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mini-biography NBC sent to fans who wrote in about my weekly
radio show

    I was enrolled once again in Professional Children's School. My mother
would pick me up at 2:00 P.M. We'd walk to Lindy's, the famous New York
restaurant/delicatessen, to have lunch and then go to Shapiro Bernstein to
rehearse. We'd go over many songs, always making sure the lyrics were
suitable for me. This was pretty much my daily routine, unless something
else came up-as it did with Paramount Studios.
    Someone called from Paramount's New York office and said that "the
coast" wanted to audition me for a part in a picture. Arrangements were
made. We called Herbie to play for me, and both my parents came along
with me. We went to Paramount's New York offices and were shown into
one of the suites, which had been turned into a screening room and was
also used for auditions.
    I sang "If I Only Had a Five Cent Piece." ("Enough to buy a cup of
coffee.... I'd drink water instead and go beggin' for bread, 'cuz I'd give the nickel to you....") What a lyric! My mother was sitting in front of me, and
I suddenly thought of all the crap she had taken from my father, and how
mean he was to her. While I was singing, I started crying - which made it
only more dramatic. I was crying and loving my mother so much. The
tears ran down my face and wouldn't stop. I could have given Bernadette
Peters lessons.

    Evidently it worked-not that it was exactly planned to turn out that
way. They decided I would be in this picture with W.C. Fields called International House. Get this: the picture was all about a new invention called
television! I had a cameo, along with Rudy Vallee and Bela Lugosi. The
film was to be directed by Brian Foy.
    I thought, "Great, back to Hollywood." Unfortunately, it was a oneday shoot on Long Island. The song I sang, "My Bluebird's Singing the
Blues," was written especially for me by Leo Robin and Ralph Ranger. They used two pianos on the set (with the orchestra in back, of course).
Herbie Steiner was on one piano and Ralph Ranger wanted to play the
other piano. Ralph was thrilled with the way I sang. He said it was a hard
song to sing, but he loved the way I sang it. I was so glad because I wasn't
feeling too well that day, and I wasn't sure how I would sound. It must
have been okay, because we did the scene in three takes and it was all over
in about two and a half hours.

    Between my movie debut and the start of my new NBC Radio job, I
was kept busy doing shorts. Two with the bouncing ball (remember that?).
I was the voice of Sally Swing in six Betty Boop cartoons. In the meantime,
NBC was really going to make this new show a big hit. There was lots of
publicity, new pictures, and guest shots. Mr. Schewing also decided that I
should become a corporation. Not only because of the things associated
with me like hair bows, dolls and dresses, but we now had a payroll. Herbie
Steiner, Sam Ward, and a salary for my father. But not my mother: she was
president of the corporation in name only; my father would give her a very
small amount of money each week. NBC drew up the papers and, believe
it or not, I signed the contract myself (my father had to sign it too, of
course). So the Baby Rose Marie Corporation was formed. Big deal! I don't
think we gained anything from it. Maybe my father did, but I don't remember my mother getting any of the windfall. By the way, I still have the
logos!
    My new radio show went on the air in May, as scheduled, and the
mail started to pour in-more than ever before. The reviews were sensational. Everyone was happy, and we started to get the whole thing down to
a routine. I even had time to make friends and play with the kids on the
block. I began to wish for one special present for my birthday coming up
in August. I wanted a big 26-inch red two-wheeler bike so I could ride up
and down the street with the kids. Can you imagine how thrilled I was
when Herbie, my piano player, gave me the