Her partner Frank Spagnuola and her won 1st place in dance Cha Lypso contest and 2nd place in Jitterbug Contest . Bob's bio in Bandstand Diaries was very candid. We call him Namron and yes, if you spell his name backwards it spells, Norman. Bandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years 1956 to 1963 - Facebook For a time, she dated a neighborhood boy, Danny Rapp, lead singer of Danny & the Juniors, who had the hit song At the Hop., I was so afraid that I started trying to talk myself into being straight, Sullivan says. Several teens belonged to a select group of taste-making gatekeepers who helped monitor dress code and admission. Once a week, she goes to a hop thrown by another Bandstand original, 76-year-old Philadelphia radio and TV personality Jerry Blavat, who bills himself as The Geator with the Heater and The Boss with the Hot Sauce.. "He presented himself as such a grown-up.". Shore, Michael, with Dick Clark. American Bandstand was an immediate success, with an estimated audience of twenty million viewers. Clark felt such conventions helped boost the perception of rock-and-roll, which in the 1950s was a controversial genre often disliked by older generations. Hundreds of kids lined up each day hoping to be one of the few lucky ones who got to dance alongside the Regulars and share part of the magic that was American Bandstand. However, advertisers do to enable personalized ads. The kids who showed up every day (Bandstand aired every weekday afternoon for the first six years) knew all the most popular steps. She would learn their names but, like all of us and them, she would mature, and those images on the screen and her affection for "those kids" would fade. The original "Bandstand," as it was called in 1952, was first hosted by deejay Bob Horn, who later was fired due to a drunk-driving conviction.. . I do hope you continuing writing about the bandstanders. The new legislation effectively ended payola in the music business.2, American Bandstandtoo weathered the payola storm. This site is not endorsed by or associated with dick clark productions, inc. or its family of companies. Clark, Dick, and Richard Robinson. . ABC gave Clark a choice: divest his music-related interests or step down as host of the show. Clark chose to continue withBandstand.3. Teenagers and young adults ran home from school to watch them jitterbug and stroll while they copied their fashions, fads and dance moves. Black music and black dances originating in Philadelphia neighborhoods contributed substantially to the success ofAmerican Bandstand; yetAmerican Bandstandsdancefloor and bleachers were racially segregated, and some of the shows most popular dances were adapted without attribution from black neighborhoods. Early in 1964, the show moved from Philadelphia to Los Angeles, where it remained through its final season in 1989. sign up for our monthly Nostalgia e-newsletter or other e-newsletters tailored for boomers! When American Bandstand became the most popular daytime television program in the late 1950s, a group of ordinary Philadelphia high school students who loved to dance suddenly became a national phenomenon. They were hurting him. Philadelphia. Clark suffered a heart attack while at St. John's. In fact, she was "the first female car racer at Cecil County Drag Strip," according. This site does not collect any information from you. [7] The Diary of Arlene Sullivan, in Sullivan, Smith, and Cutler,Bandstand Diaries, 43-63. . Regardless, the music historian John Jackson calls it the gravest crisis in his professional career.1, At all events, the payola hearings spurred action by Congress. Jerry Oppenheimer is a best-selling author. My mother thought I was nuts. Rock, Roll and Remember. One time, Kenny and I went to visit one of the other regulars up in North Philadelphia, and we were leaving her apartment and were headed to the El, and I heard car doors slamming, and I looked back, and all these guys were coming up the steps, and they started beating up on Kenny, Sullivan says. Not only was it extremely intelligent, but there was something moving about the mans story. The marker stands opposite 4548 Market Street (not shown here), which once housed WFIL-TVand its Studio B, the original home of American Bandstand. . Years later, when Clark was asked whether any of the dancers had died of AIDS, he stated that one had, Smith recalled. OnAmerican Bandstandsdance floor, Sullivan was first partnered famously with Kenny Rossi (1957-58), a multitalented Italian-American student at West Catholic Boys High School, and such was her national popularity that her fan mail eventually totaled some 500 letters weekly. I imitated all the dance steps, sometimes with the refrigerator door as a partner. Known as the Regulars, they became the nation's first reality stars. This included dances the Bop, the Twist, the Jitterbug, and the Stroll. Click here to see some of your favorites back in action. Fiorentino, whose mother died when he was 12, said Clark became a role model. They were on the cover of "Dick Clark's American Bandstand " and have done many Documentaries R.I.P. Norman was born on January 18, 1944. "He made me feel that if you want something in life, you have to be serious about it.". (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images) Another time, a dancer was thrown onto the subway tracks. She was a senior.and luckily on the Honor Roll. Fabian and Bobby Rydell Hang With American Bandstand Regulars By Rick SiegelFabian, the teenagers heart throb from the 50's, hob knobs along with the America. [2] Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Paylola and Sponsorship Identification, Federal Communications Act, Amendments, 1960. Back in July, I received a most endearing email from Duke which told of his experiences in life. On a sociological front, the show helped popularize rock and roll and make it acceptable to many adults (i.e., parents). I knew I was different early on, but being with all these [Bandstand] friends, I came to terms with my feelings. . Ray Smith was one of the shows secretly gay dancers. ), Special Collections Research Center, Temple University Libraries. In July 1956, Dick Clark, a commercial pitchman and deejay with an unsullied reputation, inherited WFIL-TV's Bandstand from scandal-tainted Bob Horn and revamped it for a national audience of teenage consumers as ABC's American Bandstand, which first aired in August 1957.Clark's daily afternoon program pioneered in musical television by showcasing a range of black and white pop music . And he has the one criteria required to attract Bunny Gibson. Clark's sunny smile and cuteness masked a strong will and iron determination. We ended up spending weekends together when she came to New York and D.C. to perform We went to lunch together and had fun, but Annette had to rest and perform, so we didnt have time for anything else., Sullivan never felt like a superstar, even when the Regulars averaged 100 to 150 fan letters a day. A Tribute to Bob Clayton | American Bandstand Diaries The Philly Years 1st song played on the national edition was Jerry Lee Lewis Whole Lotta Shaking Goin On.1st Guests: Billy Williams, ChordettesLast song on the ABC network was Laura Branigans Shattered Glass., See above pictureThe Stroll recorded by The Diamonds in 1958. 8 Surprising Facts About The Legendary Dance Show American Bandstand ", California residents do not sell my data request. Marietta. Rare photo above is a 1959 Press photo of Pat when she was writing for Teen Magazine. She tracked them down for the new coffee-table book, Bandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years, 1956-1963. Carole Scaldeferri Spada, 'Bandstand' dancer, dies at 70 - Inquirer.com By Jordan McClain and Amanda McClain | Reader-Nominated Topic. Amanda McClain is Assistant Professor of Communications at Holy Family University. Clark was known for integrating his audiences as well as his performers unusual in the late 50s. Television host Dick Clark presides over the set of his show American Bandstand in 1957. The reality behind the scenes ofAmerican Bandstandwas quite different than what viewers saw on national television. The dancers, as Teen wrote, were the "most famous unknowns on TV today. Kenny Rossi and Arlene Sullivan, Bunny Gibson and Eddie Kelly, Pat Molittieri, Carmen Jimenz, Joyce Shafer. "My heart hurts," said Gibson, a regular from 1959 to 1961. To the left youll find original pictures of some of the Regulars. But back in the Bandstand days, Smith was one of the shows secretly gay dancers. In 2014, the National Enquirer interviewed Frank Brancaccio and Eddie Kelly, other series regulars. For More Bunny click here to go to Bunny Gibson.com, Bunny Gibson discusses the 50th celebration of American Bandstand. I think [the shows success] even surprised Dick Clark.. Self - Interview 1 episode, 1965 . Bandstand (Australia) - Nostalgia Central The Philadelphia high school Regulars who danced on Dick Clark's American Bandstand in the late 1950s and early 1960s became national celebrities and America's first reality stars. Who died from American Bandstand? - Daily Justnow Forget that. [6] Jackson,American Bandstand, 71; Jacksons description of Arlene Sullivan. In an online page marking her 68th birthday on Nov. 23, 2011, Bandstand "documentarian" Charles W. Amann III posted: "The name Scaldeferri and American Bandstand go hand-in-hand. He molded the image of the American teenager so America would accept rock-and-roll.". Jerry Lee Lewis was the first guest on the national show and it would over the decades feature the TV debuts of such stars as Prince, the Jackson 5, Aerosmith, Sonny and Cher and dozens of other performers. ofGreaterPhiladelphia. "It was in the original TV studio and it was amazing," says Cutler. The big teenybopper magazines of the era Sixteen and Teen plastered Bandstand dancers on their covers and wrote glowing, gossipy stories about their lives in Philadelphia, where Dick Clark produced the show. Bandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years, 1956-1963 BANDSTAND DIARIES is a coffee-table book that offers readers a nostalgic walk through those halcyon, memory-filled days when rock n roll became the soundtrack of a generation, when television was in grainy black and white and when a 45 RPM record cost less than 70 cents. A case in point is Arlene Sullivan, a popular Regular who has described her own emerging lesbian sexual orientation, which she says was masked by her dance partnerships with boys. Broadcast icon Dick Clark, the longtime host of the influential "American Bandstand," has died, publicist Paul Shefrin said. Connecting the Past with the Present, Building Community, Creating a Legacy, TheEncyclopedia (Chris Walker/Chicago Tribune). Unsure and fearful about her true sexual identity, Sullivan tried passing as straight. On Bandstand, she became lifelong friends with one of the celebrity guests, straight Annette Funicello, of Mickey Mouse Club and Beach Party fame. Wed stay up all night talking about boys, said Sullivan. Bunny Gibson was a kid when Dick Clark came into her life - or, rather, when she entered his world in Studio B at 46th and Market Streets in West Philadelphia. Let the good times roll! The Hand Jive. Mixed REGULARS Galleries. In the early 1960s, a new collection of teen regulars succeeded Arlene Sullivan's generation on American Bandstand's dance floor. As two or three stations grab it off, you get less clearance, therefore you get less rating, and its an endless cycle. Some of the stories I heard are heartbreaking, Sullivan recalls. That really annoyed me, said Smith, Because quite a few of the Philadelphia dancers on Bandstand died of AIDS., According to Brancaccio, Clark didnt want racial integration on his show either. Where things are poppin'(Pop!) The two sides were "Drive in Movie " and "Dream Girl." Dick Clark never played either song on American Bandstand. In a nice way, he'd discipline us.". It was shot live from Studio B at Forty-Sixth and and Market Streets, where the two . Don and Bunny had two daughters: Angel and Maria and four grandchildren: Lea & Christopher Di Vello, Alexis Karanzalis & Nicole Weiss. The History of American Bandstand. She also mentions a gay dancer who was pushed in the train tracks, and another who was dangled over an elevator shaft. They wrote. Delmont, Matthew F. The Nicest Kids in Town: American Bandstand, Rock n Roll, and the Struggle for Civil Rights in 1950s Philadelphia. [3] Jackson,American Bandstand, quote from unpaginated photo section. American Bandstand (1952-89) was a massively popular music television program with strong Philadelphia roots, storied national success, and the power to shape the music industry and society. Sharon Sultan Cutler, who grew up in New York and now lives in Chicago, is co-author of Bandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years 1956-1963.. Im sure shell be thrilled to hear well wishes and from Bandstand friends and fans and donations would help her a lot. The Regulars, also known as The Committee were only a part of the Bandstand story. Ray Smith says he was upset when Dick Clark claimed only one of the dancers had died from AIDS when asked about it in an interview. My favorite dance was the Jitterbug the last dance where people danced together. May, 1961. Despite changes over the years, the show continued to embody and represent evolutions in American music, fashion, dance, and other sociocultural norms. The program that preceded Dick Clarks American Bandstand at WFIL-TV was deejay Bob Horns locally popular Bandstand. By then, he was a big-time television producer. In 1989, Clark, aged 59, retired fromAmerica Bandstand, and the show ended that year. Clark "was very all-American, handsome, and nice, a father figure to us," she recalled. Follow Backgrounders on Twitter "He wasn't no Bob Horn," Fiorentino said. And whereas 135 ABC-affiliated stations carriedAmerican Bandstandon a revenue-sharing basis in 1960, the stations were bailing out of this relationship in 1963. The dark-complexioned, wavy-haired Sullivan6bolstered American Bandstands image as a show dominated by Italian-American teens. Like nostalgia? Mickey Mouse Club (Author information current at time of publication. "I put a lot of my mom's makeup on and stuffed my bra," said Gibson. However, musicians such as Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, and Sam Cooke all made national appearances on American Bandstand during the late 1950s. Squeaky clean commercial pitchman and deejay Dick Clark inherited Bob Horns locally broadcastBandstandin July 1956 and revamped it for a national audience of teenage consumers as ABCsAmerican Bandstand, which first aired in August 1957. The American Bandstand Regulars tell us what Studio B means to them today and yesterday, with special guest appearance by the American Bandstand Fan Club pre. News of Dick Clark's death hits 'Bandstand' regulars hard - Inquirer.com you could do in half time - the hop, the bop, and the stomp," she wrote. . Rachel Fuda and Dolores Catania Get Honest About What It Takes to Look Like a Housewife, JoJo Says Theres Definitely Parallels Between Her and, Mica Burton's Rebellion Against Her Dad, LeVar Burton, Was Being a 'Star Wars' Fan, 50% Off Pet Items for Amazon Pet Day - Starting Now, Rachel Fuda and Dolores Catania Get Honest About What It Takes to Look Like a 'Real Housewife'. He held nothing back. Who died from American Bandstand? Learning how American Bandstand made rock n roll respectable. "After that, it was history.". REGULARS Gallery 1. Goes from a daily to a weekly Saturday show in Philadelphia: 9/7/1963, Broadcast from Los Angeles: Begins 2/8/1964, Produced by Anthony Tony Mammarella and Dick Clark, Dick Clark Host The guy who had been in charge of the show before he took over was the subject of a scandal a DUI, I think so Clark wanted to be the clean-cut guy, and he was. We followed their dance steps on TV and their personal lives in Teen magazines. [1] John A. Jackson,American Bandstand: Dick Clark and the Making of a Rock n Roll Empire(New York: Oxford University Press, 1997), chaps. Clark claimed that the affiliates got greedy and took the time back to put their own material on where they got 100 percent of the revenue. Ray Smith says he was upset when Dick Clark claimed only one of the dancers had died from AIDS when asked about it in an interview. I was trying to hit them over their heads with my pocketbook, but they just wouldnt give up. John Lithgow filmed a mockumentary episode before it was c Dad of crying infant that triggered Texas massacre 'never thought' gunman would shoot, It's not just soda: Nutritionists weigh in on the absolute worst drinks for your health, I'm a dentist you're ruining your teeth with these 4 common mistakes, Gayle King says she doesnt have a desire to retire: I want more work, WNBA star Brittney Griner is heading to the Met Gala, Mariah Carey celebrates Moroccan and Monroes 12th birthday: My babies, Elon Musk Tells Bill Maher Woke Mind Virus Is Dangerous On Real Time, Kendall Jenner rocks sheer top, fur mini skirt for date night with Bad Bunny. I still have my HI-FI sitting against a wall between my living room and dining room. As she puts it, being a Regular entailed holding a WFIL-TV Bandstand Club membership card and dancing every day on the show. Finally, we got away and jumped over the turnstile. In a fine introduction to this book one of those people, singer Bobby Rydell, recalls his first appearance on the show in 1959 and the many that followed, as well as a "short but sweet" romance with one of the teen dancers, writing: "To appear on 'American Bandstand' was everyone's dream.". She told me she got so many letters from fans who thought I looked like her and [with our dark hair], we did look alike. But this one was different. The followed the trend of solo ("open") dancing started by Chubby Checker and "The Twist.". I can honestly say that I was the most blessed person in the world the day I met Norman and he and I became steady dance partners., Meeting Norman After school in the late 1950s, millions of American teenagers raced home to watch the gyrations of fellow teens on their parents tiny black-and-white televisions in the living room. Clark was out for Clark, says Brancaccio. Ray first attended Bandstand in the summer of 1956. In 2019, a trio of formerAmerican Bandstandregulars assembled a book on their experiences on the popular show. These Regulars went on to receive mail, have fan clubs, feature magazine articles and dancer contests just like the previous groups. He practiced dancing with his niece, Robin, but when he went down to the show, they wouldnt let him in because he was over the age of 18. Bunnys mom, Betty, made her promise that she would graduate. In 1988, the National Park Service listed 4548 Market Street on the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Sullivan was raised in a rowhouse in a working-class neighborhood; we surmise from her writing that it was somewhere in Southwest Philly (she attended John Bartram High School), although Sullivan doesnt specify a home address. Bunny and Duke met several months ago and now are married. They werent playing baseball they were DANCING. Remember hurrying from school in the 50's and turning on that old black and white tv at 4'oclock to watch all those kids dance on "American Bandstand" live from Philadelphia, The show first began as a local program in the cramped quarters of Studio B at WFIL Tv channel 6 at 46th and Market streets in Philadelphia on October 7, 1952. Clark weathered the hearings by not being fully transparent, and he avoided being indicted for criminal behavior. I was saddened to hear about Norman. Cutler will be appearing Monday to talk about her book atMax and Benny's restaurant in Northbrook. ", A musical about the 'Miracle' Cubs? Don married Bunny. After that, management at WFIL-TV/Channel 6 (46th & Market) in Philadelphia installed the clean-cut Dick Clark to take over the teen dance party show and renamed it "American Bandstand." Sharon Sultan Cutler, of Chicago, talks about "Bandstand Diaries," the book she co-authored with Ray Smith and former American Bandstand participant Arlene Sullivan remembering the shows early days. American Bandstand - Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia Some solo dances had animal names, for example, "The Pony" and "The Monkey"; others were named for . . The A,B,C,'s of American Bandstand: Part 3 Although, unlike some others, Carole never really had a steady dancing partner, she danced with all the good-looking Italian boys and that one special non-Italian whom everyone loved - Harvey Robbins. He spoke of his youth, of Bandstand and his favorite gal, Bunny. Clark and producer Tony Mammorella (1924-1977) dubbed this group The Committee, led from 1954 to 1956 by future DJ Jerry Blavat (1940-2023). Movies. Clark now eyed California as where the action is. And in February 1964 Clark moved to Los Angeles, where it would continue until 1989, though lacking its West Philadelphia spontaneity. Fifty years later, Bandstand fan Sharon Sultan Cutler wondered what had become of the Regulars, the name given to the teens that showed up daily to dance. Classic TV Shows - Dick Clark's American Bandstand| FiftiesWeb But about four years ago, after a lifetime filled with journalistic and entrepreneurial achievements, Cutler began to wonder what had happened to all those kids, those celebrities of her youth, and she went about the business of trying to find them.
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