Portrait of Helen Forrest

Birthday profile

Helen Forrest

Helen Forrest, American singer and actress (died 1999)

Born
April 12, 1917
Died
July 11, 1999
Zodiac sign
Aries
Birth year
1917

About Helen Forrest

Helen Forrest was an American singer of traditional pop and swing music. She served as the "girl singer" for three of the most popular big bands of the Swing Era, thereby earning a reputation as "the voice of the name bands." Two of her biggest hits with Shaw were the songs "They Say" and "All the Things You Are." During her time with Shaw, Helen Forrest became a national favorite. When Forrest became aware of this, she stated that like Holiday, she would also not take the stage until she was to sing. Helen joined Benny Goodman in December 1939, with whom she recorded a number of celebrated songs, including the hit song "The Man I Love." Helen recorded 55 studio recordings with Goodman. In August 1941, Forrest quit the orchestra "to avoid having a nervous breakdown." After leaving Goodman, Forrest briefly recorded with Nat King Cole and Lionel Hampton.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Helen Forrest timeline

  1. Helen joined Benny Goodman in December 1939, with whom she recorded a number of celebrated songs, including the hit song "The Man I Love." Helen recorded 55 studio recordings with Goodman.
  2. In August 1941, Forrest quit the orchestra "to avoid having a nervous breakdown." After leaving Goodman, Forrest briefly recorded with Nat King Cole and Lionel Hampton.

The world when Helen Forrest was born

Helen Forrest was born in 1917. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1917

  • Best-selling book"Mr. Britling Sees It Through" – H.G. Wells

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentProfessional sports curtailed as America enters World War I
  • Top headlineUS enters World War I
  • Technology milestoneFirst practical military use of sonar
  • World population~1.77B

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderWoodrow Wilson
  • U.S. population100.8M

1917 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Helen Forrest's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19172026
Gas$0.25$3.45/gal
Population100.8M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, IMDb, MusicBrainz, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.