B. J. Baker

Betty Jane Baker (born Betty Jane Phillips May 6, 1927 in Birmingham; died April 2, 2002 in Rancho Mirage, California) was a singer, songwriter and performer.

Competing as Betty Jane Rase, Phillips won the Miss Alabama pageant in 1944 and was 4th runner up in the Miss America Pageant in Atlantic City, New Jersey. She married comedian Mickey Rooney that year and had two children, Mickey, Jr and Tim. They divorced in 1949 and she married composer Buddy Baker the next year. After seven years, she split with baker, then married jazz guitarist Barney Kessel in 1961, divorcing in 1980.

Phillips (later Baker), sang with numerous big bands and later appeared on many television variety shows. She was a back-up singer for Elvis Presley on some recordings, and also recorded with Lloyd Price, Sam Cooke, Bobby Darin, Frank Sinatra, Jackie Wilson, the Righteous Brothers and Nancy Sinatra. She also brokered contracts for other backup singers through the Anita Kerr Singers agency.

Baker recorded singing parts for Linda Low in the 1961 film Flower Drum Song and also contributed vocal work to Heidi's Song (1982) and to the television specials "The Story of Babar, the Little Elephant" (1968) and "Babar Comes to America" (1971).

Baker died in 2002 of complications of a stroke.