For some Ed Ames is one member of a singing group with his brothers, for others, for others he was a tall, dignified, Native American, named Mingo and the sidekick of Fess Parker in the television series “Daniel Boone”.
Ames died May 21, 2023 in his Los Angeles home at the age of 95. An official cause death was not revealed.
Ames lent his deep baritone voice to the Ames Brothers – a singing group in the 40’s with Vic, Joe, and Gene. The quartet even had their own television series in the 50’s and charted nearly 50 hit songs before breaking up in 1963. He later launched a solo singing career, spawning some hit songs of his own.
After the breakup of The Ames Brothers, Ed turned to acting, first on Broadway and then in Hollywood. On Broadway he appeared in “The Fantasticks”, “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”, “The Crucible”, and “Carnival”. He also performed in the touring production of “Carnival”.
In Hollywood, he was frequently cast to portray a Native American where he appeared most prominently as Mingo on “Daniel Boone” where he appeared in 72 episodes. He also made appearances on “The Marshall”, “Jake and the Fatman”, “In the Heat of the Night”, “Murder, She Wrote”, “McCloud”, “The Rifleman”, and over a dozen other productions including performances on “The Ed Sullivan Show”.
He was born Edmond Dantes Urick on July 9, 1927; the youngest of nine children to Ukrainian Jewish parents in Malden, Massachusetts.
Predeceased by his daughter Marcella, Ames is survived by his second wife Jeanne, children Ronald and Sonya, seven grandchildren, and five great- grandchildren.
Ed Ames discography:
“It’s a Man’s World”
“More I Cannot Wish You”
“Androcles and the Lion”
“Christmas with Ed Ames”
“My Cup Runneth Over”
“Time, Time”
“When the Snow is on the Roses”
“Apologize”
“The Hits of Broadway and Hollywood”
“Who Will Answer?”
“A Time for Living, A Time for Hope”
“The Windmills of Your Mind”
“Love of the Common People”
“Sing Away the World”
“The Songs of Bacharach and David”
“Songs from Lost Horizon”
“Ed Ames Remembers Jim Reeves”
“The Impossible Dream”
Feature photo credit: Ed Ames Mingo Daniel Boone 1966.JPG