When
an unknown JEANNE LITTLE made her first appearance on Australia's highest
rating national daytime television show THE MIKE WALSH SHOW she caused
a sensation. Her distinctive voice, her unique sense of style and her
off beat humour established her immediately as one of the country's
best known stars. Within three years she won three Logie awards including
the coveted Gold Logie for the most popular personality on television.
For the next fifteen years she entertained millions of viewers with
her regular appearances on the Mike Walsh Show. During that time and
since she also appeared on a variety of other TV shows with many local
and overseas personalities including Paul Hogan, George Burns, Jean
Rivers, Elton John, Tom Selleck, Phyllis Diller, Florence Henderson
and Sir David Frost. She also starred in her own situation comedy series
and took part as one of the stars in the Australia Day Royal Command
Bicentennial Concert in the presence of HRH Prince Charles and Diana,
the Princess of Wales.
During her many years on THE MIKE WALSH SHOW Jeanne became famous for
her elegant high fashion clothes many of which were created from household
products. There were garments made from plastic,food, industrial waste
- even a dress made from two thousand newly-minted two dollar coins!
While under contract to NATIONAL PAK AUSTRALIA she designed and made
a series of stunning garments from the company's products GLADBAGS and
CHUX SUPERWIPES which were used to promote several highly successful
advertising campaigns through national press, radio and television.
The famous DESIGN A DRESS from GLADBAGS and CHUX SUPERWIPES COMPETITIONS
elicited almost thirty thousand entries from home dressmakers all over
the country.
The JEANNE LITTLE COMMONWEALTH GAMES COMPETITION took her to Canada
and scooped the pool in the 1994 International Promotions Awards at
Disney World in the United States winning the best Program Usage of
a Product Award Worldwide with a unanimous judges' decision.
In 1987 Jeanne made her stage debut in Jerry Herman's smash hit musical
JERRY'S GIRLS when the show's New York director and co-creator Larry
Alford cast her as one of the four leading ladies. Audiences and critics
alike agreed that "the biggest and most thrilling surprise of the
production is JEANNE LITTLE. This lady can sing! She demonstrates superb
comic talents as well as drawing the audience into the palm of her hand.
Yet her talents are not limited to comedy. One of the most poignant
moments of the show is when she removes her wig and sits in a single
spotlight to sing 'I'll Be Here Tomorrow'." JERRY'S GIRLS broke
box office records and ran for four years. For her role Jeanne was nominated
for a Mo Award.
Following JERRY'S GIRLS Jeanne was asked to devise a one woman show
based on her best selling autobiography. The result was HELLO DAHLING!
which opened to rave reviews -"the lady is a star!" and played
to capacity houses in theatres and cabaret venues from Sydney to Broome.
Encouraged by the overwhelming public response to HELLO DAHLING! Jeanne
decided to present a second one woman show based on the life and songs
of the legendary Marlene Dietrich. MARLENE opened in Sydney for a six
week season and was an instant success. "Jeanne Little is a knockout!
She has a great sense of style, show business sparkle and panache. Her
singing voice is a revelation, and her stage presence has real warmth
and truth." The Melbourne Sun Herald acclaimed Jeanne's MARLENE
"one of the great performances". Jeanne was nominated for
MARLENE for best female performer in musical theatre in Australia.
At the conclusion of her first national tour of MARLENE Jeanne was invited
to the United States to perform the show on Australia Day to an audience
of five hundred guests including the Australian consul and many other
dignitaries. A week later she opened the West Coast Cabaret Convention
in the Venetian Room of the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco, playing
to an enthusiastic audience and sharing the bill with such international
stars as Julie Wilson, Margaret Whiting and Michael Feinstein.
At present Jeanne is contracted to Foxtel where she is a regular on
the panel show "BEAUTY & THE BEAST" She is also performing
her new cabaret show M.M - A TRIBUTE TO MARILYN MONROE throughout Australia.
She is a patron of The Australian Stuttering Research foundation, the
a Luekemia Foundation, Cystic Fibrosis and The Salvation Army. Last
year she was honoured with the Order of Australia for her Contribution
to the entertainment industry and her charity work.