Popular singer and TV host dies at 86: ‘Brought joy to generations’

EntertainmentStock image by PixabayBy Brian Linder | blinder@pennlive.comLena Martell, a chart-topping singer, TV host and Broadway performer, has died. She was 86. Martell made history during her brilliant career. According to the BBC, she was the first Scottish female singer to top the UK Singles Chart with a cover of the song “One Day at a Time” in 1979.Martell, who received her first recording contract at the age of 16, released more than 30 albums. The first, “Someone New Someone Blue,” came in 1964. Her last studio album, “The Rose,” was released in 2007. She was also a part of a long list of compilation albums, with her last appearance there coming on 2008’s “One Day at a Time: The Ultimate Collection.”Six of her albums made it onto the UK charts between 1974 and 1980, and four of those were in the top 20.Martell became a star on television screens in the 1970s when she hosted her own BBC prime-time show for “about a decade,” according to the BBC. The outlet said that Martell faced numerous health issues later in life. That included a cancer diagnosis and a triple bypass. “Lena Martell. A Glasgow Icon,” Scottish Network of Australia wrote on Facebook. “Rest in peace. A true Scottish star and one of the great voices of Scottish entertainment. From the London Palladium to stages around the world, Lena brought joy to generations. A remarkable legacy that will live on.”“I’m sad to hear of the death of Lena Martell,” Barbara Dickson wrote on Facebook. “She had a lovely melodious quality to her voice and I remember my late father admiring her quiet talent. RIP Lena.”Brian Linder is the trending editor at PennLive.com. He has more than 20 years of experience working for newspapers first in South Carolina, then Daytona Beach, Florida and now in Pennsylvania. Linder spent...