On December 27 Bunny Gibson, American Bandstand Regular from 1959-1962, married Duke Tirschel in Chattanooga , Tennessee. And whereas 135 ABC-affiliated stations carriedAmerican Bandstandon a revenue-sharing basis in 1960, the stations were bailing out of this relationship in 1963. While ABC wasnt in the quiz show business, a congressional subcommittee found another reason to investigate the network. What they didnt know was that Arlene and several of the other female dancers, and most of the handsome teen boys, were gay. Unlike Smith, she expresses no animosity toward Clark. To many of you, it was about the music and the artists. Her partner Frank Spagnuola and her won 1st place in dance Cha Lypso contest and 2nd place in Jitterbug Contest . 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. The rest is American Bandstand history. A storybook ending to a tale that began with American Bandstand, albeit 40 years ago. Famously, Buddy Holly made his last television appearance on the program, miming "It's So Easy" and "Heartbeat" on August 7, 1958, just months before the . He fell in love with her. As music styles evolved, American Bandstand incorporated more emerging genres. This American Bandstand tribute book celebrates Dick Clark and the Regulars with 700 Photos. Reply. 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. In fact, she was "the first female car racer at Cecil County Drag Strip," according. I went to Bandstand because I was gay and I was a misfit in my neighborhood. Ohio. SaturdayBandstandretained the proven format of the now defunct weekday show, but it sustained a crucial loss of spontaneity as a result of being taped instead of shown live. Fiorentino, whose mother died when he was 12, said Clark became a role model. "He presented himself as such a grown-up.". Where things are poppin'(Pop!) [7] The Diary of Arlene Sullivan, in Sullivan, Smith, and Cutler,Bandstand Diaries, 43-63. 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. Particularly during the shows prime Philadelphia years (1952-63), Philadelphia youth culture became American culture through American Bandstand. At age 30 in 1960, already a millionaire, Dick Clark, Americas only national deejay, stood at the center of the payola storm. In 1989, Clark, aged 59, retired fromAmerica Bandstand, and the show ended that year. 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'. I did notice the studio was not as full, allowing the Regulars much more camera time. With his death, she said, it is "important that Dick is honored for what he did for rock-and-roll and for the impact he had on all the lives of his dancers from Philly to L.A.", Clark, Gibson said, led "the first teenage revolution, and we were part of it. [1] John A. Jackson,American Bandstand: Dick Clark and the Making of a Rock n Roll Empire(New York: Oxford University Press, 1997), chaps. Known then as Carole Scaldeferri, Mrs. Spada was among the teens who jitterbugged and slow-danced their way to fame in a TV studio in Philadelphia, while host Dick Clark spun what are now oldies. //-->. It was shot live from Studio B at Forty-Sixth and and Market Streets, where the two-and-a-half-hour show was broadcast regionally on WFIL-TV Channel 6. (noted 9/12/21) . "He made sure the guys wore suits and we were dressed properly. Soft Science extends that legacy on its third album, Maps (Test Pattern), and adds its own twists. The followed the trend of solo (open) dancing started by Chubby Checker and The Twist. Some solo dances had animal names, for example, The Pony and The Monkey; others were named for motions, for example, The Mashed Potato and The Loco-Motion. Two of the biggest record hits of the early 1960s, both of which received a huge boost from airtime onAmerican Bandstand, were Dee Dee Sharps Mashed Potato Time and Freddy Cannons Palisades Park.8, YetAmerican Bandstandsseven-year stint in West Philadelphia was about to end. They wrote. Don married Bunny. After working in insurance in Philadelphia, and studying acting and dance, Ray moved to New York City . ", California residents do not sell my data request. I knew when couples broke up. This is the interview with Arlene, Kenny, Frank and Carole about their days on American Bandstand and their experiences with the Golden Boys. "My heart hurts," said Gibson, a regular from 1959 to 1961. 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. American Bandstand (TV Series 1952-1989) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. This historical marker recalls Dick Clarks American Bandstand, which was broadcast from West Philadelphia from 1957 to 1964. Kelly said he avoided Rittenhouse Square, knowing if he were seen there, theyd be banished, but it was an open secret that most of the boys on the show were gay. . 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 aired five days a week in live national broadcast until 1963, when the show moved west to Los Angeles and began a 24-year run as a taped weekly program with Dick Clark as host . Pat Molitteeri was credited with inventing the dance, "The Hop" by combining elements of the Slop and the Bop, Pat died in the mid -1970s of a heart attack at age 36, Carmen Jimenez still lives in Philadelphia today and recollects the fun she had being on the show. And then they leave the show, go up on the El, go home to their neighborhoods, they then had to run to their door because somebody was always waiting there to beat them up.. Of Clarks behind-the-scenes behavior at Studio B, Ray Smith writes unsparingly: The irony about Clark is that he was not the goody-two-shoes he projected: he smoked, cursed, and for a while teetered on the edge of alcoholism. "He was the commander," Colanero said. I knew I was different early on, but being with all these [Bandstand] friends, I came to terms with my feelings. "So many of the regulars who jitterbugged on the show way, way back were there. News of Dick Clark's death hits 'Bandstand' regulars hard - Inquirer.com In 1960, in an episode that seems incredibly tame by todays standards of greed and corruption, the two major television networks, NBC and CBS were exposed as having rigged their wildly popular primetime quiz shows. Handbags - Formal Wear. Watch video clips of the American Bandstand dancers here. "It was arduous at first," she says. In their new self-published memoirs Bandstand Diaries, series regulars Arlene Sullivan, Ray Smith, and Sharon Sultan Cutler reveal that though fans loved to gossip and fantasize about the shows heterosexual pairings, many of their favorites were young gay men and women putting on a show for the cameras. . . We call him Namron and yes, if you spell his name backwards it spells, Norman. And he has the one criteria required to attract Bunny Gibson. California residents do not sell my data request. There are savings on everyday items you already buy, and savings on the things youve been waiting for a sale on to spoil your pet with. His name was Dick Clark and in the next year the show was transformed from a local show to a syndicated. 8-9; quote from unpaginated photo section. Hes a heckuva good dancer who does a mean jitterbug! From that dance on we became steady dance partners until I had to leave the show on my 18th birthday, which was in August of 1961., The Pony Contest Thats why Elvis Presley and Ricky Nelson would never appear on the show, but movie stars Jeff Chandler, Tab Hunter, Sal Mineo came., Dancing came naturally to Sullivan, the way it did to all Regulars, she says. The soft, almost cooed vocals of singer Katie Haley bring a pop veneer. you could do in half time - the hop, the bop, and the stomp," she wrote. Rock, Roll and Remember. In August 1963, ABC reassignedAmerican Bandstandto Saturday afternoon. While the teens, all homegrown talent, rocked onstage, two cameras homed in on them for close-ups. Ray Smith was one of the shows secretly gay dancers. [2] Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Paylola and Sponsorship Identification, Federal Communications Act, Amendments, 1960. . First called Bandstand, the program premiered October 6, 1952, hosted by Philadelphia radio DJ Bob Horn (1916-66). I have a Champion Samoyed show dog. And in her early 20s, she actually tied the knot with a young man. She danced the "push" - a "type of jitterbug . A Tribute to Bob Clayton | American Bandstand Diaries The Philly Years 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. 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. (Chris Walker / Chicago Tribune). Arlene Sullivan, a star on Bandstand, is now 74. Philadelphia. London: Omnibus Press, 2006. Still, American Bandstands Philadelphia years are recalled with particularly impassioned nostalgia. These Regulars . Television host Dick Clark presides over the set of his show American Bandstand in 1957. Ripley W.va, Great article Larry love your antiques blog . Known for her perky personality, Pat Moliterri is credited with inventing the dance, the Hop, by combining elements of the Slop and the Bop.Sadly, Pat died in in the mid-seventies of a heart attack. Learning how American Bandstand made rock n roll respectable. Browse celebrity nostalgia on our website. That might have had something to do with the scandal that surrounded the departure of his predecessor, Bob Horn, who faced a drunken-driving arrest and morals charges. "It was in the original TV studio and it was amazing," says Cutler. . She and her husband, Richard Spada, lived in Philadelphia and Lansdowne before moving to Newtown Square. The Hand Jive. Read the review. We followed their dance steps on TV and their personal lives in Teen magazines. Surprise: A Lot of the Teens On American Bandstand Were Gay - Jezebel She would gobble down some cookies and milk and turn on the TV. 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. Bandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years 1956 to 1963 Sophie Turner as Jean Grey, anger management student, in "Dark Phoenix." He retained his youthful looks through the 1980s, burnishing his reputation as Americas Oldest Living Teenager. Dick Clark died at age 82 in Santa Monica. When cute young teenagers Arlene Sullivan and Kenny Rossi slow danced together on American Bandstand back in the late 50s and early 60s, kids across the country swooned. This is the official Facebook of American Bandstand. American Bandstand only allowed dancers from 14 to 18. "When he saw me, he said, 'I knew I'd see you again,' with a smile on his face," Gibson recalled. Joyce Shafer talks about herself and her dance partner, Norman Kerr, Norman was one of a kind, always making people laugh. Lowell. Bandstand began as a local program on WFIL-TV (now WPVI), Channel 6 in Philadelphia on October 7, 1952. 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. On Bandstand, she became lifelong friends with one of the celebrity guests, straight Annette Funicello, of Mickey Mouse Club and Beach Party fame. "What ever happened to those dancers on American Bandstand By Larry Koon I imitated all the dance steps, sometimes with the refrigerator door as a partner. Arlene Sullivan and Kenny Rossi on the cover of Teen magazine in 1959. I purchased this from Historic Photos. I was SO mixed up., Today, Arlene Sullivan lives with a partner and, despite having suffered strokes, still loves to dance. [4] Ray Smith, Dancing on Air, in Arlene Sullivan, Ray Smith, and Sharon Sultan Cutler, eds.,Bandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years, 1956-1963(Chicago: Cony Island Press, 2019), 35. Marietta. In the early 1960s, a new collection of teen regulars succeeded Arlene Sullivan's generation on American Bandstand's dance floor. Delmont, Matthew F. The Nicest Kids in Town: American Bandstand, Rock n Roll, and the Struggle for Civil Rights in 1950s Philadelphia. This site is not endorsed by or associated with dick clark productions, inc. or its family of companies. My mother thought I was nuts. He said that when he was a kid, he would come in off the range every day and watch me on 'Bandstand.' One older brother survives Norman. 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. Kenny Rossi and Arlene Sullivan, Bunny Gibson and Eddie Kelly, Pat Molittieri, Carmen Jimenz, Joyce Shafer. 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. 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. Not only does Bandstand Diaries detail Smith's and Sullivan's personal experiences, it also includes interviews with more than 40 Bandstand regulars, reveals Dick Clark's back story and . It was like a high school reunion and some people even had tears in their eyes. Clark weathered the hearings by not being fully transparent, and he avoided being indicted for criminal behavior. Norman and I met in January 1959 while standing outside of the studio waiting to get inside. "It is with much sadness that we have lost one of the most loving and beautiful souls - Carole Scaldeferri Spada has passed away," Bunny Gibson, who identified herself as a "Bandstand buddy," posted on Facebook. , True love KENNY AND ARLENE. 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. I didnt know what I was doing and decided I cant do this, and I called my dad and asked him to come get me, she says. But most have fond memories of their short time in the spotlight and of its lingering effect. ", "I was shaking like a leaf," Colanero recalled. Talevski, Nick. ", A musical about the 'Miracle' Cubs? H.E. In 1960, he attended Penn State as an English major. . We sent some 15,000 fan letters each week. I started going out to straight clubs.. e9 = new Object(); Years later, when Clark was asked whether any of the dancers had died of AIDS, he stated that one had, Smith recalled. Whose Culture? Were goin hopin today The Secret Gay Lives Of The "American Bandstand" Dancers Sullivans last appearance onAmerican Bandstandwas in 1960.7, In the early 1960s, a new collection of teen regulars succeeded Arlene Sullivans generation onAmerican Bandstandsdance floor. The Bop. We were like sisters. For More Bunny click here to go to Bunny Gibson.com, Bunny Gibson discusses the 50th celebration of American Bandstand. In an interview with the New York Post, Sullivan says that she and many of the gay male dancers would congregate in the Gayborhood, Rittenhouse Square, and there were rumors that Clark sent producers to spy on them. But this one was different. 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. As Sullivan puts it: The boys danced. Titled "The Rise of the Salesman" and written by Smith, it captures the wildly successful and influential career of Clark from "American Bandstand" host to media mogul: "Dick Clark may not have known much about music, but he knew how to cultivate it, spread it, and make it work for the masses.". Bandstand (Australia) - Nostalgia Central We would roar, roll over with pain from laughing so hard. Determined, Don got Bunnys number from one of the regulars and he met his dream girl. PAT MOLITTIERI GALLERY IN LOVING MEMORY OF PAT MOLITTIERI - passed away at much too young an age Pat kissing her mother You can see her with her Dad in the thumbnail gallery. While occasionally black teens were allowed into the studio, they were generally boys. Over the decades, American Bandstands location, air days, duration, and content changed. On December 27 Bunny Gibson, American Bandstand Regular from 1959-1962, married Duke Tirschel in Chattanooga , Tennessee. Some solo dances had animal names, for example, "The Pony" and "The Monkey"; others were named for . It originally aired as simply "Bandstand" in 1952, shot at WFIL-TV's studios in Philadelphia and airing locally. The couple first honeymooned on the Chattanooga Choo Choo, the famed railway that was immortalized by Glenn Miller and was the first to run South to North. Mixed REGULARS Galleries. Then it was hosted by Bob Horn and was called Bob Horns Bandstand.On July 9 of 1956 the show got a new host, a clean-cut 26 year old named Dick Clark. James Morgan, who danced 17 times on Bandstand and stayed interested in it over the years, said Mrs. Spada had run a beauty parlor in the suburbs. A show where well-dressed teens gently bop around to the big hits while maintaining an appropriate distance apart hardly seems like it would be a hot bed of sexual experimentation, but American Bandstand apparently featured a crew of Philadelphia kids who had more than dancing in common. She tracked them down for the new coffee-table book, Bandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years, 1956-1963. But I didnt have any crushes on any of the straight girls. Many subsequently became celebrities (albeit temporarily), appearing in other media, receiving fan mail, and starting fashion trends. American Bandstand - Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia She was one of the great stars of the Philadelphia years. The marker stands opposite 4548 Market Street (not shown here), which once housed WFIL-TVand its Studio B, the original home of American Bandstand. 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.". 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. He discussed his brief stay in Hollywood trying to become an actor after he and Justine Carrelli cut a 45 rpm record together. Like Rick Pierce, Bandstand dancer Sandra Mae Dawson, who died Feb. 25, 2008, at age 66, was into car racing. Covering Auction Houses who specialize in Buying and Selling Antiques & Collectibiles from A-Z, Art-Rare Books-Comics-Coins-Records-Postcards-Autographs-Jewelery-Watches-Guns- Glass-Pottery- Toys-Dolls-Cookie jars-Decoys-Fenton glass- . Most of those kids recruited from area high schools and compelled to "retire" from the show when they turned 18 are now in the 70s and their lives have had ups and downs. . I still really didnt know who I was. He needed a group to show up every day, she says, and nobody got paid. Bandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years, 1956-1963 shares the fascinating story of how Dick Clark's American Bandstand and its millions of viewers catapulted its teenage dancers (called "the Regulars") to fame. REGULARS Gallery 2. New book keeps memories of 'American Bandstand' alive Self - Interview 1 episode, 1965 . Variety Shows He kept his distance, she says. Everybody knew the names of The Regulars on Bandstand. Barbara finally came back and said I had to come to the front because the back was only for colored people. He danced on the show until Christmas 1959. She never saw much of Clark outside of the studio. 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.. . They were on the cover of "Dick Clark's American Bandstand " and have done many Documentaries R.I.P. Back in July, I received a most endearing email from Duke which told of his experiences in life. Delmont, Matthew. Later, in hindsight, I guessed that made me the first white Rosa Parks. The rest, as they say, is history. EARLY BANDSTAND FASHIONS. They were hurting him. Fundraiser for the renovation of the original American Bandstand Studio Floor Dick Clarks tight control on the sexual expression of his cast extended to a denial years after the show had ended. Norman was born on January 18, 1944. Browse celebrity nostalgia on our website. The bashing of Bandstand regulars, gay and straight, happened all the time, Sullivan and Smith reveal. The show then aired at 3 p.m., Monday through Friday, corresponding with the typical school days end. . When I used to walk down the streets of Philadelphia and be recognized, Id be called a Bandstand f*****.. That really annoyed me because quite a few of the Philadelphia dancers on Bandstand died of AIDS, Smith said. We only had three channels in those days. Let the good times roll! It was a local show Philadelphia, Jersey, the Lehigh Valley [Pennsylvania]. I had asked Norman to dance when it was a ladies choice. (Test Pattern). Dottie Arguably, American Bandstand both contributed to racial integration and supported racial segregation. It could happen, How Jimmy Stewart's war service affected 'It's a Wonderful Life', Sophie Turner as Jean Grey, anger management student, in "Dark Phoenix." As two or three stations grab it off, you get less clearance, therefore you get less rating, and its an endless cycle. From 1963 to 1987 Bandstand was on only once a week, on Saturday. Brian Henderson The Executives Bill & Boyd "We all did. ABC gave Clark a choice: divest his music-related interests or step down as host of the show. Clark chose to continue withBandstand.3. You want to know about the guy! . When Gibson moved from Philadelphia to Los Angeles in the 1980s, she paid Clark a call at his office. 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.. American Bandstand was an immediate success, with an estimated audience of twenty million viewers. How to Be a SuperAger in The SuperAging Revolution, Jumble for Kids and Adults: Cartoons and Twins. I lived in very tough South Philadelphia, he says. Many of the shows female dancers wore Peter Pan collarsa feature of their Catholic school uniformsand at one point this even sparked a nationwide trend imitating the look. Five-foot-two, brown-eyed, brown-haired Arlene and handsome Kenny, a year younger, were among the TV music shows elite, its stars, the vaunted regulars along with another couple often on camera pert, blond Justine Carrelli and suave Bob Clayton. We were like sisters. Thanks for contacting us. Fiorentino was known on the show as "Nicky Blue.". 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. The Slop. In addition to his other ventures, Clark maintained a virtual lock on New Years Eve television withDick ClarksNew Years Rockin Eve. Dancing was a major feature of Bandstand. He was 82. First called Bandstand, the program premiered October 6, 1952, hosted by Philadelphia radio DJ Bob Horn (1916-66). I was a preteen, which is to say, I was a teenage wannabe. Home Yesteryear Nostalgia Where Are the American Bandstand Regulars Now? (7/21/2011) I just received this from Bunny Gibson and certainly thought it was appropriate to mention here: Anna Russo, formerly Anna Banani, went to American Bandstand 1963 until AB left Philly for Los Angeles, lost both of her legs to diabetes and is in need. . I was so afraid that I started trying to talk myself into being straight. In 2014, the National Enquirer interviewed Frank Brancaccio and Eddie Kelly, other series regulars. Using social media, Cutler contacted some of the show's regulars. On all the music they play On the Bandstand.! "American Bandstand" goes national - History Photo taken on October 27, 1981. This site does not collect any information from you. Bob Horn Host (Bob Horns Bandstand), Bandstand Boogie The most memorable day for Norman and me was April 13, 1961, the day we won second place in the Pony Dance Contest. In 1962, ABC trimmed the shows airtime from 90 to 60 minutes. Dick Clark (1929-2012) replaced Horn as host in 1956, just before the show was renamed American Bandstand, shortened to ninety minutes, and expanded to a national ABC audience on August 5, 1957. Fabian and Bobby Rydell Hang With American Bandstand Regulars - YouTube I think after several decades he actually believed the myth. Parents across America would never, NEVER have allowed their kids to put Bandstand on, she writes. Shore, Michael, with Dick Clark. The kids designated as American Bandstand Regulars in some cases struggled with their sexual identity. These teenagers became the nation's first reality-TV stars--they received thousands of fan letters and were mobbed everywhere they went.
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