Comeback

Both surviving sisters had something of a comeback when Bette Midler recorded a rock-and-roll version of their song Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy in 1972. Their most notable comeback, however, was in the Sherman Brothers' nostalgic World War II musical: Over Here! which premiered on Broadway at the Shubert Theater in 1974 to rave reviews. This was a follow-up to Patty's success in Victory Canteen a 1971 California revue. The musical starred Maxene and Patty (with Janie Sell filling in for LaVerne and winning a Tony Award for her performance) and was written with both sisters in mind for the leads. It launched the careers of many now notable theater, film and television icons (John Travolta, Marilu Henner, Treat Williams, Ann Reinking, et al). It was the last major hurrah for the sisters and was cut short due to a frivolous lawsuit initiated by Patty's husband against the show's producers, squashing an extensively scheduled road tour for the company, including the sisters.

Patty immediately distanced herself from Maxene, who claimed until her death that she was not aware of Patty's motives regarding the separation. She appealed to Patty for a reunion, personally if not professionally, both in public and in private, but to no avail. Maxene suffered a serious heart attack while performing in Illinois in 1982 and underwent quadruple bypass surgery, from which she successfully recovered. Patty visited her sister while she was hospitalized. Now sometimes appearing as Patti (but still signing autographs as Patty) she re-emerged in the late 1970s as a regular panelist on The Gong Show. Maxene had a very successful comeback as a cabaret soloist in 1979 and toured worldwide for the next 15 years, recording a solo album in 1985 entitled Maxene: An Andrews Sister for Bainbridge Records. Patty debuted her own solo act in 1981, but did not receive the critical acclaim her sister had for her performances, even though it was Patty who was considered to be the star of the group for years. The critics' major complaint was that Patty's show concentrated too much on Andrews Sisters material, which did not allow Patty's own talents as a very expressive and bluesy vocalist to shine through.

The two sisters did reunite, albeit briefly, on October 1, 1987 when they received a star on Hollywood's famous Walk of Fame, even singing a few bars of Beer Barrel Polka for the Entertainment Tonight cameras. Ironically, an earthquake shook the area that very morning and the ceremony was nearly canceled, which caused Patty to joke, Some people said that earthquake this morning was LaVerne because she couldn't be here, but it was really Maxene and I on the telephone. Both sisters laughed and shared a hug. Other than this encounter, they remained estranged for a total of 20 years.

Shortly after her off-Broadway debut in New York City in a show called Swingtime Canteen, Maxene suffered another heart attack and died at Cape Cod Hospital on October 21, 1995. Not long before she died, Maxene told music historian William Ruhlmann, I have nothing to regret. We got on the carousel and we each got the ring and I was satisfied with that. There's nothing I would do to change things if I could...Yes, I would. I wish I had the ability and the power to bridge the gap between my relationship with my sister, Patty. It was also reported that Maxene was estranged from her two adopted children, Aleda Ann & Peter, at the time of her death. Upon hearing the news of her sister's death, Patty became very distraught. As her husband Wally went to her, he fell on a flight of stairs and broke both wrists. Patty did not attend her sisters' memorial services in New York, nor in California. Said Bob Hope of Maxene's passing, She was more than part of The Andrews Sisters, much more than a singer. She was a warm and wonderful lady who shared her talent and wisdom with others.


Legacy
Instrumental to the sisters' success over the years were their parents, Olga (d. 1948) and Peter (d. 1949); their orchestra leader and musical arranger Vic Schoen (d. 2000); their manager from 1937 to 1951 as well as Maxene's husband from 1941-1949, music publishing giant Lou Levy (who passed away only days after Maxene); and both Jack & David Kapp, who founded Decca Records.

On a personal note, Patty married agent Marty Melcher in 1947, and left him in 1949 when he pursued a romantic relationship with Doris Day (at the time of his death, Melcher left Day in millions of dollars of debt after mismanaging her money for years, unbeknownst to Doris). Patty then married Walter Weschler in 1951, the trio's pianist. LaVerne married Lou Rogers (who died days after Lou Levy in 1995) in 1948, a trumpet player in Vic Schoen's band, and remained with him until her death.

Throughout their long career, the sisters had sold over well over 75 million records (that being the last official count released by MCA Records in the mid-1970s). The group was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1998.

LaVerne and Maxene Andrews are interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California with their parents, and room remains in the crypt for Patty if she chooses that as her final resting place.

The Andrews Sisters' recording of Don't Sit under the Apple Tree was sampled in Soul Coughing's song Down to This off their album Ruby Vroom. They have become the most imitated of all the girl groups and have served as influence for many artists, including Mel Torm?, Les Paul & Mary Ford, The Four Freshmen, The McGuire Sisters, The Lennon Sisters, The Pointer Sisters, The Manhattan Transfer, Barry Manilow, Bette Midler; even Elvis Presley was a fan.

Their music has been restored and released in compact disc form, yet over 300 of their original Decca recordings, a good portion of which was hit material, has yet to be released by MCA/Decca in over 50 years. Many of these Decca recordings have been used in such television shows and Hollywood movies as Homefront, ER, The Brink's Job, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, Swing Shift, Raggedy Man, Summer Of '42, Slaughterhouse Five, Maria's Lovers, Harlem Nights, In Dreams, Murder In The First, L.A. Confidential, Just Shoot Me, Mama's Family, War & Remembrance, Jacob The Liar, Lolita, The Polar Express, The Chronicles Of Narnia, Memoirs of a Geisha, and more. Comical references to the trio in television sitcoms can be found as early as I Love Lucy and as recent as Everybody Loves Raymond. Recently their version of Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen was included in the game BioShock, a first-person shooter that takes place in 1960.

Christina Aguilera used the The Andrews Sisters' Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy to inspire her song Candyman (released as a single in 2007) from her hit album Back to Basics. The song was co-written by Linda Perry. The London based trio the Puppini Sisters uses their style harmonies on several Andrews Sisters and other hits of the 1940's and 1950's as well as later rock and disco hits. The trio has said their name is a tribute to The Andrews Sisters.

At age 89, Patty Andrews remains a recluse in Northridge, California, together with Wally, her husband of over 55 years. In interviews, when granted, she rarely speaks personally of her sisters. When asked about their legendary feuding, she jokes about it and quickly moves onto the next topic. Perhaps they were less virulent than they were rumored to be, considering that the sisters were hardly separated in 36 years of performing as a trio (they even vacationed together).