Cookie Policy His latest book, The Kardashians: An American Drama, will be published in September. Self - Singer 1 episode, 1962 The Boopers . My family, friends and co-workers all remember Saturday's weekly TV series American Bandstand back in the 1960's and 1970's when it was THE ONLY music related theme show that could compete each week with the popularity of the following evenings Sunday night TV's Ed Sullivan show. For a brief time in 1973, Bandstand alternated its time slot with Soul Unlimited,[10] a show featuring soul music that was hosted by Buster Jones. Bob and Justine share their memories of the late Dick Clark and more A: Though they split in 1960 after three-plus years of jitterbugging on the Dick Clark-hosted show, they were happy to see . Thank you Arlene for given us a second turn of theGold Yeaysand new meaning of my Old Years. West Philadelphia, North Philadelphia, Jersey you learned the different styles of the same dances., The Regulars did the Pony, Jitterbug, Calypso, Cha-cha and a slow dance that she says wasnt exactly a waltz: The kids didnt stand in one spot. This version was canceled after 26 weeks, and its final show (with The Cover Girls performing "My Heart Skips a Beat" and "We Can't Go Wrong") aired on October 7, 1989,[37] thus ending the show's 37-year run.[38][39]. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". [42], Bandstand "regulars" from the Philadelphia years, Move from ABC to syndication and the USA Network, AMERICAN BANDSTAND (1987 Closing Credits - ABC Finale), Laura Branigan - Shattered Glass & Interview - AB (1987). He was adorable.". The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". Artists would sing naturally to the studio audience over a background of their own disc, while viewers at home would hear only the original recording. We didnt say anything about meeting again, Justine said. Justine said yes. Called the "First Lady of Rock & Roll" in one headline of a marginal publication, [3] she is estimated to have sold more . It does not store any personal data. I started going out to straight clubs.. Bandstand Dairies has made my golden years even better to remember the SOLID GOLD DAYS. She is a Marco Polo member of the Society of American Travel Writers, a past president of Virginia Professional Communicators and a member of the Virginia Communications Hall of Fame. Her husband, Richard Spada, said Mrs. Spada was recovering from a minor stroke she had suffered earlier when she became ill on the way . I met Arlene in 1961 she was very sweet.Unfortunely I never got to meet Kenny. And now we have computers. Jim, on his ride back to his hotel room, decided he wanted to see her again, so he phoned her, and they arranged to have lunch the next day. This set and theme music were used until September 1974, with the arrival of a brand new set and the second, updated version of "Bandstand Boogie". When she was 13, a boy the same age became smitten with her from his living room in Middletown, Conn. Richard Spada drew a picture of Carole and sent it to the show; Dick Clark held it up on the air. Dick Clark hosts a daily to weekly dance show that features the latest hit music for the attending teens to dance to. Jim Miller was in junior high, living on Long Island, New York, when Bandstand became a national hit. Kenny left. 1964 - The Beach Boys - "Don't Worry, Baby". Pinterest. Kenny and Arlene met up again in the late 70s and to this day remain close friends. In the meantime, have a wonderful week or two. God bless friendships !!! The afternoon soon turned into the cocktail-hour, so they went out for drinks. Reporters and bloggers, alike, Can the Democratic Party regain strength in Florida? Attempts continue to launch a successful game show or sitcom", "Final American Bandstand: The Cover Girls", http://nicestkids.com/nehvectors/nicest-kids/bandstands-backyard, "Remembering American Bandstand's 50th [Photos]", Son of Svengoolie - 'Good Morning, Sven' (Opening,Show #218) (verse occurs at the 1:35 mark), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=American_Bandstand&oldid=1140855641, American Bandstand's 20th Anniversary (1973), American Bandstand's 25th Anniversary (1977), American Bandstand's 30th Anniversary (1982), American Bandstand's 33 1/3 Celebration (1985), American Bandstand's 40th Anniversary (1992), American Bandstand's 50th Anniversary (2002), The show was featured prominently in the 20022005, This page was last edited on 22 February 2023, at 03:03. Set pieces from Soul Unlimited were utilized by Bandstand for its 19741978 set design. By what name was American Bandstand (1952) officially released in Canada in English? 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. They won the first jitterbug contest when the show went nationwide in 1957. Themselves 1 episode, 1962 The Surfsiders . American Bandstand will be back someday, I assure you. The Top 40 hits that everyone heard were matched with fun routines performed by relatable teenagers. 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. This first national broadcast of American Bandstand was filmed in the Starlight Ballroom in Wildwood, NJ. She said to go to Hawaii. They werent playing basketball. In particular, Arlene remembers him singing Because of You by Tony Bennett. He found her selling real estate in Dolan Springs, Arizona, population 1,989. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. He introduced her to his sister and neighbors, who remembered her from Bandstand.. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. Touch device users, explore by touch or with swipe gestures. 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.. 1960s. Dance Art. Jim didnt know that Justine lied about her age when introduced for the spotlight dances. Like Rick Pierce, Bandstand dancer Sandra Mae Dawson, who died Feb. 25, 2008, at age 66, was into car racing. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. They lost touch over the years. They joined Arlenes and Kennys fan clubs. Famous Americans. Clark was determined to keep the homosexuality of popular Bandstand regulars a secret, Smith said. Jim, on his ride back to his hotel room, decided he wanted to see her again, so he phoned her, and they arranged to have lunch the next day. Watch American Bandstand 1950s: Justine Carrelli and Bob Cayton highlighted on American Bandstand. They will always be my favorite couple. (1957), Kenny Rogers and Arlene Sullivan were my favorites on American Bandstand. Clark was known for integrating his audiences as well as his performers unusual in the late 50s. Arlene asked him to dance and thus Arlene and Kenny happened. . The show's popularity helped Dick Clark become an American media mogul and inspired similar long-running music programs, such as Soul Train and British series Top of the Pops. Some regulars had a hard time adjusting after leaving the show. Kenny went on tour and was away a lot. The segment gave rise to the catchphrase "It's got a good beat and you can dance to it. With 37 continuous years on the air, this was the longest-running weekly popular music showcase TV program in the world. The parents of one kid on the show found out that he was gay . The followed the trend of solo ("open") dancing started by Chubby Checker and "The Twist.". Your email address will not be published. But Molittieri eventually returned to her Philadelphia roots, where she married and had two daughters before dying at age 32 of either a heart attack or a stroke. The "ab" logo was replaced with the iconic stylized "AB" logo (shown at the top of this page) used for the remainder of the show's run. Justine Carrelli. ``While I was caught up in the magic of it, it was fantastic, said Justine, who at 12 1/2 used her older sisters birth certificate to get onto the show. Then it was hosted by Bob Horn and was called Bob Horn's Bandstand.On July 9 of 1956 the show got a new host, a clean-cut 26 year old named Dick Clark. No other dancers or couples even came close to comparing to them!!! The show's most popular dance team of Bob Clayton and Justine Carrelli even cut their own record. The shy Sullivan pushed herself forward with the contact because she wanted to get on TV to impress her mother. Besides launching singers, ``Bandstand propelled its regulars from obscure adolescents into trendsetters. Thank you. Kenny Rossi became a pop star in his own right, with hits such as But I Do and Open Your Heart. Pat Molittieri also had a few hit singles before pursuing acting; she died in 1975. In Philadelphia, however, WFIL opted to tape-delay the game show for later broadcast in another time slot, and to continue on with Bandstand, though only for the local audience. 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. Thats all we did dance and every part of the city had its own style. ``Bandstand first aired for a national audience on ABC on Aug. 5, 1957. They split their time between Dolan Springs and Venice. Pop Singers. . American Bandstand's Official East Coast Fan Club President. That really annoyed me because quite a few of the Philadelphia dancers on Bandstand died of AIDS, Smith said. The increase in competition hurt Bandstand and the variety of options for music on TV decreased its relevance. Ray Smith was one of the shows secretly gay dancers. When I first met Kenny Rossi he was sitting way up in the stands I noticed his curly black hair, blue suit, beautiful brown eyes. With its new young host, Dick Clark, the show aired every day at 3 p.m. for an hour-and-a-half. 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.. . The group is notable for the hit songs 'Come Go with Me' and 'Whispering Bells', and for having been a successful. Sullivan, who came out decades ago, spoke of one particular young man, now deceased, who was a victim of Clark's campaign. If this is what 50 is like, who cares?, Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. PHILADELPHIA (AP) _ Justine and Bob were a popular teen couple from Philadelphia who flickered on black-and-white TV screens in the late 50s, wearing the latest clothes, doing the latest dance steps, listening to the latest rock `n roll. From 1977 to September 6, 1986, the show opened and closed with Barry Manilow's rendition of "Bandstand Boogie",[7] which he originally recorded for his 1975 album Tryin' to Get the Feeling. I knew I was different early on, but being with all these [Bandstand] friends, I came to terms with my feelings. On their drive to lunch, Jim asked what was on her bucket list. 5 Who wrote the theme song to American Bandstand? Justine became a singer, moved to Las Vegas, married her bandleader, had two sons, divorced 15 years later, became a real estate agent and moved to a small town in northwest Arizona. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. He debuted in Studio 3B at WFIL-TV, near the El train stop in West Philadelphia, in 1956 when he was a 13-year-old junior high school student. . My favorite dance was the Jitterbug the last dance where people danced together. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 Ross Media Solutions, Inc. All Rights Reserved. As WFIL grew financially and the account became less important, Stewart wasn't needed and was eventually dropped from the program. Who are some famous people from American Bandstand? They got married in 2014, something both said they would never do again.