Vic Damone, born June 12, 1928, an American traditional singer known for songs such as “You’re Breaking My Heart”, passed away in Florida at the age of 89-years-old.
Damone was born in Brooklyn, New York, on June 12, 1928 to Italian immigrants from Bari, Italy. Damone’s father was an electrician and his mother taught piano. His cousin was the actress and singer Doretta Morrow. Inspired by Frank Sinatra, Damone began taking voice lessons and began singing in the choir at St. Finbar’s Church in Bath Beach, Brooklyn, for Sunday Mass.
In his autobiography, Singing Was the Easy Part, Damone claimed he had been held out of a window of a New York hotel by a gangster. Damone claimed he had been engaged to the thug’s daughter, but ended the relationship when she insulted Damone’s mother. He wrote that his life was spared when, during a Mafia meeting to determine the singer’s fate, New York mob boss Frank Costello ruled in Damone’s favor.
Frank Sinatra, Damone’s idol, once said that Damone had “the best set of pipes in the business”.