Bill Shirley, 68; Actor-Singer Was Voice of Prince Charming
Bill Shirley, a Broadway producer and singer who was the voice of Prince Charming in the film “Sleeping Beauty,” has died at the age of 68.
He died of lung cancer Sunday at the Guardian Convalescent Hospital in Los Angeles.
A native of Indianapolis, Shirley was under contract to 20th Century Fox and Republic Studios during the 1960s. He played Stephen Foster in “I Dream of Jeannie,” and his tenor voice was heard singing “On the Street Where You Live” in the film version of “My Fair Lady.”
His early film credits included “Sailors on Leave” and “Flying Tigers” in the 1940s and “Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd” in 1952.
On Broadway, he performed with Olsen and Johnson in “Pardon My French,” and co-produced “Dames at Sea” which introduced singer-actress Bernadette Peters.
In the last decade, Shirley switched careers, working in real estate for Litton Industries in Beverly Hills until he became ill.
Services will be handled by the family-owned Shirley Brothers Funeral Home in Indianapolis. Plans for a Los Angles memorial service are pending.
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