At the age of 14, she was heard in an amateur contest and asked to audition for a network teen-aged show called Junior Junction.
Her popularity as a recording artist gave her the opportunity to tour with such stars as Bob Hope, Johnnie Ray, and Jimmy Durante in the 1950s and 1960s.
[5][6] Aged 14, Lola was heard on an amateur programme, and was asked to audition for the American Broadcasting Company's Junior Junction, a national show for teenagers based in Chicago with Dick York as Master of Ceremonies.
During her career, Dee performed worldwide and became a member of several tours which included such stars as Bob Hope, Johnnie Ray and Jimmy Durante.
She toured clubs and theatres in Australia, the Far East, Mexico, the Philippines, the Caribbean, Japan, South America, Cuba and Canada.
Her national career continued until 1978, and included annual appearances at the Illinois State Fair doing live broadcasts for WGN with Orion Samuelson from 1971 to 1978.
Dee appeared as Klondike Kate, the first lady of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada,[12] and performed on the Royal Caribbean International cruise line for three years.
As a regional celebrity, Dee was Honorary Chairwoman of the Illinois chapter of the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Foundation in 1978 and 1979, which brought in thousands of dollars for research into Lou Gehrig's Disease.