Tom Hanks, Peter Pan and Claremont. What’s the Link?

By Mary Carter
Eagle Times Correspondent

CLAREMONT, N.H. ― When the characters played by Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan first meet in “You’ve Got Mail,” the tune, “Never Smile at a Crocodile,” cleverly marks the occasion. And while the full song doesn’t make an appearance on the movie’s soundtrack, it came from a recording made right here by the Paulette Sisters of Claremont.

Ernest Paulette and Ola Mae Bruce married in September of 1925, him working as a shoemaker in the city. The Paulettes had four daughters: Gloria, Betty, Jane, and Barbara. The Oct. 20, 1964, edition of the Daily Eagle noted that the girls cut their first disc in 1940 at Claremont’s Hodge Recording Studio on Sullivan Street. At this time, the talented sisters ranged in age from 13 to 7.

With its numerous performance halls and music retail stores, Claremont was home to an active arts scene, allowing The Paulette Sisters to participate in many nearby shows and talent contests. Not long after, the girls were performing with top bands such as Larry Clinton and His Orchestra. Known for introducing swing, Clinton was the first to record and release the ever-popular tune, “Heart and Soul.”

The sisters sang backup for famed jazz vocalist Connee Boswell on numbers such as “There Must Be a Way”; “I Fall in Love With You Every Day”; and, “Who Told You That Lie?” Boswell, known for her duets with crooner Bing Crosby, was Ella Fitzgerald’s personal inspiration.

“I tried to sing like her all time,” Fitzgerald would say in later interviews. “Connee was doing things that no one else was doing at the time.”

The Paulette Sisters also performed with Percy Faith and Mitch Miller. They toured the U.S., and appeared on Perry Como’s first televised episode on CBS.

By the early- to mid-1950s, sister Barbara chose marriage over music. The three remaining sisters were coached by Connee Boswell on perfecting their harmonies in a trio. Gloria, Betty, and Jane charted in 1955 with a remake of the Hank Williams song, “You Win Again.”

Known for their engaging blend of voices, The Paulette Sisters would record under the Decca, Capitol, and Columbia labels until the 1960s. A CD entitled “In the ‘50s” is currently available and features 31 of The Paulette Sisters’ well-crafted tunes.

Sister Jane would go on to co-author the children’s album, “Eustace, the Useless Rabbit.” According to a December 2022 blog post from Music For Every Mood, Jane Paulette Steinkamp, at the age of 95, was said to be the sole surviving Paulette sister, and is presently living in New York.