We may earn a commission from links on this page. We call him Namron and yes, if you spell his name backwards it spells, Norman. Interracial couples were not allowed on camera, so they sat on the sidelines. Years later, when Clark was asked whether any of the dancers had died of AIDS, he stated that one had, Smith recalled. Don Travarelli, from South Philly, watched American Bandstand in 1961 and spotted Bunny Gibson dancing. I knew all their names. The most comprehensive, authoritative reference source ever created for the Philadelphia region. In March of 1970 we moved to New Jersey. But Sullivan, who lives in New Jersey, did trust her, agreed to collaborate on the book and paved the way to meet and interview dozens of other regulars who once were dancing kids. 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. REGULARS Gallery 3. . Browse celebrity nostalgia on our website. I was saddened to hear about Norman. I started going out to straight clubs.. Determined, Don got Bunnys number from one of the regulars and he met his dream girl. . 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. As two or three stations grab it off, you get less clearance, therefore you get less rating, and its an endless cycle. The soft, almost cooed vocals of singer Katie Haley bring a pop veneer. Everybody knew the names of The Regulars on Bandstand. Delmont, Matthew. We moved around the floor the way our parents did in the 40s. Dancer - AB65 Regular 1 episode, 1964 Jocelyn Lane . "This man had the strongest personality that I had ever seen as a young boy," he said. Arlene Sullivan, one of the most popularAmerican Bandstandregulars, presents another perspective on the shows closeted world. Via this network, which advertised itself as WFIL-adelphia, the show reached almost six million viewers in the Delaware Valley, the nations third-largest market at the time. 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. The first book party was in November in where else? California residents do not sell my data request. A storybook ending to a tale that began with American Bandstand, albeit 40 years ago. The show stayed on the air until 1989. But to his credit and diligence, he brilliantly created his own myth, and he stuck to it for the rest of his life. Delmont, Matthew F. The Nicest Kids in Town: American Bandstand, Rock n Roll, and the Struggle for Civil Rights in 1950s Philadelphia. Conceivably, this helped promote racial equality and intercultural understanding. e9.size = "300x250"; It was horrible., Smith says he was lucky to have escaped a beating. The result of her journey is the very worthwhile "Bandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years 1956-1963," a colorful, charming and evocative book (more at bandstanddiaries.com). He kept his distance, she says. I kissed a girl, and I liked it! Sullivan, now 74 and long out of the closet, reveals in a fascinating self-published book, Bandstand Diaries billed as The Book Youve Waited Over 50 Years to Read!. In the wake of the quiz show scandal, however, a subcommittee of the House of Representatives set up hearings to determine if the practice should be made illegal. This is the interview with Arlene, Kenny, Frank and Carole about their days on American Bandstand and their experiences with the Golden Boys. Filmed in the cramped quarters of the WFIL Studios at 46th and Market Streets in Philly, Bandstand is such a part of Americana that Dick Clarks podium now resides in the Smithsonian. Clark, Dick, and Richard Robinson. 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. He was 82. . As music styles evolved, American Bandstand incorporated more emerging genres. Wed stay up all night talking about boys, said Sullivan. At least three factors are important to note regarding the last three years ofAmerican Bandstandin West Philadelphia: the 1960 payola scandal, the reality behind the shows happy faces, and developments in the pop music industry that affected the show and compelled its relocation in 1964 to Los Angeles in a reduced version. They even invented a few the Stroll, the Circle and the Chalypso. LGBT identities were hidden on the shows dancefloor. These Regulars . http://dickclark.com 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. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images) Another time, a dancer was thrown onto the subway tracks. 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. Indeed. Happy tears. EARLY BANDSTAND FASHIONS. Back in July, I received a most endearing email from Duke which told of his experiences in life. . 1 (2012): 89-113. We sent some 15,000 fan letters each week. When she heard the news of Clark's death Wednesday, Gibson immediately headed to Hollywood to be with other former Bandstand regulars at Clark's star on the Walk of Fame. 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. He said funeral services are pending. //-->. we were like a little family together, and we all had something in common, and we all stuck together, and that made it easier for us.. First called Bandstand, the program premiered October 6, 1952, hosted by Philadelphia radio DJ Bob Horn (1916-66). Mrs. Spada attended West Catholic Girls High School. 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 They were real kids from Philly, and if you watched every day, you could tell who was breaking up and who was making up. Forget that. But I didnt have any crushes on any of the straight girls. ", "I was shaking like a leaf," Colanero recalled. Unsure and fearful about her true sexual identity, Sullivan tried passing as straight. 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. While occasionally black teens were allowed into the studio, they were generally boys. One night at a party I met a girl who was one of the stars on American Bandstand I was blown away.. A funeral director in Newtown Square confirmed Monday night that Mrs. Spada had died, but declined to divulge the details before meeting with her family. Bunny and Duke met several months ago and now are married. Another component of the show was its Rate-a-Record segmentwhere people evaluated a record on a scale of 35 to 98which originated the saying, Its got a good beat and you can dance to it. For this eras music industry, American Bandstand was arguably the most significant television venue in the country. Clark was out for Clark, says Brancaccio. But he vividly recalls that one of his fellow gay dancers was thrown onto the El tracks outside the studio, and another popular regular who was gay and often danced with Sullivan was dangled over an elevator shaft.. Dick Clark gave her a committee card, which all Regulars had to have to get into the building. Handbags - Formal Wear. He was six weeks shy of his 47th birthday. "But more than worth it.". and other collectibiles . Emphasizing this sentiment, Philadelphian John Oates (of musical duo Hall & Oates) said, The show had such an impact on the music business, it set the tone and the pace for teenage style and attitude and everything else across America., Jordan McClain is Assistant Teaching Professor of Communication at Drexel University. Like nostalgia? "If you got in front of the camera too much, he'd call you back and tell you to circulate. Many subsequently became celebrities (albeit temporarily), appearing in other media, receiving fan mail, and starting fashion trends. How to Be a SuperAger in The SuperAging Revolution, Jumble for Kids and Adults: Cartoons and Twins. The kids who showed up every day (Bandstand aired every weekday afternoon for the first six years) knew all the most popular steps. Were goin hopin today Dick Clarks tight control on the sexual expression of his cast extended to a denial years after the show had ended. In February 2020, it was announced that Henderson had contracted kidney cancer and opted not to receive treatment. June Bouche on November 20, 2018 at 9:12 pm . The show also incorporated appearances by acts like Paul Anka, Frankie Avalon, and Connie Francis, who would lip-sync performances. She was one of the great stars of the Philadelphia years. We've received your submission. Anna Russo, 2800 North 7th Street, Apt. Read the review. To the left youll find original pictures of some of the Regulars. There were quite a few Regulars crossing over at that time. At age 30 in 1960, already a millionaire, Dick Clark, Americas only national deejay, stood at the center of the payola storm. Clark, known as Americas oldest teenager, knew. Thanks for contacting us. They knew what was going on, but they never asked the question., Sullivan says there were at least four other popular girl dancers on Bandstand who she quickly learned were lesbians and we all started hanging out together. 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. 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. Frani Giordano is still loved by American Bandstand fans almost 60 years after she stopped going to the show in 1960. He danced on the show until Christmas 1959. Colanero danced from 1959 to 1961. However, advertisers do to enable personalized ads. He fell in love with her. The show epitomized many important aspects of ever-evolving American popular culture: mass communication, popular music, youth culture, dance and fashion trends, as well as race and gender relationships. 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. 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. On December 27 Bunny Gibson, American Bandstand Regular from 1959-1962, married Duke Tirschel in Chattanooga , Tennessee. The dark-complexioned, wavy-haired Sullivan6bolstered American Bandstands image as a show dominated by Italian-American teens. 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.. . We were like sisters. My mother thought I was nuts. And, for me, the kids on Bandstand were all I aspired to be. Soft Science extends that legacy on its third album, Maps (Test Pattern), and adds its own twists. 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. Known as the Regulars, they became the nation's first reality stars. Brian Henderson The Executives Bill & Boyd Who died from American Bandstand? Finally, we got away and jumped over the turnstile. When Gibson moved from Philadelphia to Los Angeles in the 1980s, she paid Clark a call at his office. When he became a regular in 1959, Clark was only 30. Throughout its Philadelphia years, the show was so popular that it transformed average local-area teens into national celebrities. The TV exposure, plus the profiles some of the dancers were given in Teen magazine in the late 1950s, made them instant celebrities. 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. New York: Popular Library, 1976. 8-9; quote from unpaginated photo section. The Bop. I lived in very tough South Philadelphia, he says. In her memoir forBandstand Diaries, she writes frankly and poignantly of her youthful struggle with her emerging identity as lesbian, a sexual orientation she would fully embrace as an adult. 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. And in her early 20s, she actually tied the knot with a young man. They wrote thousands of letters. Unlike Smith, she expresses no animosity toward Clark. Particularly during the show's prime Philadelphia years (1952-63), Philadelphia youth culture became American culture through American Bandstand. Several teens belonged to a select group of taste-making gatekeepers who helped monitor dress code and admission. "He was the commander," Colanero said. I have a Champion Samoyed show dog. He is a man of God and over the years has established both karate and prison ministeries. Yes, yes, I know. They were hurting him. I was SO mixed up., Today, Arlene Sullivan lives with a partner and, despite having suffered strokes, still loves to dance. 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. "It was in the original TV studio and it was amazing," says Cutler. The 1960 amendments to the 1934 Federal Communications Act put heavy constraints on payola, requiring full public disclosure when a record company or its agent pays a broadcaster to play records on the air. The 1960 amendments criminalized any action that breached the disclosure rule. Photo taken on October 27, 1981. I went to coffee shops, but I also hung out in Rittenhouse Square and so did many of the dancers. 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 . Reply. And he has the one criteria required to attract Bunny Gibson. . What they didnt know was that Arlene and several of the other female dancers, and most of the handsome teen boys, were gay. Follow Backgrounders on Twitter Philadelphia. The parents of one kid on the show found out that he was gay . She tracked them down for the new coffee-table book, Bandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years, 1956-1963. . REGULARS Gallery 2. She never saw much of Clark outside of the studio. He still had that in him until the evening before he passed away. 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. He was 89 years old. "He wasn't no Bob Horn," Fiorentino said. 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. Connecting the Past with the Present, Building Community, Creating a Legacy, TheEncyclopedia TV Ratings - US & UK, Quiz Shows Ohio, great article, in the late 1950s i wouldnt miss watching the show for anything , I still have some of those records that bring back a lot of memories, my boyfriend and i won a lot of dance contests at Marietta high dancing to the "Mashed Potatoe" by Dee Dee Sharp and the Twist by Chubby Checker: really love your column in the Marietta Times every Monday , keep up the great articles. . Henderson remained the chief newsreader for Australia's Channel 9 until finally announcing his retirement in 2002. I went to Bandstand because I was gay and I was a misfit in my neighborhood. Home Yesteryear Nostalgia Where Are the American Bandstand Regulars Now? (Chris Walker/Chicago Tribune). As the music historian John Jackson observes, from the 1970s on American Bandstandno longer served as Clarks primary video outlet. For the next several decades, Clark would achieve high national visibility as a popular gameshow host and as the impresario of periodic primetimeAmerican Bandstandhit-song reunions (not to mention a spate of video cassettes and books) that fed on white Americas nostalgia forAmericanBandstandsdays in West Philadelphia, evoked in Barry Manilows Bandstand song with Manilows homage to The Philadelphia Way.. Its original host was fired after a DWI arrest and in July 1956 a young radio DJ took over. https://collaborativehistory.gse.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/Rock%20%27n%27%20Rock%20West%20Coast%20.jpg, https://collaborativehistory.gse.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/Bandstand%20historical%20marker%20%281%20of%201%29.jpg, https://collaborativehistory.gse.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/National%20Register%20of%20Historic%20Places.JPG, https://collaborativehistory.gse.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/Bandstand%20Regulars%20Marker.jpg, https://collaborativehistory.gse.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/Rock%20and%20Roll%20Hall%20of%20Fame.jpg, University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, American Bandstand: West Philadelphia's Seven-Year Wonder 1957-1964, American Bandstand, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Starting Local: WFIL-TV, Bob Horn, and Philadelphia's Bandstand, Going National: Dick Clark and ABC's American Bandstand, Whose Music, Whose Dances? When she heard the news of Clark's death Wednesday, Gibson immediately headed to Hollywood to be with other former Bandstand regulars at Clark's star on the Walk of Fame. His name was Dick Clark and in the next year the show was transformed from a local show to a syndicated across-the-nation program and its name was changed from "Bandstand" to "American Bandstand," airing five days a week. 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.. Television host Dick Clark presides over the set of his show American Bandstand in 1957. On each broadcast day the line of teens hoping to appear on the show snaked around the block; some were granted entry and others denied. Music by Charles Albertine He would dance on the show until early 1960. I was trying to hit them over their heads with my pocketbook, but they just wouldnt give up. 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'. In 2014, the National Enquirer interviewed Frank Brancaccio and Eddie Kelly, other series regulars. Weekday afternoons were spent with the kids in Philly, the kids on American Bandstand. Clark suffered a heart attack while at St. John's. Bunnys mom, Betty, made her promise that she would graduate. One chapter in the book, "Tributes to the Regulars," features short sketches of some of those dancers who have died. They wrote. ", Songs she liked to dance to, Mrs. Spada wrote online in June 2010, included "Little Darlin'," "Sixteen Candles," "Tears on my Pillow," "Splish Splash," "Never on Sunday," and "Let's Do The Stroll.". 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. 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.". Arguably, American Bandstand both contributed to racial integration and supported racial segregation. It was like a high school reunion and some people even had tears in their eyes. They were the squeaky-clean Kardashians of their era, and Bandstand could easily claim the title as the first reality show. Clark "was a good man, but he wasn't as friendly with us as people may think," Colanero said. Read the review. It got me out of my shell, but I learned I was a regular teenager who happened to dance on a show that unexpectedly became very popular. Dick Clark became host of the locally-produced Bandstand 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. [1] John A. Jackson,American Bandstand: Dick Clark and the Making of a Rock n Roll Empire(New York: Oxford University Press, 1997), chaps. 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. At the height of its popularity, it was watched daily by 20 million people (by contrast, "Dancing With the Stars" drew 13 million viewers weekly last season), with an estimated half of them adults; its teenage dancers got as many as 45,000 fan letters a week. The show then aired at 3 p.m., Monday through Friday, corresponding with the typical school days end. 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 Ray Smith was one of the shows secretly gay dancers. BUT he was out for Clark., Sullivan claims there were four other popular girl dancers on the show whom she knew to be lesbians, and they hung out together. He needed a group to show up every day, she says, and nobody got paid. My parents were always there for me. 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. American Bandstand (TV Series 1952-1989) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. These experienced Regulars considered an infrequent participant or a first time visitor an amateur. I wonder what they would have thought about a kid in TV Land, practicing the new steps in front of her bedroom mirror and praying to God her little brother didnt catch her at it. They werent playing baseball they were DANCING. This historical marker recalls Dick Clarks American Bandstand, which was broadcast from West Philadelphia from 1957 to 1964. He said, 'In all my days, I never thought I would ever meet you, and here you are standing right in front of me.' 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 is, Champion Polar Images Namron O My-Joy, as recorded with the AKC. But he feared that if the shows secret ever came out, Middle America would change the channel. However, the couple will shortly be returning to Los Angeles, which will be their permanent residence. I still have my HI-FI sitting against a wall between my living room and dining room. Two of the regulars, Arlene Sullivan and Ray Smith, published the volume asBandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years, 1956-1963,with Sharon Sultan Cutler as a non-Bandstand-member co-author. The marker stands opposite 4548 Market Street (not shown here), which once housed WFIL-TVand its Studio B, the original home of American Bandstand. we were like a little family together, and we all had something in common, and we all stuck together, and that made it easier for us.. One older brother survives Norman. Still, American Bandstands Philadelphia years are recalled with particularly impassioned nostalgia. While ABC wasnt in the quiz show business, a congressional subcommittee found another reason to investigate the network. Joyce Shafer talks about herself and her dance partner, Norman Kerr, Norman was one of a kind, always making people laugh. Where Are the American Bandstand Regulars Now? KENNY AND ARLENE. You want to know about the guy!