Trivia of Eddie Fisher

 Trivia of Eddie Fisher (10 August 1928 - 22 September 2010)

*His father's surname was originally Tisch, but was changed to Fisher by the time of the 1940 census.To his family, Fisher was always called "Sonny Boy", a nickname derived from the song of the same name in Al Jolson's film The Singing Fool (1928).

*It was known at an early age that he had talent as a vocalist, and he started singing in numerous amateur contests, which he usually won. At just 12 years old, he made his radio debut on WFIL, a local Philadelphia radio station. He also performed on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts, a popular radio show that later moved to television. Because he became a local star, Fisher dropped out of high school in the middle of his senior year to pursue his career.

*Between 1951-1956, Eddie Fisher made a name for himself as a talented singer in the industry. During these years, he had 17 songs in the Top 10 of the music charts. He also had 35 songs on the Top 40.Eddie Fisher replaced Frank Sinatra as the number-one "bobby-soxer" singing idol in the early 1950s.

*In 1953 Eddie Fisher was given his own fifteen-minute TV show called Coke Time (1953), sponsored by the Coca-Cola company. This show proved to be so popular that Coke then offered Eddie a $1 million contract to be their national spokesperson.

*In 1955 Eddie married actress Debbie Reynolds and made film debut with her in the musical comedy Bundle of Joy (1956) as leading actor, Dan Merlin .Reynolds who played as Polly Parish was pregnant while making this film. This accounts for several shots where Reynolds is hidden behind a shop display or wearing a cloak-style coat.

*The scandal of the decade broke when stories of Fisher's affair with Elizabeth Taylor were made public. Taylor had been widowed earlier when her husband Mike Todd, Fisher's best friend, died in a plane crash.Fisher married Elizabeth Taylor 3½ hours after divorcing Debbie Reynolds in 1959. The bad publicity that followed did a great deal of damage to Eddie's career, while it actually increased the amount of money Taylor was offered for films. He and Taylor did the movie Butterfield 8 (1960), which actually earned Taylor an Academy Award, though it was received with mixed reviews.This movie features the only dramatic role in Eddie Fisher's career, and the only movie he made - in a major credited role - with wife Elizabeth Taylor. In movie "Suddenly, Last Summer (1959)" , Fisher had briefly appeared, uncredited, in one scene with Taylor (He appeared uncredited as a street urchin begging for food from Catherine Holly, the character played by Elizabeth Taylor).

*In his biography, he confessed to a drug addiction that lasted nearly 40 years - blaming the use of cocaine for the decline in his career. Condemned to taking jobs in small venues to fund his habit, he found himself unable to remember the words of songs.