Cass Elliot

"Mama" Cass Elliot (September 19, 1941 ? July 29, 1974), born Ellen Naomi Cohen, was a noted American singer who performed with The Mamas & the Papas. She then went onto a successful solo career, releasing nine albums. Born in Baltimore, Maryland, she spent most of her childhood both in Baltimore and Alexandria, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, D.C.

Myths

An urban legend holds that Elliot died while choking on a sandwich, sometimes stated as a "ham sandwich". Shortly after her death, but before her autopsy, The Times published an article that quoted her doctor as speculating that she "probably... died as a result of choking on a sandwich while lying in bed". However, the coroner found no food in her trachea, and reported the cause of death as heart failure. Nevertheless, the rumor spread, with the popular imagination adding that the sandwich contained ham. Another version of the story holds that the doctor found a sandwich or partially eaten sandwich in her room, causing him to speculate about the cause of death. Apparently, that version of the story has no corroboration either.

Related Topics:
Urban legend - Autopsy - The Times - Coroner - Trachea

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Another popular myth circulated about Elliot. While the Mamas & the Papas were touring as The Magic Circle (their name before changing it to The Mamas & the Papas), Elliot begged friend Denny Doherty to let her join the band. Though she had a great voice, the band's leader, John Phillips, didn't feel her voice blended well with the band's other female vocalist, his wife, Michelle Phillips. But Elliot followed the band wherever they appeared, even to an engagement to the Virgin Islands. Here, she was finally accepted into the band. The myth purports that while on the islands, a piece of copper tubing fell on her head and miraculously changed her voice. Though untrue, the myth has been repeated by such music professionals as Casey Kasem. Elliot was hit on the head with a copper pipe during a nightclub renovation, but it had no effect on her voice. The myth was apparently started by band member John Phillips as a justification for letting her into the band after initially refusing to allow her to join. He tells the story himself on the PBS special California Dreamin': The Songs of the Mamas and the Papas, insisting it's true.

Related Topics:
Myth - The Magic Circle - Denny Doherty - John Phillips - Virgin Islands - Casey Kasem

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Both rumours were mentioned in the Filmfour-produced film Beautiful Thing, of which Mama Cass' music is a big feature.

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The E! True Hollywood Story biography about Elliot reports (and revives) the rumor that singer/songwriter John Lennon of The Beatles may have been the father of Elliot's daughter, Owen.

Related Topics:
E! True Hollywood Story - John Lennon - The Beatles

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