The Merry Macs

The Merry Macs Were An American Close-Harmony Pop Music Quartet Active From The 1920s Till The 1960s And Best Known For The Hits “Mairzy Doats ” “Praise The Lord And Pass The Ammunition” And "Sentimental Journey." They Also Sang On Recordings With Bing Crosby. Formed To Play Proms In Minneapolis Minnesota The Group Originally Consisted Of The Three McMichael Brothers Tenors Judd 1906-1989 And Joe 1916-1944 And Baritone Ted 1908-2001 . They Were Discovered By Singer-Bandleader Eddie Dunstedter. In 1930 The McMichaels After Performing As The Mystery Trio And The Personality Boys Added A Female Lead Singer Cheri McKay And Changed Their Name To The Merry Macs. In 1936 They Appeared On Several National Radio Programs And Cheri McKay Was Replaced By Helen Carroll. McKay Trained Her Successor In The Group's Singing Style. Vocal Quartets Had Customarily Harmonized Like Barbershop Quartets. The Merry Macs Revolutionized Vocal Harmony With Closer Harmonic Chords. This Style Inspired Other Groups Like The Modernaires And Six Hits And A Miss. In 1938 The Merry Macs Signed With Decca Records And Recorded “Pop Goes The Weasel.” The Merry Macs With Carroll Sang A Swing Version Of "Down By The Old Mill Stream" In The 1939 Vitaphone Musical Seeing Red Red Skelton's First Film. In 1939 Mary Lou Cook B. 1910 Replaced Helen Carroll. This Is The Foursome That Most Listeners Know From Film Appearances. The McMichael Brothers And Cook Appeared As A Specialty Act In Hollywood Movies Including 1940's Love Thy Neighbor And Universal Pictures Gave The Merry Macs Their Own Feature-Film Series In 1941. Their Most Famous Film Is Ride 'Em Cowboy 1942 An Abbott And Costello Comedy In Which The Merry Macs Offer Musical Interludes. At The Time Mary Lou Was Married To Actor Elisha Cook Jr. Evidently There Were Problems Because Mary Lou Ended Both Her Marriage And Her Affiliation With The Merry Macs At About The Same Time. Marjory Garland 1923-1991 Replaced Mary Lou Cook After Ride 'Em Cowboy Was Filmed. The Merry Macs Continued To Score On The Hit Parade Their Rendition Of "Mairzy Doats" Was A Best-Seller. Garland Who Later Married Judd McMichael Remained With The Group Until The 1960s. Youngest Brother Joe McMichael Served In The Armed Forces And Was Killed In 1944. He Was Replaced By Clive Erard Then Dick Baldwin And Finally Vern Rowe. The Foursome Of Judd Ted Marjory And Vern Continued Performing Until They Retired From Show Business In 1964. read less