Patti Page obit

PATTI PAGE, one of the biggest pop artists of the ’50s, died New Year's Day in Encinitas, CA., where she'd lived for several decades. She was 85. No cause was announced, but her longtime personal manager, Michael Glynn, said she had been suffering from a heart ailment and lung disease. Born Clara Ann Fowler on Nov. 8, 1927, in Claremore, OK, Page helped bring country music to a broader audience with "The Tennessee Waltz," which spent 13 weeks at #1 in 1950, becoming one of the biggest hits of all time and selling more than 6 million singles. In a sense, she was the archetypal crossover artist, landing nearly 100 records on the Billboard Hot 100 between 1948 and 1970, including "(How Much Is That) Doggie in the Window," "Old Cape Cod," "Allegheny Moon," and, in her final Top 10 hit, the title song from the 1965 film Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte. Page, who was married twice, is survived by son Daniel O'Curran, daughter Kathleen Ginn, sister Peggy Layton, 14 grandchildren and and six great-grandchildren. (1/3a)