Singer Andy Williams dies

Andy Williams performs "The Sun Shines on Andy" on his TV variety series "The Andy Williams Show" in the early 1960s. The singer, 84, died after a yearlong battle with bladder cancer on Tuesday night, September 25, his family said. Williams, far right, sings with the folk music trio Peter, Paul and Mary during a TV appearance in 1966. British singer and actress Julie Andrews with Williams at the 1970 Golden Globes. Williams rehearses at the London Palladium before a Royal Variety Performance in 1970. The smooth-voiced crooner was known for such classics as "Moon River." Williams on the runway at London's Heathrow Airport in 1972. Williams takes one on the chin from boxer Jack Dempsey in London in 1974. Wlliams arrives in London's Leicester Square for a charity cabaret show in 1976. Williams performs at London's Royal Albert Hall in 2002. Williams appears with Nelly Furtado, left, and Roselyn Sanchez during the Grammys in 2008. Williams with Neil Portnow, left, president of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, and producer-songwriter Jimmy Jam at the 2009 MusiCares Person of the Year tribute to Neil Diamond in Los Angeles. Williams performs during the Songwriters Hall of Fame ceremony in 2009 in New York. NEW: "Moon River" became his theme song after he sang it at the 1962 Oscars Williams began his singing career as a child in a quartet with his brothers "The Andy Williams Show" ran for nine years on NBC starting in 1962 Williams spent the last 20 years performing at his Moon River Theatre in Branson, Missouri (CNN) -- Legendary singer Andy Williams, known for his smooth voice and classics such as "Moon River," died after a year-long battle with bladder cancer at his Branson, Missouri, home Tuesday night, his family said. Williams, 84, began his singing career as a child in a quartet with his brothers, but rose to stardom as a solo act starting in the 1950s. "The Andy Williams Show," a weekly television variety program that ran for nine years on NBC starting in 1962, and a dozen TV specials from 1959 through 1987 made Williams a household name in the United States. He spent the last 20 years of his career performing on his own stage at his Moon River Theatre in Branson. People we've lost in 2012: The lives they lived "Moon River" became his theme song after he performed it at the 1962 Academy Awards, where it won an Oscar for best song in a movie. Audrey Hepburn sang the Johnny Mercer and Henry Mancini composition in the film "Breakfast at Tiffany's." Williams' recording career reached superstar status in 1963 when his album "Days of Wine and Roses" spent 16 weeks at the top of the U.S. music charts. His variety TV show, which promoted the careers of many other artists including the Osmond Brothers, won high ratings and three Emmys. He hosted five Christmas television specials, between 1973 and 1985, along with seven other television specials, the first in 1959 and the last in 1987. Williams, who also had a home in La Quinta, California, is survived by his wife of 21 years, Debbie, and his three children with French singer Claudine Longet -- Robert, Noelle and Christian. He was married to Longet from 1961 until their divorce in 1975. A year later, she was charged with the fatal shooting of her boyfriend, Olympic skier Spider Sabich. Williams stood by Longet, who claimed the shooting was accidental. She spent a month in jail. Williams' Branson theater was the first non-country venue built in the small Missouri tourist mecca. He was born on December 3, 1927, in Wall Lake, Iowa, where he began singing with brothers Bob, Dick and Don in a Presbyterian church choir led by their parents. Williams was just eight when he made his professional singing debut with the Williams Brothers Quartet. The brothers were regular performers on radio station WHO's "Iowa's Barn Dance Show" in Des Moines, Iowa. Their popularity grew, taking the brothers to national stations, including WLS in Chicago and WLW in Cincinnati. CNN's Denise Quan contributed to this report.