Who is Ton Bennett’s wife Susan Crow?
Susan Crow Benedetto was born in San Francisco, California USA, on 9 September 1966 – her zodiac sign is Virgo and she holds American nationality. She is a former social studies teacher and an entrepreneur, who gained recognition after she married Tony Bennett, the famous American singer, who is 40 years her senior.
Early life and education
Susan was raised an only child in San Francisco by her father Dayl who was an insurance agent, and her mother Marion Crow who was a housewife. Susan grew up wanting to become a teacher and work with kids; she attended a local high school at which she practiced singing and acting, and played tennis, and was one of the best students in her class.
She matriculated in 1984, and then enrolled at the Fordham University from which she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1988 – she continued her education at Columbia University’s Teachers College, obtaining her Master’s Degree in 1990.
Career as a teacher
Susan has spent most of her working life as a social studies teacher, and she became a philanthropist not long after she met her husband Tony. They founded the organization Exploring The Arts (ETA) together, and since 1999 it’s helped build over 17 schools around the US – the organization encourages students to study art. Susan is currently serving as its board president, and for their philanthropic activities, both Susan and Tony were awarded the George Washington University Medals in 2010.
Susan is also running her own agency, Creative Artists Management located in New York City.
Love life and marriage with Tony Bennett
Before Tony met Susan he had already been married twice. In 1952, he married Patricia Beech who is a non-celebrity woman, but they divorced after around 19 years of being together because Tony had fallen in love with Sandra Grant Bennett whom he married not long after his divorce from Patricia was finalized. While still married to Sandra in the late ‘80s, he met Susan when they were introduced by Lady Gaga, their mutual friend. They started dating in secret, and it wasn’t until nearly 20 years later that Tony divorced Sandra in 2007, and married Susan in a private ceremony attended only by Mario Cuomo, the late former governor of New York, and his wife.
Susan doesn’t have children of her own, but is a step-mother to Tony’s four children (two with Patricia and two with Sandra). It is widely believed that Tony is the only man with whom she has been, so as of August 2020, she is a married woman but doesn’t have biological children.
Hobbies and other interests
Susan’s main interest is doing charity work and attending charity events, and she’s helped numerous organizations collect money for various causes, such as the education of underprivileged children, and for war veterans.
She is keen on travelling and has been all around the US with her husband when he was performing,d while the two have also travelled for pleasure and been around Europe, staying in cities such as Paris in France and Venice in Italy.
Susan also likes to sing but only for herself as she believes she’s not very good, and can’t compete with her husband!
In her spare time, she likes to watch movies, and her favorite actor and actress are Will Smith and Emma Watson, while some of her favorite movies are “Seven Pounds”, “I Am Legend” and the franchise “Harry Potter”. She also likes to watch comedy series, with her favorite being “The Third Rock from the Sun”.
Age and height
Susan is 54 years old. She has long blonde hair and brown eyes, her height is 5ft 7ins (1.7m) and she weighs around 135lbs (61kgs). As of August 2020, her net worth has been estimated at over $1 million, while Tony’s net worth is reputedly over $200 million.
Who is Tony Bennett?
Anthony Dominick Benedetto was born on Long Island, New York USA, on 3 August 1926 – his zodiac sign is Leo and he holds American nationality. He is a jazz, show tunes and big band singer, who is known for his amazing vocal skills and his heartwarming lyrics.
Tony was raised alongside his older brother John Jr. and his older sister Mary, by their father John Benedetto who was a grocer and who emigrated to the US from the southern Italian region Podargoni, and their mother Anna who was a seamstress, and whose parents emigrated from the southern Italian region of Calabria.
His father died when Tony was 10, and the family lived in relative poverty, while Tony found comfort in music and artists such as Eddie Cantor, Bing Crosby and Al Jolson – he also listened to jazz artists Joe Venuti, Jack Teagarden and Louis Armstrong. Before he started attending high school, Tony was already a singer, and sang at the opening of the Triborough Bridge in New York City. He was also very good at drawing caricatures, and began making money at the age of 13 by singing in restaurants and selling his drawings. He enrolled at New York’s School of Industrial Art studying music and painting, but had to drop out to help his family – he found a job as a copy boy, then went on to work as a singing waiter.
He joined the US Army in November 1944, and fought through France before advancing into Germany – in March 1945, Tony found himself on the frontline which he described as ‘front row seat in hell’, nearly dying on many occasions. At the end of World War II, he helped liberate a Nazi concentration camp located in Bavaria, Germany.
He came back to the US in 1946 and enrolled at the American Theatre Wing. In 1949, he was invited to open for American actress and singer Pearl Bailey in Greenwich Village, and there met Bob Hope, a famous British-American singer, actor and a stand-up comedian. Bob invited Tony on a tour with him, and he soon got to sign his first contract with a major agency – Columbia Records.
He became famous in the US after the release of his debut single “Because of You”, which topped the pop charts and found itself in juke-boxes. His two next singles, “Blue Velvet” and “Rags to Riches” both became hits, while the latter topped the charts, staying there for two months. By the end of 1953, Tony was invited by the producers of the musical “Kismet” to record the song “Stranger in Paradise”, which became a huge hit in both the US and the UK. His debut album “Cloud 7” came out in 1955 followed by his second album “The Beat of My Heart” in 1957 which gained a lot more attention than the first.
Tony went on to work with the Count Basie Orchestra on his next two albums, “Basie Swings, Bennett Sings” and “In Person!”, released in 1958 and 1959, respectively, and he also started playing in nightclubs.
I've collected some of my favorite songs from friends, artists I admire, and from the year I was born, 1926. I hope you all enjoy it! https://TonyBennett.lnk.to/94thBirthdayFP
Posted by Tony Bennett on Wednesday, 29 July 2020
His single “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” won him two Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Best Male Solo Vocal Performance. His album “I Wanna Be Around” came out in 1963, and in 1965 Tony tried to launch his acting career by appearing in the movie “The Oscar”, but it failed to attract much attention which led Tony to abandon his idea of becoming an actor.
When The Beatles became popular, it was harder for Tony and those of the same genre to create hits, and Tony’s popularity fell somewhat, which led him to start using drugs in the late ‘70s – Tony nearly died from a cocaine overdose in 1979, before his son Danny successfully helped him by finding new places for him to sing, and settling his disputes with the IRS.
Tony was officially back on his feet in 1986 when his hit new album “The Art of Excellence” which made its way onto the charts.
He went on to sing in talk shows such as “Late Night with David Letterman”, “Late Night with Conan O’Brien”, and “Muppets Tonight”, and managed to attract the younger audience. In 1990, he released his album “Astoria: Portrait of the Artist” followed by “Perfectly Frank” in 1992 and “Steppin’ Out” in 1993. Tony has continued a famous singer since the beginning of the ‘90s. and has from then to today managed to raise his net worth from $20 million to $200 million.
The sentiment of Charlie Chaplin's lyrics for “Smile" is inspiring in today's world, and it's one of my favorite songs to perform. I believe that life is always worthwhile, if you'll just smile. https://t.co/LdHTLwLDqU pic.twitter.com/Uqz43vJoM1
— Tony Bennett (@itstonybennett) August 11, 2020
Tony also became an established painter, who has held exhibitions at galleries across the globe. One can notice Tony’s painting “Homage to Hockney” displayed at the Butler Institute of American Art, while some of his other works can be found in the National Arts Club and at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. He is also a writer, as he published his first book in 1996 entitled “Tony Bennett: What My Heart Has Seen”, followed by his second book “The Good Life: The Autobiography of Tony Bennett” in 1998. He published “Tony Bennett in the Studio: A Life of Art & Music” in 2007, while his two latest books have been “Life is a Gift: The Zen of Bennett” and “Just Getting Started” published in 2012 and 2016, respectively.
At 94 years of age, Tony still appears healthy, occasionally still performs, and continues to enjoy life with his third wife, Susan Crow.