The Luminaries

Standard early '60s black female vocal group (like say, The Shirelles) from the 1996 movie Grace of my Heart. Doris Shelley (Jennifer Leigh Warren), Betty (Natalie Venetia Belcon), and Sha Sha (Kathy Barbour) make up the trio. Main character songwriter Denise Waverly (Illeana Douglas) meets Doris at the Philadelphia 1958 McMartin Singing Competition. They run into each other 11 months later in New York where they're both trying to make it big. Denise gets a job at the famous Brill Building and gets her boss Joel Millner (John Turturro) interested in Doris' group. Denise writes "Born to Love That Boy" for them, and with her goateed beatnik socialist songwriter boyfriend, Howard Cazsatt (Eric Stoltz), pens the controversial unwed pregnant teen weepie, "Unwanted Number" (really by Elvis Costello). They also write them two or three other controversial tunes that get banned from radio, so Joel brings in another songwriting team, Cheryl Steed (Patsy Kensit) and husband Matthew Lewis (Chris Isaak). Ironically, this unhappily married couple brings in an upbeat wedding tune, "I Do," which becomes a big hit, going to number 4. Their singing was done by real group For Real.

See also The Click Brothers, Kelly Porter, The Stylettes, Denise Waverly.