'Moon River' singer Andy Williams dies aged 84

Andy Williams, who charmed audiences with his mellow delivery of songs like "Moon River" and "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You" in the 1950s and 60s, has died at his home in Branson, Missouri, his family said. He was 84.

The blue-eyed Williams, who continued touring and drawing crowds to his Moon River Theater in the music hub of Branson into his 80s, died on Tuesday evening after a year-long battle with bladder cancer, his family said in a statement.

Williams had 18 gold record and three platinum hits and in his peak years was a regular on television with his own variety series.

President Ronald Reagan called his voice "a national treasure."

Williams was born on December 3rd, 1927, in tiny Wall Lake, Iowa, and was singing professionally with three older brothers at age 8. The Williams Brothers had steady work on radio and even sang back-up on Bing Crosby's 1944 hit "Swinging on a Star."

Later hits included "Born Free," "Days of Wine and Roses," "The Shadow of Your Smile," "Can't Get Used to Losing You," "Solitaire," "Music to Watch Girls By," "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You" and the theme from the 1970 movie hit "Love Story."

He came upon his signature song when asked to sing "Moon River" at the 1962 Academy Awards ceremony. Audrey Hepburn had performed the song in the movie "Breakfast at Tiffany's." "I still love it, as many times as I've done it," Williams told a British newspaper in 2007.

"It has a great melody and wonderful lyrics. It's not a bad song to have. It could have been 'Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini.' We forgot to do it one night and 27 people wanted their money back." In 1992, Williams built his own 2,000-seat dinner theater in Branson, a city of 10,000 people that had become a regional entertainment center featuring more than 30 theaters, most of which cater to country music acts.

He performed there about 20 weeks a year while also putting on a Christmas tour in the United States and occasional tour of Britain.

Williams was a Christmas fixture on U.S. television, dressed casually in a trademark sweater, and he recorded several Christmas albums.

In 2006 the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers ranked his "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow" as the sixth most frequently performed Christmas song and "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" as No. 11.

Williams had a strong following in Britain, where his career was revived in the late 1990s when "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You" and "Music to Watch Girls By" were used in television commercials.