Eartha Kitt

Eartha Kitt (1927–2008) was an American singer, actress and dancer known for her distinctive, purring vocal delivery and glamorous stage persona. Born in South Carolina, she rose from poverty to international stardom, first as a dancer with the Katherine Dunham company and then as a nightclub chanteuse in Paris and New York, which led to her signing with RCA Victor in the early 1950s.

Her sound blended cabaret, jazz-tinged pop and exotic novelty numbers, delivered with a sly, seductive wit that made her a singular presence in mid-century entertainment. She became forever associated with the holiday classic «Santa Baby», while «I Want to Be Evil» and «C’est si bon» showcased her playful, theatrical phrasing across English and French. Beyond music, she was celebrated for her acting, most famously as Catwoman in the «Batman» television series, and later lent her purring voice to animated roles such as Yzma in Disney’s «The Emperor’s New Groove», singing «Snuff Out the Light».

Kitt was also known for her outspokenness, including a famous 1968 confrontation with First Lady Lady Bird Johnson over the Vietnam War that temporarily stalled her career in the United States, though she rebuilt it through cabaret, Broadway and film work in later decades. She remains remembered as one of the twentieth century’s most distinctive vocal and visual stylists.