B Ives died in 1995.
Frequent benefits for Indian reservations, peace academies, Boy Scouts, environmental groups, arts foundations, childrens medicine
Interred at Mound Cemetery, Jasper County, Illinois, USA.
Burl Ives was the voice of Sam the Eagle, the narrator of the classic Disneyland attraction "American Sings" (1974-1988) in Tomorrowland.
Was inducted into the DeMolay Hall of Fame on June 24th, 1994.
Received the DeMolay Legion of Honor in 1986.
Was initiated into DeMolay at the George N. Todd Chapter in Charleston Illinois, in 1927.
He was a 33rd Degree Mason.
Was a licensed amateur (ham) radio with the call sign KA6HVA. When he passed away, he became, in ham radio parlance, a "silent key."
During the first season "The Ren & Stimpy Show" episode "Stimpys Invention" featured a record, "Happy Happy Joy Joy," which contained a variety of spoken-word segments meant to parody some of Ives albums from the 1960s. When Ives saw the episode, he contacted Ren and Stimpy Show creator John Kricfalusi and said that he would have been willing to do the voice over work for it.
A string of Ives hit records, mostly for American Decca and primarily under the supervision of the legendary Owen Bradley , included such songs as "The Blue-Tail Fly" (his all-time biggest hit), "A Little Bitty Tear," "(Its Just My) Funny Way of Laughin," "Mr. In Between" , "A Holly Jolly Christmas," and, of course, "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.".
He died from complications of mouth cancer at his home in Anacortes, WA. His wife and three step-children were with him when he died.
He adopted a son, Alexander, with his first wife, Helen. When they separated in 1960, she got the custody. He also had three step-children with his second wife, Dorothy Koster Paul : Kevin Murphy, Rob Grossman, and Barbara Vaughn; and five grandchildren.
An activist liberal Democrat, in 1952 he named fellow folk singer Pete Seeger and others as possible Communists to the House Unamerican Activities Committee (HUAC) in order to avoid being blacklisted.
He strongly opposed the United States entering World War II until the Axis invasion of the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, after which he avidly campaigned for the US to declare war on Germany and Italy.
He was the visual inspiration for the original illustrations of DC Comics super-villain Hector Hammond (created in 1961), one of the Hal Jordan/Green Lanterns archenemies. Ives was 60 years old at the point. Eventually, Hammond was played by Peter Sarsgaard in Green Lantern .
Son of Levi (1880-1947), born in Illinois, and Cordelia (ne White) Ives (1882-1954), born in Indiana. Both died in Jasper County, Illinois.
Maternal grandson of Cyrus (1860-1938) and Sarah (ne Flyn) White (1858-1928). Both were born in the state of Indiana and died in the state of Illinois.
I was fortunate to be born into a family of Masons. Indeed, my older,sister Audrey was Grand Matron of the Order of Eastern Star in,Illinois. My DeMolay experience came very naturally because of my,father and brothers. Thus was my youth enhanced.
The cool wind blew in my face and all at once I felt as if I had shed dullness from myself. Before me lay a long gray line with a black mark down the center. The birds were singing. It was spring. .
