Andy Williams Autographs, Memorabilia & Collectibles

Andy Williams, born Howard Andrew Williams in Wall Lake, Iowa in 1927 and the holder of 18 gold and three platinum records, began his career singing in the church choir established by his parents. He gained a wider audience from age eight, when the Williams Brothers Quartet began appearing on radio, first in Iowa and later in Chicago and Cincinnati. The Williams Brothers attracted the attention of Bing Crosby, who featured them on his 1944 hit Swinging on a Star. Three years later, the group teamed up with comedienne Kay Thompson, whose nightclub act toured widely throughout the United States and Europe. After the Williams Brothers disbanded in 1951, Andy headed to New York, where he became a regular performer on Steve Allen's Tonight Show. Signing with the Cadence label, Williams had his first Top 10 hit with Canadian Sunset, which was followed by a string of hits including Butterfly, Lonely Street and The Hawaiian Wedding Song, which bought his first Grammy nomination. Williams' continued to appear regularly on television shows, including The Dinah Shore Chevy Show, The Chevy Showroom With Andy Williams and his own 13-week summer replacement variety show. In 1962, he began his 28-year association with Columbia Records, turning out such hits as Can't Get Used to Losing You and Moon River, the Oscar-winning song from Breakfast at Tiffany's that became his signature song after his stunning performance of it at the Academy Awards ceremony. The song, which charted for over 100 weeks, was No. 1 for 16 weeks. On September 16, 1963, The Andy Williams Show, which would run until 1972, debuted. The variety show would win three Emmy Awards for Best Musical/Variety (1966, 1967, 1969) and launch Williams' classic Christmas specials. During this time, Williams also toured, opening Caesar's Palace in 1966 (he would headline there for the next 20 years) and performing for fans worldwide. In 1991, Williams traveled to Branson, Missouri, where he built the Andy Williams Moon River Theater.