Patrice Holloway (1948 - 2006)
singer/songwriter voiced Valerie on Josie and the Pussycats
Oct 17, 2006
(Source: www.toonzone.net)
Soul singer/songwriter Patrice Holloway has died of a heart attack, October 1 in Los Angeles. Animation fans know her best as the original voice of Valerie Brown in Hanna-Barbera's Josie and the Pussycats, both on TV and record.
Patrice, the younger sister of Motown recording artist Brenda Holloway, also got her start in the Detroit recording factory. She recorded several singles with Motown, none of which were ever released. She eventually found her place as a songwriter, co-writing "You've Made Me So Very Happy" which became a major hit for both Brenda Holloway and Blood, Sweat and Tears. She also contributed backing vocals (along with Brenda) to Joe Cocker's 1968 cover of The Beatles' "With a Little Help From My Friends." She also recorded several singles for Capitol, which did well on the Northern soul circuit.
In 1970, she auditioned for producer Danny Janssen, winning the part of Valerie Brown in Josie and the Pussycats, alongside Cathy Daugher (Josie) and Cheryl Ladd as ditzy drummer Melody. Patrice therefore had the distinction of being the first African-American to voice the first African-American regular series character on cartoon TV. However, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera balked at Patrice's involvement, demanding she be recast and that Valerie become Caucasian. It's worth noting that, in the original comic, Valerie was always intended to be African-American.
Janssen refused to back down, resulting in a 3-week standoff between the producer and Hanna-Barbera. H-B finally relented, allowing Janssen to keep Patrice in the show, and keeping her character African-American. The producer's stance also won him the respect of L.A.'s session musician community, who offered their services to him at a fraction of their usual rates.
Although Daugher's Josie was supposed to be the Pussycats' lead vocalist, Patrice ended up singing lead on the majority of the songs (including the show's theme). Unfortunately, the Josie and the Pussycats LP received almost no publicity on its December 5, 1970 release, and quickly sank out of sight. Patrice, Moor and Daugher were quickly replaced for the show's second season Josie and the Pussycats in Outer Space.
After the demise of Josie and the Pussycats, Patrice returned to songwriting and background vocals, working with and writing songs for Neil Young, Diana Ross, Bobby Womack, Ray Conniff and Brenda Holloway.
