Cass Elliot

Cass Elliot was an American singer, songwriter, and actress who gained fame in the 1960s as a member of The Mamas and the Papas. Born in Baltimore in 1941, she left high school for New York to pursue acting and toured in The Music Man in 1962. She performed with folk groups including the Big 3 and the Mugwumps before joining The Mamas and the Papas in 1965, and she was credited with suggesting the group's name. Their hits included Monday, Monday, Words of Love, and California Dreamin', and she sang Dream a Little Dream of Me. She won a Grammy for Monday, Monday in 1967. After the group split in 1968, she released five solo albums and appeared in Pufnstuf (1970) and television variety specials such as The Mama Cass Television Program and Don't Call Me Mama Anymore. In 1998, her work with the group earned her a posthumous place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.