Rini Jarmon christened Irene Javanovich, is the daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth Jovanovich who were pillars of Dogtown neighborhood and the St. James the Greater Parish. Rini's father moved to Dogtown in 1921.
Irene Jovanovich began dancing at the young age of 7. She was a regular on local TV shows such as The Charlotte Peters Show. Irene appeared at the Fox Theater with Ava Gabor and Bob Hope and had a number of seasons as a child actor at the Muny Opera and eventually four seasons in the chorus.
Rini was May Queen in 1954 at St. James the Greater Church… She taught many of us dance and ballet at St. James.
At 13 she was asked to study in New York City under the guidance of ballet master George Balachine. Her parents were not in favor of her leaving St. Louis so she continued dance instruction under the guidance of La La Baumann Dance Studios.
Rini graduated Magnu Cum Laude from Xavier High School for girls and won an academic scholarship to St. Louis University which she attended for one year, before being spotted by a talent scout and was asked to dance with the touring company of The Music Man starring Forest Tucker. She toured the United States for one year finding her way to New York City and continued her dancing and singing career on Broadway for the next two years.
Having danced in Bye Bye Birdie on Broadway, she was selected to come to Hollywood to appear in the movie version with Dick Van Dyke. She remained in Los Angeles for the rest of her professional career as Rini Jarmon. Her Hollywood success took on new heights when she appeared or danced in all of the Elvis Presley and Barbra Streisand movies. Rini had major roles in Dr. Doolittle with Rex Harrison and Thoroughly Modern Milly with Julie Andrews.
Her TV appearances were numerous; she was a regular on Shindig, Danny Thomas, Sonny and Cher, Lawrence Welk, Glen Campbell, the Smothers Brothers and Andy Williams. She was recognized as a dancer, actor, showman, and choreographer who could light up a room by her mere presence.
Some of the other celebrities Rini worked with were; Vincent Price, Gene Kelly, Cyd Charisse, Goldie Hawn, Pat Boone, Carol Channing, George Chakiris, Hans Conrad, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and the list goes on!
In 1980, she retired from dancing and married Lt. Col. Bill Ingram. He was a Chaplain in the United States Army and his last overseas assignment was in Germany. During the three years they spent there, Rini taught dance to the children on the army base. She and Bill moved to Columbia, Maryland where Rini received her Master’s Degree in Psychology and Family therapy, as well as beginning work on her PhD. She and Bill had a family therapy practice in Maryland and West Virginia before her death in 1992 after an 18 month battle with brain cancer at the age of 52.
Rini is survived by a niece, Elizabeth Ferguson, and her family of Austin, Texas.
Family members here today are:
Rini's niece, Heather, an actress in LA, her husband Franklin, a television writer who presently has a show on FX network titled "You’re the Worst". Her nephew, Yates (an accomplished guitarist), his wife, Lexy and their son, Zeke. Her nephew, Joe and his wife, Lyndsay Jovanovich, and their daughter, Eleanor, as well as her sister, Mary Beth with her husband, Richard.
Rini's brother, Paul, who we remember fondly as the owner/manager of Pat’s Bar and Grill, died in 1993. His wife, Teresa Connolly Jovanovich is here today also.
While Rini went on to great fame with her musical career, many of us remember Irene Jovanovich from Dogtown who volunteered for all the musical productions held at St. James, taught us how to dance and never forgot where she came from. It is in this sprit that the Dogtown Historical Society would like to honor Rini’s memory with this dedication plaque to be presented to her family members who are with us today.
Dedication
by John Corbett
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Bob Corbettcorbetre@webster.edu
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