This Lady Was No Tramp

Legendary singer, Peggy Lee, was not just one of jazz/pop music's most talented and swinging vocalist, but a legendary songwriter. She was a performer who crafted each performance from working with a select group of talented musicians down to her gown selection, hair do, and lighting. In 1952, she lent her vocal and song-writing talents to Walt Disney's production of, The Lady and the Tramp, as Peg the Lhasa Apso.

Peggy Lee co-wrote the films memorable songs, “The Siamese Cat Song,” He’s a Tramp” and, “Bella Notte," (the famous shared plate of spaghetti scene) with Sonny Burke. She also provided her vocal talents as Darcy, the mother who sings “La La Lu,” the two devious cats, Si and Am, who sing “The Siamese Cat Song,” and of course Peg, the sexy pooch who sings, “He’s a Tramp."

During production, Peggy was paid a $3,500 salary from Disney and she and Sonny Burke had split a royalty fee of $1,000 for the sheet music and phonograph record rights for the film’s musical score. Both were given no royalties for their contribution. But in 1992 when Disney marketed a videocassette without her consent, she sued the company and was awarded $2.3 million after a four-year court battle.

Peggy, who was 70 years old at the time of her court win, remarked of the experience, "You know, they always say, 'Don't mess with the Mouse...I'm glad that my rights were vindicated."