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FILE – This Tuesday, December 12, 1995. Photo file, Phyllis McGuire, the youngest of the McGuire sisters, smiles after receiving a group of balloons from longtime friends Debbie Reynolds and Rip Taylor at home in Las Vegas. Phyllis McGuire, the last surviving member of the three singing McGuire sisters who hit the charts with the most hits in the 1950s, died on Tuesday, December 31, 2020 (AP Photo / Lennox McLendon, File)
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FILE – This Tuesday, December 12, 1995. Photo file, Phyllis McGuire, the youngest of the McGuire sisters, smiles after receiving a group of balloons from longtime friends Debbie Reynolds and Rip Taylor at home in Las Vegas. Phyllis McGuire, the last surviving member of the three singing McGuire sisters who hit the charts with the most hits in the 1950s, died on Tuesday, December 31, 2020 (AP Photo / Lennox McLendon, File)
LAS VEGAS (AP) – Phyllis McGuire, the last surviving member of the three singing McGuire sisters who hit the charts with the most hits in the 1950s, has died. He was 89 years old.
The lead singer and younger sister of Dorothy and Christine McGuire died Tuesday in Las Vegas, the Palm Eastern cemetery and east confirmed on Thursday. No cause of death was provided.
Known for their sweet harmonies and identical outfits and hairstyles, the McGuire sisters won six gold records for hits, including “Sincerely” from 1954 and “Sugartime” from 1957.
The group toured for five presidents and Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain. They were inducted into the National Broadcasting Hall of Fame and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2001.
The Las Vegas sun reported that Phyllis McGuire died at her mansion, which she called “Beverly Hills of Las Vegas” on the Rancho Circle property near downtown Las Vegas. The 2,415-square-foot (26,000-square-meter) house includes a 14-meter (45-square-meter) version of the Eiffel Tower.
The sisters began singing together as children at their mother’s church in Ohio and then attended weddings and church revivals.
They grew in popularity during World War II and took breaks in the show in 1952 with an appearance on the “Kate Smith Show.”
The three last played together in the mid-2000s and were featured in a 2004 PBS show called “Magic Moments – The Best of the 50’s Pop.”
“It simply came to our notice then. They brought the country together by singing wonderful songs, ”Lovee Arum, one of McGuire’s longtime friends, told Sun. “Phyllis McGuire was beautiful, talented and part of the Las Vegas attraction.”
Phyllis Jean McGuire was born in Middletown, Ohio, on February 14, 1931. Dorothy McGuire Williamson died in 2012. Christine McGuire died in 2018.
Phyllis McGuire married broadcaster Neal Van Ells in 1952. They divorced in 1956.
She was also known for her relationship with mobster Sam Giancana in the 1960s. Mary Louise-Parker played Phyllis McGuire in the 1995 HBO movie “Sugartime,” which described Giancana’s love affair with her.