received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (located on the north side of Hollywood Boulevard at #7021), and in 2009 she was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame.
Some sources give Kallen's birth name as Katherine Kalinsky, but according to records cited by her son, the name was Katie Kallen. She was born May 25, 1921, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, one of seven children, to Russian Jewish immigrants Samuel and Rose Kalinsky (later Kallen). As a child, she won an amateur contest by imitating popular singers. When she returned home with her prize, a camera, her father did not believe her, and punished her for stealing the camera. Only when neighbors subsequently visited to congratulate her, did Kallen's father realize she had actually won it.
While performing with Jack Teagarden's band, she married Clint Garvin, the band's clarinet player. When Teagarden fired Garvin, Kallen left as well, later annulling the marriage. In 1948, Kallen married Bernard "Budd" Granoff, a publicist, agent, and television producer. He later became a pioneering television syndicator. The couple, married for over forty-five years until Granoff's death in 1996, had a son, Jonathan Granoff, President of the Global Security Institute and Adjunct Professor of International Law at Widener University School of Law.
In 1977, Kallen sued her dermatologist, Norman Orentreich, after he prescribed an estrogen drug, Premarin, for her small facial wrinkles. She subsequently suffered blood clots in her lungs, caused directly by the drug, and won $300,000 by the court's decision.
In 2008, Kallen joined artists Patti Page, Tony Martin, Dick Hyman, Richard Hayman and the estates of Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Sarah Vaughan, Woody Herman, Les Brown, the Mills Brothers, Jerry Murad, Frankie Laine, and the gospel singer Sister Rosetta Tharpe in a suit against the world's then largest music label, Universal Music Group, alleging the company had cheated them on royalties.
Kallen died on January 7, 2016 at her home in Cuernavaca, Mexico at the age of 94.
As a young girl Kallen sang on The Children's Hour, a radio program sponsored by Horn & Hardart, an automat chain. As a pre-teen, Kallen had a radio program on Philadelphia's WCAU, and sang with the big bands of Jan Savitt in 1936, Artie Shaw in 1938, and Jack Teagarden in 1940.
Shortly before her 21st birthday, on May 5, 1942, she sang the vocals for "Moonlight Becomes You" with Bobby Sherwood and His Orchestra at the second every session for what was then still called Liberty Records but would soon be renamed Capitol Records. It was her only session for the label.
Just 21, she joined the Jimmy Dorsey band, replacing Helen O'Connell. In every theater of World War II, a favorite of American servicemen, "They're Either Too Young or Too Old". In 1944, Kallen performed the vocals for Dorsey's number-one hit "Besame Mucho". Most of her singing assignments were in duets with Bob Eberly, and when Eberly left to go into the service toward the end of 1943, she joined Harry James' band.
Between January and November 1945, Kitty Kallen had two songs recorded with the Harry James Orchestra in the top twenty, six in the top ten, and two at the #1 spot—"I'm Beginning to See the Light" and "It's Been a Long, Long Time", which remains deeply associated with the end of World War II and the returning troops.
With the 1954 hit "Little Things Mean a Lot", Kallen was voted most popular female singer in Billboard and Variety polls. She followed up this song with "Chapel in the Moonlight", another million selling record, and a version of "True Love" for Decca. In 1959, she recorded "If I Give My Heart to You" for Columbia Records, and in 1963, she recorded a top-selling version of "My Coloring Book" for RCA. Her final album was Quiet Nights, a bossa nova–flavored release for 20th Century Fox Records. Subsequently, Kallen retired due to a lung ailment.
A compilation of her hits on various labels remains available on the Sony CD set The Kitty Kallen Story.
Little Thigns Mean A Lot
Kitty Kallen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Say I look nice when I'm not
Touch my hair as you pass my chair
Little things mean a lot
Give me your arm as we cross the street
Call me at six on the dot
A line a day when you're far away
Don't have to buy me diamonds and pearls
Champagne, sables or such
I never cared much for diamonds and pearls
'Cause honestly honey, they just cost money
Give me your hand when I've lost the way
Give me your shoulder to cry on
Whether the day is bright or gray
Give me your heart to rely on
Send me the warmth of a secret smile
To show me you haven't forgot
For always and ever, now and forever
Little things mean a lot
Give me your hand when I've lost the way
Give me your shoulder to cry on
Whether the day is bright or gray
Give me your heart to rely on
Send me the warmth of a secret smile
To show me you haven't forgot
That always and ever, now and forever
Little things mean a lot
The song “Little Things Mean a Lot” by Kitty Kallen revolves around the idea that small gestures and actions from loved ones matter more than material things. The first verse focuses on simple physical acts like blowing a kiss, complimenting one’s appearance, or touching someone’s hair. These small things matter to the singer because they show that her loved one is thinking of her and cares about her.
The next verse takes the idea a step further, with the singer requesting her loved one to do things like give her arm to cross the street, call her at a specific time, or write her a line every day when they're apart. These seemingly insignificant gestures show that her loved one is attentive and committed to the relationship.
The song reaches its climax when the singer requests emotional support from her loved one. When she needs guidance or a place to cry, she wants her partner to be there. The final lines emphasize that warmth and a secret smile, knowing that she is remembered, are the most meaningful things in a relationship.
Overall, the song “Little Things Mean a Lot” is about how the small gestures that show someone cares are often more important than grand gestures that cost money.
Line by Line Meaning
Blow me a kiss from across the room
Show me affection in any way, even from afar
Say I look nice when I'm not
Compliment me even when I don't feel my best
Touch my hair as you pass my chair
Make small physical gestures to show that you care
Little things mean a lot
Small actions and gestures can have a big impact on someone emotionally
Give me your arm as we cross the street
Provide me with support and guidance, even in mundane situations
Call me at six on the dot
Be reliable and consistent in your communication with me
A line a day when you're far away
Stay in touch with me even when you're physically distant
Don't have to buy me diamonds and pearls
Material possessions are not necessary to make me feel loved and valued
Champagne, sables or such
Luxury items are not what I desire or need
I never cared much for diamonds and pearls
Expensive items are not what make me happy and fulfilled
'Cause honestly honey, they just cost money
Buying expensive gifts is not the way to show me that you care
Give me your hand when I've lost the way
Provide me with guidance and support when I am lost or uncertain
Give me your shoulder to cry on
Be there for me when I need emotional support or comfort
Whether the day is bright or gray
Be present and supportive regardless of the circumstances
Give me your heart to rely on
Offer me your love and commitment as a source of strength and security
Send me the warmth of a secret smile
Communicate your affection for me with small but meaningful gestures
To show me you haven't forgot
Demonstrate that you remember and appreciate the little things that matter to me
For always and ever, now and forever
The small acts of love and affection will always be important, now and in the future
Little things mean a lot
Small actions and gestures can have a big impact on someone emotionally
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CARL STUTZ, EDITH L CALISCH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@aliciaballesteros-mitchell1059
Blow me a kiss from across the room
Say I look nice when I'm not
Touch my hair as you pass my chair
Little things mean a lot
Give me your arm as we cross the street
Call me at six on the dot
A line a day when you're far away
Little things mean a lot
Don't have to buy me diamonds and pearls
Champagne, sables and such
I never cared much for diamonds and pearls
But honestly honey, they just cost money
Give me your hand when I've lost the way
Give me your shoulder to cry on
Whether the day is bright or gray give me your heart to rely on
Send me the warmth of a secret smile
To show me you haven't forgot
that always and ever, Now and forever,
Little things mean a lot
Give me your hand when I've lost the way
Give me your shoulder to cry on
Whether the day is bright or gray give me your heart to rely on
Send me the warmth of a secret smile
To show me you haven't forgot
that always and ever, now and forever
Little things mean a lot
@Tidybitz
It is so heartening to know that there are lots of younger people nowadays who do like these old songs and singers. One did worry that they may get forgotten but now I have more hope that they won't.
@LonelyBlackWolf96
Don't worry,they won't forget as the classics are never forgotten.
@ane11m
I’m grateful for being a teen in 2018, but one thing that is kinda bad now is the music sadly
@Sophia-by5gx
I’m 12 and I listen to this all the time!
@hypnoticfox4108
I’m a young teen and I have been listening to this music when my teachers say I could listen to music
@misplacedgeneral
Wrong mentality. Maybe the music that gets radio play is shit (and I am inclined to think that), but there are plenty of incredibly talented bands and musicians on the tour circuit. I love the classics, but am also glad o can see a keyboardist like Marco Benevento or a guitarist with the lyricism and rhythm of Erik Krasno. Plenty of good music to add to the long line of beautiful music in existence!
@TurtleRabbitKim05
I'm 17 but I definitely will play this song at my wedding someday. Timeless lyrics and beautiful melody
@Debbiebabe69
Little things mean a lot ;)
@cloudberry4206
Great reaction. Please keep the promise. To think that this timeless song was #1 in the US and UK charts 70 years ago - in 1953!
@paulcoffey1784
My uncle Doc, had alzhemeimers, didn't know his wife, my dad, nobody. I played this song for him, his very favorite. Sang it and played it. He smiled, looked at me, and said Paul!! I'd been overseas. Hadn't seen him in 40 years. This song, brought things back to him, for a little moment. 1 week later, to that unforgettable day. He left this earth... I pray he can here his happy, beautiful song,, in Eternity. ❤❤