June Pointer

June Antoinette Pointer Whitmore (November 30, 1953 – April 11, 2006) was an American Pop/R&B singer and was a founding member of the vocal group The Pointer Sisters. Born the youngest of six to minister parents, June shared a love for singing with her sisters. In 1969, she and sister Bonnie founded The Pointers - A Pair. The duo became a trio later on that year when Anita quit her job as a secretary to join them; the group changed its name to The Pointer Sisters. After failed singles with Atlantic Records, eldest sister Ruth was enlisted to join the group in 1972. The sisters then signed with Blue Thumb, and their careers finally began taking off. The Pointer Sisters and solo career: Releasing their self-titled debut album in 1973, The Pointer Sisters found fame with pop hit singles such as "Yes We Can Can", the country hit, "Fairytale", and the R&B hits, "How Long (Betcha Got a Chick on the Side)" and "You Gotta Believe" before Bonnie exited from the group to forge a solo career in 1977. The remaining sisters continued on as a trio and then found huge success, hitting the Top 10 with a cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Fire" (1978), then following that with "He's So Shy" (1980), and "Slow Hand" (1981). They then would released what would be their biggest album to date, 1983's Break Out, which included the hits "Automatic"; "Jump (for My Love)"; a re-release of "I'm So Excited", which became a bigger hit than when originally released in 1982; and Neutron Dance". Other hits from follow up albums included "Dare Me" "Freedom" and "Goldmine". June is notable for being the lead singer of "He's So Shy", "Jump (For My Love)", "Baby Come And Get It" and "Dare Me" among others. The group eventually would receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. During the 1980's, June ventured into a solo career, releasing albums in 1983 and 1989. She scored modest hits with "Ready For Some Action" (1983) and 1989's "Tight On Time (I'll Fit U In)". She also performed the song "Little Boy Sweet" for the 1983 film National Lampoon's Vacation. Together with Bruce Willis she scored a top 5 pop single in 1987 with a cover of the The Staple Singers' "Respect Yourself". June also gained some notoriety for posing for Playboy magazine in the 80's. Struggling with drug addiction for much of her career, June was ousted from The Pointer Sisters by 2004 as her sisters hoped and waited for her to become drug-free. Ruth's daughter filled in for June during stage performances. Divorced from William Oliver Whitmore II after a thirteen-year marriage that ended in 1991. June had no children. June died at 1:10pm on April 11, 2006 at the UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, California from bone cancer, liver cancer, and lung cancer. She died in the arms of her older sisters and brothers Ruth, Anita, Aaron, and Fritz. She was 52 years old.