Phyllis McGuire, who with her sisters Dorothy and Christine formed the 1950s singing trio the McGuire Sisters has died. She was 89.
According to reports, McGuire died in her Las Vegas home Tuesday. The cause of death has not been released.
The trio, who were familiar faces on stages from Las Vegas to Chicago to New York, were best-known for their crystalline harmonies on such chart-topping hits as “Sincerely” and “Sugartime.”
Phyllis McGuire was born on Feb 14, 1931, in Middletown, Ohio. She and her sisters began their public singing at local churches, weddings and revivals. During WWII, the sisters would perform at veterans’ hospitals. In 1952, an appearance on “The Arthur Godfrey Talent’s Scouts” TV series launched their professional career.
According to the Las Vegas Sun, McGuire enjoyed her life at “the Beverly Hills of Las Vegas,” the term she used to when referring to her 26,000-square-foot mansion in the Rancho Circle estates near downtown Las Vegas. The home includes a 45-foot version of the Eiffel Tower serving as structural reinforcement for the main property on the estate.
In the 1960s, McGuire was romantically linked to Chicago mobster Sam Giancana. For years the singer maintained their relationship was platonic. It wasn’t until a 1989 “20/20” interview with Barbara Walters that McGuire admitted to the romance. Their relationship was depicted in the 1995 Showtime movie “Sugartime,” which starred Mary-Louise Parker and John Turturro.
The McGuire Sisters performed for Queen Elizabeth II and five presidents: Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. The group retired from performing in 1968, though Phyllis pursued a solo career and several reunion performances of the trio took place over the course of the subsequent four decades. Dorothy McGuire died in 2012 at the age of 84; Christine died in 2018 at age 92.
