Betty Noyes

Betty Noyes Hand
Betty Noyes in Cinderella (1965)
Born	Elizabeth Noyes (1912-10-11)October 11, 1912 Oklahoma, U.S.
Died	Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Years active	1938–1968
Spouse(s)	Milton Hand
Children	Two daughters, Susan and Deborah

Elizabeth "Betty" Noyes Hand (October 11, 1912 – December 24, 1987) was a singer and actress best known for dubbing the singing voice of Debbie Reynolds in the 1952 film Singin' in the Rain. Today, this is a well-known example of dubbing in a movie musical; ironically, Reynolds's character in Singin' in the Rain was supposedly dubbing for another character. She is also known for singing the song "Baby Mine" in the Disney film Dumbo (1941), which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song. However, she was not given screen credit for this performance. (None of the voice actors for Dumbo were credited on screen.)

Known career

Noyes began her career in 1938 in The Debutantes, a trio of three young women in the Ted Fio Rito big band. They made the original recording of "My Little Grass Shack in Kealakekua, Hawaii." In 1947, she was in a quartet called "The Girlfriends," a regular feature on several NBC Radio programs, including The Bill Goodwin Show, The Carnation Hour, and with Bing Crosby. Norma Zimmer, Lawrence Welk's "Champagne Lady," was also in the group. Noyes and other members of the quartet became "First Call" studio singers and can be heard on most movie musicals for two decades, including The Wizard of Oz (1939), White Christmas (1954), and The Sound of Music (1965).

She also appeared on-camera in several movies and television series, including regular appearances on The Dinah Shore Show and an episode of I Love Lucy titled "Lucy Goes to Scotland." She appeared as a mother who sings a brief solo in the 1965 television movie Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, along with fellow dubber Bill Lee. On-screen movie credits include I Married an Angel (1942), the Don Knotts comedy The Love God? (1969), and Abbott and Costello's Jack and the Beanstalk (1952). Her other singing credits include recordings with Ken Darby and Jack Halloren, and singing and voice work for the "Ice Follies."

Personal life

Betty Noyes was married to Milton Hand, a football and PE coach at Los Angeles City College. They had two daughters, Susan and Deborah. The family lived in Studio City, CA, and she and her husband eventually retired to Balboa Island, CA.

Her daughter Susan, a violinist, became a teacher in Tehachapi, CA and the mother of three children. Deborah became a reporter for the Christian Science Monitor and eventually the mayor of Tehachapi. Betty's name has sometimes been incorrectly reported as Betty Royce, including in Debbie Reynolds's own autobiography.

Noyes died on December 24, 1987, at the age of 75, in Los Angeles, CA. As of early January of 2016, the cause of her death was not widely known.

Confirmed work

• Dumbo (1941) uncredited as singer of "Baby Mine"
• I Married an Angel (1942) uncredited specialty bit in Paris Honeymoon sequence
• Singin' in the Rain (1952) uncredited as the singing voice of Debbie Reynolds on "Would You" and "You Are My Lucky Star."
• Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954) singing voice of Ruta Kilmonis
• I Love Lucy (1 episode, 1956) as Townsperson in "Lucy Goes to Scotland"
• Cinderella (1965) as Mother

Selected list of known vocal performances

In film

• The Alamo
• Blue Hawaii
• Camelot
• Doctor Dolittle
• The Greatest Story Ever Told
• The Hallelujah Trail
• How the West Was Won
• The Incredible Mr. Limpet providing character voice of "Lady Fish" in animated-cartoon sequences
• King of Kings (1961 film)
• The Music Man
• Mutiny On The Bounty
• My Fair Lady
• The Sound of Music
• State Fair
• White Christmas
• The Wizard of Oz

In music

• That Bad Eartha (background vocalsit)

External links

• Betty Noyes at IMDB