The Dinning Sisters were an American sisters singing group, active from 1941 to 1955. The trio consisted of Ella Lucille "Lou" Dinning, Jean Dinning and Virginia "Ginger" Dinning. Jean and Ginger were twins. Lucille left the group in 1946 to be replaced by Jayne Bundesen who stayed until 1952. Lucille was married to composer and pop artistDon Robertson. She made several recordings for Capitol Records as Lou Dinning including duets with her husband Don.
Early years
The sisters were born in Caldwell, Kansas, United States, and raised in Oklahoma. From a family of nine children, all of whom sang harmony in church, the three sisters won amateur singing contests.
Radio
In 1939, the Dinnings had a program on WENR in Chicago, Illinois. They first gained national exposure on the NBC Radio show "Barn Dance".
Recording
In 1943, the group was signed by Capitol Records to be that label's answer to The Andrews Sisters, who recorded exclusively for Decca Records. Lucille Dinning once said, "Let's face it, the Andrews Sisters were way ahead of us. We tried our darndest to be as commercial as they were, but weren't flashy enough. We were all kind of shy. We came from a farm in Oklahoma. We never took dancing lessons or anything." The Dinnings sounded rather like The Andrews Sisters in fast-paced recordings such as the boogie-woogie influenced "Pig Foot Pete," as well as "Down in the Diving Bell," "The Hawaiian War Chant," and "They Just Chopped Down the Old Apple Tree," an "answer" song to "Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree ". The Dinning sound could also be compared, especially in slower ballads, to the soft blend of The Lennon Sisters, who appeared in the 1950s on The Lawrence Welk Show. The Dinning Sisters charted four hits during the 1940s, including two top 10 successes. The group received further exposure from their appearances in the films, That Texas Jamboree and Throw a Saddle on a Star.
Later careers
Lou Dinning recorded several sides as a solo artist for Capitol. Jean Dinning co-composed the song, "Teen Angel", which became a No. 1 hit for her brother, Mark Dinning. Ginger Dinning died on October 14, 2013, aged 89.
Hit singles
Sibling
Another sister, Marvin Dinning , was a vocalist with Wally Stoefler and His Orchestra from the late 1930s through the early 1950s. She had married Harry Smith '' — a featured trumpeter with the Stoefler Orchestra — on January 3, 1942, in Shawnee, Oklahoma.
