Ms. Whiting came from a musical family. Her father, Richard A. Whiting, was a successful songwriter ("Till We Meet Again," "Beyond the Blue Horizon," "Ain't We Got Fun?," "Too Marvelous for Words") and her aunt, Margaret Young, was a recording artist in the 1920s. Both she and her sister, Barbara Whiting, pursued a singing career. Growing up, her home was a gathering place for composers like Jerome Kern and Gus Kahn, and she was often called upon to sing. She was given an early boost when songwriter Johnny Mercer, a collaborator with her father, heard her voice when she was only seven. When Ms. Whiting's father died, Mercer took her under his wing; when he started Capitol Records in 1942, he signed the teenage Ms. Whiting.