At the tender age of three Rose Marie Mazzetta was entered in an amateur contest at New York City’s Mecca Theatre. Her rendition of "What Can I Say Dear, After I Say I’m Sorry?" won, and her career was launched. She stayed "Baby Rose Marie" until she was well into her teens, singing in nightclubs, on vaudeville stages, on the radio, and in the movies.
It was a glamorous but difficult life—she worked side by side with legends such as Al Jolson, Milton Berle, and W.C. Fields, and was watched over by "Uncle" Al Capone and his associates—but her father managed her career and personal life with an iron fist, gambling her earnings away and abusing her and any boy foolish enough to show an interest in the family meal ticket.
Rose Marie married trumpeter Bobby Guy in 1946 and continued as a singer and nightclub entertainer. She soon established a second career on the small screen, most prominently as Sally on the legendary Dick Van Dyke Show, a groundbreaking role for which she earned three Emmy nominations and which continues to gather new fans from reruns on TV Land. Her fourteen years on Hollywood Squares and recent guest spots on such hit shows as Murphy Brown and Caroline in the City have kept her in the spotlight.
With candor and humor, Rose Marie tells of her many years in the entertainment world. Her behind-the-scenes look at show business is replete with intimate stories of household names from Hollywood, Las Vegas, and Broadway.
