T. C. (that's Thomas Craig to you) Jones achieved a remarkable amount of celebrity in the 50's. Discovered in the revue New Faces of 1956­though he had worked his way up through the ranks of several drag revues­he went on to a successful stage (Mask and Gown), screen ("Promises! Promises!" and the Monkee's "Head") and television ("The Ed Sullivan Show" and "The Steve Allen Show") career. His dead-on impressions of Bette Davis and Tallulah Bankhead (among others) were, and still are, stunning comic achievements. Jones influenced every female impersonator who would come after him; any queen who ever uttered Bette's clipped "Thank you!" or croaked out Tallulah's husky "Hello, Darling" can thank Miss Jones for setting the standard.

 

New Faces of 1956 [soundtrack] (RCA EOC 1025; LP, 1956)

Champagne Cocktails/Sunless Sunday (Coral 61732; 7" 45 rpm, 1957)	Mask and Gown [soundtrack] (RCA AE1-1178; LP, 1958 )	T. C. Jones Himself (GNP Crescendo 602; ca. 1959) Listen to TC as BD singing "Bill"!
Click on a program page to read about TC's biggest hit, Mask and Gown!