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Cass Elliot (born Ellen Naomi Cohen; September 19, 1941 – July 29, 1974), also known as Mama Cass, was an American singer and member of The Mamas & the Papas. After the group broke up, she released five solo albums. In 1998, Elliot, John Phillips, Denny Doherty, and Michelle Phillips were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for their work as The Mamas & the Papas.

The Mamas & the Papas

With two female members, The New Journeymen needed a new name. According to Doherty, Elliot had the inspiration for the band's new name; as written on his website:
“ We're all just lying around vegging out watching TV and discussing names for the group. The New Journeymen was not a handle that was going to hang on this outfit. John was pushing for The Magic Cyrcle. Eech, but none of us could come up with anything better, then we switch the channel and, hey, it's the Hells Angels on the Carson show... And the first thing we hear is: "Now hold on there, Hoss. Some people call our women cheap, but we just call them our Mamas." Cass jumped up: "Yeah! I want to be a Mama." And Michelle is going: "We're the Mamas! We're the Mamas!" OK. I look at John. He's looking at me going: "The Papas?" Problem solved. A toast! To The Mamas and the Papas. Well, after many, many toasts, Cass and John are passed out." ”

Doherty also said that the occasion marked the beginning of his affair with Michelle Phillips. Elliot, who was in love with Doherty, was displeased when he told her of the affair. Doherty has said that Elliot once proposed to him, but that he was so stoned at the time, he could not even respond.

Elliot, known for her sense of humor and optimism, was considered by some to be the most charismatic member of the group. Her powerful, distinctive voice was a large factor in their success. She is best remembered for her vocals on the group's hits "California Dreamin'," "Monday Monday," and "Words of Love," and particularly for the solo "Dream a Little Dream of Me," which the group recorded in 1968 after learning about the death of Fabian Andre, one of the men who co-wrote it, whom Michelle Phillips had met years earlier. Elliot's version is noteworthy for its contemplative pace, whereas almost all earlier recordings of "Dream a Little Dream of Me" (including one by Nat King Cole and another by Ozzie Nelson) had been up-tempo versions—the song having actually been written in 1931 as a dance tune for the nightclubs of the day.

The Mamas & the Papas continued to record to meet the terms of their record contract. Their final album was released in 1971.

Solo career

After the breakup of The Mamas & the Papas, Elliot embarked on a solo singing career. Her most successful recording during this period was 1968's "Dream a Little Dream of Me" from her solo album of the same name, released by Dunhill Records though it had originally been released on the album The Papas & the Mamas Presented By The Mamas and the Papas, earlier that year.

Las Vegas incident

In October 1968, Elliot made her live solo debut headlining in Las Vegas at Caesars Palace. Scheduled for a three week engagement at $40,000 per week with two shows per night, Elliot went on a six month long crash diet before the show, losing 100 of her 300 pounds. According to Elliot, the weight loss led to a stomach ulcer and throat problems, which she treated by drinking milk and cream (and gaining back 50 pounds in the process).  For three weeks before the first performance, a nervous Elliot was confined to her bed as the musical director, the band and the production supervisor attempted to put together a show in her absence. Although scheduled to rehearse for a full three days before the show opened, Elliot managed to get through only part of one run through with the band before claiming that she was losing her voice. She skipped the remainder of rehearsals and drank tea and lemon, hoping to recover and pull herself together for opening night.

On the evening of Tuesday, October 16, an audience of 950 people, including Sammy Davis, Jr., Peter Lawford, and Jimi Hendrix, filled the Circus Maximus theatre. Joan Baez, Liza Minnelli and Mia Farrow had sent flowers to Elliot's dressing room. But backstage, a shivering Elliot had developed a raging fever and her vocal cords were hemorrhaging. Friends attempted to urge her manager to cancel the show, but he felt it was too important and insisted that she perform. Sick and having barely rehearsed, Elliot began to fall apart as she was performing. Her voice was weak and barely audible, and despite the celebrity well-wishers, the large crowd was not sympathetic. At the end of the show, she returned to the stage to apologize to the audience stating "This is the first night and it will get better", then sang "Dream a Little Dream of Me" and left the stage as the audience applauded half-heartedly. She returned later that night to perform the second show, but her voice was worse and many of the audience noisily walked out.

Reviews were harsh. Esquire magazine called the show "a disaster" that was "heroic in proportion, epic in scope."  The Los Angeles Free Press called the show "an embarrassing drag." Newsweek compared the show to the Titanic disaster: "Like some great ocean liner embarking on an ill-fated maiden voyage, Mama Cass slid down the ways and sank to the bottom." The show closed after only one night and Elliot flew back to Los Angeles for what was described as "a tonsillectomy."

Within hours, rumors began to spread that Elliot had been taking drugs in the weeks before the performance. In her biography, Dream a Little Dream of Me, author Eddi Fiegel wrote that Elliot later admitted to a boyfriend that she had shot up on heroin immediately before going on stage. Embarrassed by the debacle, Elliot plunged into a deep depression.

Personal life

Elliot was married twice, the first time in 1963 to James Hendricks, her groupmate in The Big 3 and The Mugwumps. This was reportedly a platonic arrangement to assist him in avoiding being drafted into the army during the Vietnam War; the marriage reportedly was never consummated and was annulled in 1968.  In 1971, Elliot married journalist Baron Donald von Wiedenman who was heir to a Bavarian barony. Their marriage ended in divorce after a few months.

Elliot gave birth to a daughter, Owen Vanessa Elliot, on April 26, 1967. She never publicly identified the father, but many years later, Michelle Phillips helped Owen locate her biological father.  After Elliot's death, her younger sister, Leah Kunkel, received custody of Owen, then just seven years old. Owen grew up to become a singer as well and toured with Beach Boys member Al Jardine.

Death

At the height of her solo career in 1974, Elliot performed two weeks of sold-out concerts at the London Palladium. She telephoned Michelle Phillips after the final concert on July 28, elated that she had received standing ovations each night. She then retired for the evening, and died in her sleep at age 32. Sources state her death was due to a heart attack.  Elliot died in a London flat, No. 12 at 9 Curzon Place, Shepherd Market, Mayfair, which was on loan from singer/songwriter Harry Nilsson. Four years later, The Who's drummer Keith Moon died in the same flat at the same age.  Elliot was entombed in Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles.

An oft-repeated urban legend states that Elliot choked to death on a ham sandwich.  The story, which started following the discovery of her body, was based on speculation in the initial media coverage. Police had told reporters that a partially eaten sandwich found in her room might have been to blame, though an autopsy had yet to be conducted. Despite the post-mortem examination finding that Elliot had died of a heart attack and no food at all was found in her windpipe, the false story that she choked on a sandwich has persisted in the decades following her death. In fact, Elliot had lost 80 pounds (36 kg) in the eight months before her death by fasting four days a week. Her fatal heart attack was most likely related to this extreme weight loss measure which weakened her heart.


(https://en.wikipedia.org)

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In mid 1978, Moon moved into a flat in Curzon Place (now called Curzon Square), Shepherd Market, Mayfair, renting from Harry Nilsson. Cass Elliot had died there four years earlier, and Nilsson was concerned about letting the flat to Moon, believing it to be cursed because of her death. Townshend disagreed, and assured him that "lightning wouldn't strike the same place twice."

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