Karen Carpenter
Childhood Of Celebrities : Karen Carpenter
Carpenter was born in New Haven, Connecticut, USA to Agnes Reuwer Tatum and Harold Bertram Carpenter.
Richard had developed an interest in music at an early age, becoming a piano prodigy. The family moved in 1963 to the Los Angeles suburb of Downey, California. The move to Southern California, home of many recording studios and record companies, was intended in part to foster Richard’s budding musical career.
When Karen Carpenter went to Downey High School, she didn’t care for gym class, so she asked Richard to ask the conductor of the band if she could substitute band for gym class. The conductor agreed to take her into the band, and gave her the glockenspiel. She didn’t like the glockenspiel, and upon admiring the performance of a friend who played the drums, she asked the conductor if she could play the drums instead.
Drumming came naturally to Carpenter, and she practiced for several hours a day—her drumming can be heard in many of the Carpenters’ songs. When she was 17, Carpenter went on “The Stillman Diet” with a doctor’s guidance, and lost between 20 and 25 pounds.
In 1968, John Wayne met the Carpenters on a talent show called “Your All American College Show.” He urged Carpenter to try out for a role in the film “True Grit.” Carpenter auditioned, but Kim Darby was selected instead.
Credit : Wikipedia
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