Background
Cole was born in Boston and was the niece of Charlotte Hawkins Brown. Her father, Mingo Hawkins, was a letter carrier. Her mother, Carol, died while giving birth to her sister.
Cole was born in Boston and was the niece of Charlotte Hawkins Brown. Her father, Mingo Hawkins, was a letter carrier. Her mother, Carol, died while giving birth to her sister.
She was a jazz singer who worked most notably with Count Basie and Duke Ellington. She met National "King" Cole while they were both singing at the Zanzibar club Her third marriage was to Gary DeVore.
They ran an Inn in the Berkshires together for several years.
That marriage ended in divorce. Maria Cole died in a nursing home in Boca Raton, Florida on July 10, 2012, at the age of 89, shortly after being diagnosed with cancer.