Fats Domino

Tuesday, 15 January 2013

..." width="225" height="168" class="playvideo1 gotop" onClick="activateTab('playlist1'); return false" style="display: block;" />

Open Collage in a new Window

Email the Collage

Loading suggestions ...

Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major American record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but as of 2011^[update] operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of EMI.
The Capitol Records Company was founded by songwriter Johnny Mercer in 1942, with the financial help of fellow songwriter and film producer Buddy DeSylva and the business acumen of Glenn Wallichs (1910–1971), owner of Music City, at the time the biggest record store in Los Angeles.
Johnny Mercer first suggested the idea of starting a record company while he was golfing with Harold Arlen and Bobby Sherwood. He told them, "I’ve got this idea of starting a record company. I get so tired of listening to the way everyone treats music. I keep feeling they’re selling out. And I don’t like the way artists are treated either. Bing Crosby isn’t the only one who can make records. I don’t know, I think it would be fun." By 1941, Mercer was not only an experienced songwriter, but a singer with a number of records to his name. Mercer next suggested starting a record company to his friend Glenn Wallichs while Mercer was visiting Wallichs' record store. Wallichs responded, "Fine, you run the record company and find the artists,' and Mercer added, "and you run the business."

wn.com/Capitol_Records
Dallas
Dallas ( /ˈdæləs/) is the third-largest city in the state of Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States. Divided between Collin, Dallas, Denton, Kaufman, and Rockwall counties, the city had a population of 1,197,816 in 2010, according to the United States Census Bureau.
The city is the largest economic center of the 12-county Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan area (the DFW MSA) that according to the March 2010 U.S. Census Bureau release, had a population of 6,371,773. The metroplex economy is the sixth largest in the United States, with a 2010 gross metropolitan product of $374 billion.
Dallas was founded in 1841 and was formally incorporated as a city in February 1856. The city's economy is primarily based on banking, commerce, telecommunications, computer technology, energy, healthcare and medical research, transportation and logistics. The city is home to the third largest concentration of Fortune 500 companies in the nation. Located in North Texas and a major city in the American South, Dallas is the main core of the largest inland metropolitan area in the United States that lacks any navigable link to the sea.

wn.com/Dallas
Delta Music Museum
The Delta Music Museum is a museum located in Ferriday, Louisiana. It offers exhibits on sixteen rock and roll and blues musicians from the Mississippi River delta country. The museum opened with a grant from the State of Louisiana and is operated by local volunteers. There is no admission charge; the facility relies on the sales of souvenirs. Visitors from all over the United States have signed the guestbook since the museum opened in the spring of 2002. A scaled-down version of the museum, called simply the Ferriday Museum, had begun operations at another location in 1995.
There are also exhibits on two well-known former Ferriday personalities not affiliated with the music industry: former CBS and ABC commentator Howard K. Smith (1914–2002) and Ann Boyar Warner (1908–1990), second wife of Warner Brothers studio mogul Jack Warner. There is a mural drawn in 1991 presented by Monterey High School in Concordia Parish.
The first exhibit one encounters in the museum is a sculpture of the three Ferriday cousins at the piano: singers Mickey Gilley of Branson, Missouri, Jerry Lee Lewis and Jimmy Lee Swaggart, the last an evangelist based in Baton Rouge. Other honorees are blues trombonist Leon "Pee Wee" Whittaker, a native of Newellton in northern Tensas Parish.

wn.com/Delta_Music_Museum
Louisiana
Louisiana (ⁱ/luːˌiːziˈænə/ or ⁱ/ˌluːziˈænə/; French: État de Louisiane, [lwizjan] ( listen); Louisiana Creole: Léta de la Lwizyàn) is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Louisiana is the 31st most extensive and the 25th most populous of the 50 United States. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties. The largest parish by population is East Baton Rouge Parish, and the largest by land area is Cameron Parish.
Much of the state was formed from sediment washed down the Mississippi River, leaving enormous deltas and vast areas of coastal marsh and swamp. These contain a rich southern biota; typical examples include birds such as ibis and egrets. There are also many species of tree frogs, and fish such as sturgeon and paddlefish. In more elevated areas, fire is a natural process in the landscape, and has produced extensive areas of longleaf pine forest and wet savannas. These support an exceptionally large number of plant species including many species of orchids and carnivorus plants.

wn.com/Louisiana
New Orleans
New Orleans ( /nuː ˈɔrliənz/ or /ˈnuː ɔrˈliːnz/, locally /nuː ˈɔrlənz/ or /ˈnɔrlənz/; French: La Nouvelle-Orléans [la nuvɛlɔʁleɑ̃] ( listen)) is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The population of the city proper was 343,829 as of the 2010 U.S. Census. The New Orleans metropolitan area (New Orleans–Metairie–Kenner Metropolitan Statistical Area) had a population of 1,167,764 in 2010 and was the 46th largest in the United States. The New Orleans–Metairie–Bogalusa Combined Statistical Area, a larger trading area, had a 2010 population of 1,214,932.
The city is named after Philippe d'Orléans, Duke of Orléans, Regent of France, and is well known for its distinct French Creole architecture, as well as its cross-cultural and multilingual heritage. New Orleans is also famous for its cuisine, music (particularly as the birthplace of jazz), and its annual celebrations and festivals, most notably Mardi Gras. The city is often referred to as the "most unique" in America.

wn.com/New_Orleans
Texas
Texas (ⁱ/ˈtɛksəs/) (Alibamu: Teksi ) is the second most populous and the second most extensive of the 50 United States, and the most extensive state of the 48 contiguous United States. The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in East Texas. Located in the South Central United States, Texas shares an international border with the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the south, and borders the US states of New Mexico to the west, Oklahoma to the north, Arkansas to the northeast, and Louisiana to the east. Texas has an area of 268,820 square miles (696,200 km²), and a growing population of 25.7 million residents.
During the Spanish colonial rule, the area was officially known as the Nuevo Reino de Filipinas: La Provincia de Texas. Antonio Margil de Jesús was known to be the first person to use the name in a letter to the Viceroy of Mexico in July 20, 1716. The name was not popularly used in daily speech but often appeared in legal documents until the end of the 1800s.

wn.com/Texas
United States
The United States of America (commonly abbreviated to the United States, the U.S., the USA, America, and the States) is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. The state of Alaska is in the northwest of the continent, with Canada to the east and Russia to the west, across the Bering Strait. The state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The country also possesses several territories in the Pacific and Caribbean.
At 3.79 million square miles (9.83 million km²) and with over 312 million people, the United States is the third or fourth largest country by total area, and the third largest by both land area and population. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many countries. The U.S. economy is the world's largest national economy, with an estimated 2011 GDP of $15.1 trillion (22% of nominal global GDP and over 19% of global GDP at purchasing-power parity). Per capita income is the world's sixth-highest.

wn.com/United_States
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical style. It has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams. When Thomas Jefferson moved into the house in 1801, he (with architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe) expanded the building outward, creating two colonnades that were meant to conceal stables and storage.
In 1814, during the War of 1812, the mansion was set ablaze by the British Army in the Burning of Washington, destroying the interior and charring much of the exterior. Reconstruction began almost immediately, and President James Monroe moved into the partially reconstructed house in October 1817. Construction continued with the addition of the South Portico in 1824 and the North in 1829. Because of crowding within the executive mansion itself, President Theodore Roosevelt had all work offices relocated to the newly constructed West Wing in 1901. Eight years later, President William Howard Taft expanded the West Wing and created the first Oval Office which was eventually moved as the section was expanded. The third-floor attic was converted to living quarters in 1927 by augmenting the existing hip roof with long shed dormers. A newly constructed East Wing was used as a reception area for social events; Jefferson's colonnades connected the new wings. East Wing alterations were completed in 1946, creating additional office space. By 1948, the house's load-bearing exterior walls and internal wood beams were found to be close to failure. Under Harry S. Truman, the interior rooms were completely dismantled and a new internal load-bearing steel frame constructed inside the walls. Once this work was completed, the interior rooms were rebuilt.

wn.com/White_House

Al Neuharth
Allen Harold "Al" Neuharth (born March 22, 1924, Eureka, South Dakota) is an American businessman, author, and columnist. He is the founder of USA Today, The Freedom Forum, and its Newseum.
Neuharth’s parents were Daniel J. and Christina (who married on January 11, 1916). Daniel died when Allen was two. Allen needed to help his family survive the Great Depression. He worked on his grandfather’s farm.^{[clarification needed]} As a youngster, he also delivered the Minneapolis Tribune but he gave that up for a better paying job in the meat industry, sweeping up in the meat plants and slaughtering animals. Neuharth graduated high school from Alpena High School, Alpena, SD, where he was editor of the school's newspaper, the Alpena Journal. At the age of 19, Neuharth served in the Army during World War II. As a member of the 86th Infantry Division, Neuharth was deployed to France, Germany and the Philippines.
After the war, Neuharth attended the University of South Dakota in Vermillion, where he edited the school newspaper, The Volante. He maintains an affiliation with the university and has an office in the Contemporary Media and Journalism building, The Al Neuharth Media Center. He offers a scholarship called "The Al Neuharth Free Spirit Scholarship" honoring graduating high school students who exemplify the qualities of a "free spirit" and aim to pursue a career in journalism.

wn.com/Al_Neuharth
Allen Toussaint
Allen Toussaint (IPA: /ˈtuːseɪnt/; born January 14, 1938) is an American musician, composer, record producer, and influential figure in New Orleans R&B.
Many of Toussaint's songs have become familiar through numerous cover versions, including "Working in the Coalmine", "Ride Your Pony", "Fortune Teller", "Play Something Sweet (Brickyard Blues)", "Southern Nights," "Everything I Do Gonna Be Funky", "I'll Take a Melody" and "Mother-in-Law".
Toussaint grew up in a shotgun house in the New Orleans neighborhood of Gert Town, where his mother welcomed and fed all manner of musicians as they practiced and recorded with her son. After a lucky break at age 17 in which he stood in for Huey Smith at a performance with Earl King's band in Prichard, Alabama, Toussaint was introduced to a group of local musicians who performed regularly at a night club on LaSalle street Uptown; they were known as the Dew Drop Set. Initially, he recorded for RCA Victor as Al Tousan and recorded an album of instrumentals, including the song "Java", which years later became a big hit for Al Hirt (also on RCA).

wn.com/Allen_Toussaint
Alvin Tyler
Alvin "Red" Tyler (December 5, 1925 – April 3, 1998) was an American R&B and neo-bop jazz saxophonist and arranger.
Born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, Tyler grew up listening to the sound of New Orleans marching bands. He began playing saxophone when in the Navy, and by 1950 had joined Dave Bartholomew’s R&B band. He also played jazz in club jam sessions. He made his recording debut on Fats Domino’s “The Fat Man” and went on to play on sessions for Little Richard, Lloyd Price, Aaron Neville, Lee Dorsey, Dr. John, and numerous other rhythm and blues artists.
From the mid-1960s he worked as a liquor salesman. He also began leading his own jazz band in clubs and hotel residencies in New Orleans. While the baritone saxophone had been his primary instrument during his years as a studio musician, his jazz playing gradually came to rely much more on tenor saxophone. In the mid-1980s he recorded two jazz albums, Graciously and Heritage, with vocals by Johnny Adams and Germaine Bazzle, for Rounder Records.

wn.com/Alvin_Tyler
Art Neville
Art Neville (born December 17, 1937) is an American singer and keyboardist from New Orleans.
Neville is a part of one of the most famous musical families of New Orleans, the Neville Brothers. He was also a founding member of The Meters, and also continues to play with the spinoff group the Funky Meters along with his son Ian on guitar.
As a session musician, he has played on recordings by many notable artists from New Orleans and elsewhere, including Labelle (on "Lady Marmalade"), Paul McCartney, Lee Dorsey, Dr. John and Professor Longhair. Art's daughter, Arthel Neville is a journalist and television personality.

wn.com/Art_Neville
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe III; August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation. Clinton has been described as a New Democrat. Many of his policies have been attributed to a centrist Third Way philosophy of governance.
Born and raised in Arkansas, Clinton became both a student leader and a skilled musician. He is an alumnus of Georgetown University where he was Phi Beta Kappa and earned a Rhodes Scholarship to attend the University of Oxford. He is married to Hillary Rodham Clinton, who has served as the United States Secretary of State since 2009 and was a Senator from New York from 2001 to 2009. Both Clintons received law degrees from Yale Law School, where they met and began dating. As Governor of Arkansas, Clinton overhauled the state's education system, and served as Chair of the National Governors Association.

wn.com/Bill_Clinton
Bill Justis
William Everett "Bill" Justis Jr. (October 14, 1926 – July 15, 1982) was an American pioneer rock and roll musician, composer, and musical arranger, best known for his 1957 Grammy Hall of Fame song, "Raunchy."
Justis was born in Birmingham, Alabama but grew up in Memphis, Tennessee and studied music at Christian Brothers College (high school department) and Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana. A trumpet and saxophone player, while in university he performed with local jazz and dance bands. He returned home to Memphis in 1954 and was eventually taken on by Sam Phillips at Sun Records where he recorded music for himself as well as arranged the music for Sun artists such as Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, Johnny Cash and Charlie Rich. Released in November 1957, his song "Raunchy" was the first rock and roll instrumental hit, and its popularity was such that it reached #2 on the American Billboard chart and got to #1 on the Australian charts. It reached #11 in the UK Singles Chart. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. Justis had one other significant hit record, "College Man", that went to U.S. #42.

wn.com/Bill_Justis
Bobby Charles
Bobby Charles (February 21, 1938 – January 14, 2010) was an American singer-songwriter.
An ethnic Cajun, Charles was born as Robert Charles Guidry in Abbeville, Louisiana and grew up listening to Cajun music and the country and western music of Hank Williams. At the age of 15, he heard a performance by Fats Domino, an event that "changed my life forever," he recalled.
Charles helped to pioneer the south Louisiana musical genre known as swamp pop. His compositions include the hits "See You Later, Alligator", which he initially recorded himself as "Later Alligator", but which is best known from the cover version by Bill Haley & His Comets; and "Walking to New Orleans", written for Fats Domino. His songwriting record in the UK Singles Chart was seven hit, including three Top Tens with 75 weeks spent on the chart.^{[citation needed]}
"(I Don't Know Why) But I Do" was an early 1960s song that Charles composed, which Clarence "Frogman" Henry had a major hit with, and which was on the soundtrack to the 1994 film, Forrest Gump. His composition "Why Are People Like That?" was on the soundtrack to the 1998 film Home Fries.

wn.com/Bobby_Charles
Cosimo Matassa
Cosimo Matassa (born 13 April 1926 in New Orleans) is an Italian-American recording engineer and studio owner responsible for many R&B and early rock and roll recordings.
At the age of 18, Matassa opened the J&M Recording Studio at the back of his family’s shop on Rampart Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans in 1945. In 1955, he moved to the larger Cosimo Recording Studio.
As an engineer and proprietor, he was crucial to the development of the R&B, rock and soul sound of the 1950s and '60s (often working with producers Dave Bartholomew and Allen Toussaint), and recorded many hits - including Fats Domino’s "The Fat Man" (a contender for the first rock and roll record), Little Richard's "Tutti Frutti", and records by Ray Charles, Lee Dorsey, Dr John, Smiley Lewis, Bobby Mitchell, Tommy Ridgley, the Spiders and many others. He was responsible for developing what became known as the "New Orleans Sound", with strong drums, heavy guitar and bass, light piano, light horn sound and a strong vocal lead.

wn.com/Cosimo_Matassa
Dave Bartholomew
Dave Bartholomew (born December 24, 1920, Edgard, Louisiana) is a musician, band leader, composer and arranger, prominent in the music of New Orleans throughout the second half of the 20th century. His band consisted of himself, drummers Terces LaBune and Randy Quinson and guitarists Larry Sands and Samuel Kane.
Bartholomew has been active in many musical genres, including rhythm and blues, big band, swing music, rock and roll, New Orleans jazz and Dixieland. Although many musicians have recorded Bartholomew's songs, his partnership with Fats Domino produced some of his greatest successes. In the mid 1950s they wrote more than forty hits for Imperial Records, including two songs that reached Number One on the Billboard R&B chart "Goin' Home" and "Ain't That a Shame". He is a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and The Louisiana Music Hall of Fame.
He first learned to play the tuba but the trumpet later became his main instrument. His professional career began in New Orleans, when he put together a group that included Alvin 'Red' Tyler, Earl Palmer and Lee Allen.

wn.com/Dave_Bartholomew
David Egan
Reuben David Egan (b. 1954) is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist based in Lafayette, Louisiana, who composes, records, and performs rock, Cajun-rock, soul, and blues.

wn.com/David_Egan
Dick Clark
Richard Wagstaff "Dick" Clark (November 30, 1929 – April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, best known for hosting American television's longest-running variety show, American Bandstand, from 1957 to 1987. He also hosted the game show Pyramid and Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve, which transmitted Times Square's New Year's Eve celebrations worldwide.
As host of American Bandstand, with his strong communication skills, Clark was a "primary force in legitimizing rock and roll," not only to teenagers, but also to America's adult population. The show gave many new music artists their first exposure to national audiences, including Ike and Tina Turner, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, Stevie Wonder, Talking Heads and Simon & Garfunkel. His shows were among the first where blacks and whites performed on the same stage and the live audience seating was desegregated. Singer Paul Anka claimed that Bandstand was responsible for creating a "youth culture." Due to his youthful appearance, Clark was often referred to as "America's oldest teenager".

wn.com/Dick_Clark
Earl Palmer
Earl Cyril Palmer (October 25, 1924 – September 19, 2008) was an American rock & roll and rhythm and blues drummer, and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Palmer played on many recording sessions, including Little Richard's first several albums and Tom Waits' 1978 album Blue Valentine. According to one obituary, "his list of credits read like a Who's Who of American popular music of the last 60 years".
Born into a showbusiness family in New Orleans and raised in the Tremé district, Palmer started his career at five as a tap dancer, joining his mother and aunt on the black vaudeville circuit in its twilight and touring the country extensively with Ida Cox's Darktown Scandals Review. His father was thought to be local pianist and bandleader Walter "Fats" Pichon.
Palmer served in the United States Army during World War II, eventually being posted in the European Theatre. His biographer states,
After the war ended he studied piano and percussion at the Gruenwald School of Music in New Orleans, where he also learned to read music. He started drumming with the Dave Bartholomew Band in the late 1940s. Palmer was known for playing on New Orleans recording sessions, including Fats Domino's "The Fat Man", "I'm Walkin" (and all the rest of Domino's hits), "Tipitina" by Professor Longhair, "Tutti Frutti" by Little Richard (and most of Richard's hits), "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" by Lloyd Price, and "I Hear You Knockin'" by Smiley Lewis.

wn.com/Earl_Palmer
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on 25 March 1947) is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor. He has worked with lyricist Bernie Taupin as his songwriter partner since 1967; they have collaborated on more than 30 albums to date.
In his four-decade career John has sold more than 250 million records, making him one of the most successful artists of all time. His single "Candle in the Wind 1997" has sold over 33 million copies worldwide, and is the best selling single in Billboard history. He has more than 50 Top 40 hits, including seven consecutive No. 1 US albums, 56 Top 40 singles, 16 Top 10, four No. 2 hits, and nine No. 1 hits. He has won six Grammy Awards, four Brit Awards, an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award and a Tony Award. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked him Number 49 on its list of the 100 greatest artists of all time.
John was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Having been named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1996, John received a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II for "services to music and charitable services" in 1998.

wn.com/Elton_John
Fats Domino
Antoine Dominique "Fats" Domino Jr. (born February 26, 1928) is an American R&B and rock and roll pianist and singer-songwriter. He was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana. Domino was French Creole and Creole was his first language. Domino was delivered at home by his midwife grandmother who was born into enslavement in 1857. Like most families in the Lower Ninth Ward, Domino's family were new arrivals from the sugar and cotton plantations. His father was a well known violinist, and Domino was inspired to play himself. He eventually learned from his Uncle, jazz guitarist Harrison Verrett. Fats released five Gold (million selling) records before 1955. Domino also had 35 Top 40 American Hits and has a music style based on traditional R&B ensembles or Bass, Piano, Electric Guitar, Drums, and Saxophone.
Domino first attracted national attention with "The Fat Man" in 1949 on Imperial Records. This song is an early rock and roll record, featuring a rolling piano and Domino doing "wah-wah" vocalizing over a strong back beat. "The Fat Man" sold one million copies by 1953. Fats Domino released a series of hit songs with producer and co-writer Dave Bartholomew, saxophonists Herbert Hardesty and Alvin "Red" Tyler and drummer Earl Palmer. Other notable and long-standing musicians in Domino's band were saxophonists Reggie Houston, Lee Allen, and Fred Kemp, Domino's trusted bandleader. Domino finally crossed into the pop mainstream with "Ain't That A Shame" (1955), which hit the Top Ten, though Pat Boone characteristically hit #1 with a milder cover of the song that received wider radio airplay in a racially-segregated era. Domino eventually had 37 Top 40 singles.

wn.com/Fats_Domino
Felton Jarvis
Felton Jarvis, (born November 16, 1934 – died January 3, 1981), produced most of Elvis Presley's recordings from 1966-1977. He also released several singles in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Jarvis also produced John Hartford's first six albums.Tommy Roe, Michael Nesmith, Fats Domino, Jimmy Dean, Fess Parker, Charley Pride, Carl Perkins, Skeeter Davis, Willie Nelson, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Maria Dallas.

wn.com/Felton_Jarvis
Gene Autry
Orvon Grover Autry (September 29, 1907 – October 2, 1998), better known as Gene Autry, was an American performer who gained fame as a singing cowboy on the radio, in movies, and on television for more than three decades beginning in the early 1930s. Autry was also owner of a television station, several radio stations in Southern California, and the Los Angeles/California Angels Major League Baseball team from 1961 to 1997.
From 1934 to 1959, Autry appeared in 94 films and 91 episodes of The Gene Autry Show television series. During the 1930s and 1940s, he personified the straight-shooting hero—honest, brave, and true—and profoundly touched the lives of millions of Americans. Autry was also one of the most important figures in the history of country music, considered the second major influential artist of the genre's development after Jimmy Rogers. His singing cowboy movies were the first vehicle to carry country music to a national audience. In addition to his signature song, "Back in the Saddle Again", Autry is still remembered for his Christmas holiday songs, "Here Comes Santa Claus", which he wrote, "Frosty the Snowman", and his biggest hit, "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer".

wn.com/Gene_Autry
Humphrey Lyttelton
Humphrey Richard Adeane Lyttelton (23 May 1921 – 25 April 2008), also known as Humph, was an English jazz musician and broadcaster, and chairman of the BBC radio comedy programme I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue. He was a cousin of the 10th Viscount Cobham and a great-nephew of the politician and sportsman Alfred Lyttelton, who was the first man to represent England at both football and cricket.
Lyttelton was born at Eton College, Buckinghamshire, where his father, George William Lyttelton (second son of the 8th Viscount Cobham), was a house master. (As a male-line descendant of Charles Lyttelton, Lyttelton was in remainder to both the Viscountcy Cobham and the Barony of Lyttelton.) From Sunningdale Preparatory School, Lyttelton duly progressed to Eton College. At Eton, Lyttelton fagged for Lord Carrington and formed his love of jazz. He was inspired by the trumpeters Louis Armstrong and Nat Gonella. He taught himself the instrument, and formed a quartet at the school in 1936 that included the future journalist Ludovic Kennedy on drums.

wn.com/Humphrey_Lyttelton
Irma Thomas
Irma Thomas (born February 18, 1941,Ponchatoula, Louisiana, United States) is an American singer from New Orleans. She is known as the "Soul Queen of New Orleans".
Thomas is a contemporary of Aretha Franklin and Etta James, but never experienced their level of commercial success; still, she has a large cult following among soul aficionados. In 2007, she won the Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues Album for After the Rain, her first Grammy in a career spanning over 50 years.
Born Irma Lee, as a teen she sang with a Baptist church choir, auditioning for Specialty Records as a 13-year old. By the age of 19 she had been married twice and had four children. Keeping her second ex-husband's surname, she worked as a waitress in New Orleans, occasionally singing with bandleader Tommy Ridgley, who helped her land a record deal with the local Ron label. Her first single, "(You Can Have My Husband but) Don't Mess with My Man," was released in spring 1960, and reached number 22 on the Billboard R&B chart.

wn.com/Irma_Thomas
JaMarcus Russell
JaMarcus Trenell Russell (born August 9, 1985) is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. Russell played college football for the LSU Tigers where he finished 21–4 as a starter and was named MVP of the 2007 Sugar Bowl. The Oakland Raiders selected Russell with the first overall pick of the 2007 NFL Draft. Russell held out until the Raiders signed him to a contract worth $61 million with $32 million guaranteed. In three seasons with the Raiders, Russell finished 7–18 as a starter before his release on May 6, 2010.
Russell was born in Mobile, Alabama and attended Lillie B. Williamson High School. For all four years under head coach Bobby Parrish, Russell started and never missed a football game. In his freshman year, Russell completed 180-of-324 passes for 2,683 yards and 20 touchdowns as Williamson reached the state championship game. By the next season, Russell had grown to six-foot-three and 185 pounds, had received his first recruiting letters and was becoming more adept with the playbook. Russell passed for 2,616 yards and 20 touchdowns during his sophomore year and led the team to the semifinals.

wn.com/JaMarcus_Russell
James Booker
James Carroll Booker III (December 17, 1939 - November 8, 1983) was a New Orleans rhythm and blues musician born in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Booker's unique style combined rhythm and blues with jazz standards.
Booker was the son and grandson of Baptist ministers, both of whom played the piano. He spent most of his childhood on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, where his father pastored a church. Booker received a saxophone as a gift from his mother, but he demonstrated a stronger interest in the keyboard. He first played organ in his father's churches.
After returning to New Orleans in his early adolescence, Booker attended the Xavier Academy Preparatory School. He learned some elements of his keyboard style from Tuts Washington and Edward Frank. Booker was highly skilled in classical music and played Bach and Chopin, among other composers. He also mastered and memorized solos by Erroll Garner, and Liberace. His thorough background in piano literature may have enabled his original and virtuosic interpretations of jazz and other popular music. These performances combined elements of stride, blues, gospel and Latin piano styles.

wn.com/James_Booker
Joe Meek
Robert George "Joe" Meek (5 April 1929 Newent, Gloucestershire – 3 February 1967 in London) was a pioneering English record producer and songwriter.
His most famous work was The Tornados' hit "Telstar" in 1962, which became the first record by a British group to hit #1 in the US Hot 100. It also spent five weeks atop the UK singles chart, with Meek receiving an Ivor Novello Award for this production as the "Best-Selling A-Side" of 1962.
Meek's other notable hit productions include "Don't You Rock Me Daddy-O" and "Cumberland Gap" by Lonnie Donegan (as engineer), "Johnny Remember Me" by John Leyton, "Just Like Eddie" by Heinz, "Angela Jones" by Michael Cox, "Have I the Right?" by The Honeycombs, and "Tribute to Buddy Holly" by Mike Berry. Meek's concept album I Hear a New World is regarded as a watershed in modern music for its innovative use of electronic sounds.
Joe Meek was also producing music for films, most notably Live It Up! (US title Sing and Swing), a 1963 pop music film starring Heinz Burt, David Hemmings and Steve Marriott, also featuring Gene Vincent, Jenny Moss, The Outlaws, Kim Roberts, Kenny Ball, Patsy Ann Noble and others. Meek wrote most of the songs and incidental music, much of which was recorded by The Saints and produced by Meek.

wn.com/Joe_Meek
John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon, MBE (9 October 1940 – 8 December 1980) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founder members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Together with Paul McCartney, he formed one of the most celebrated songwriting partnerships of the 20th century.
Born and raised in Liverpool, Lennon became involved as a teenager in the skiffle craze; his first band, The Quarrymen, evolved into The Beatles in 1960. As the group disintegrated towards the end of the decade, Lennon embarked on a solo career that produced the critically acclaimed albums John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band and Imagine, and iconic songs such as "Give Peace a Chance" and "Imagine". After his marriage to Yoko Ono in 1969, he changed his name to John Ono Lennon. Lennon disengaged himself from the music business in 1975 to devote time to raising his infant son Sean, but re-emerged with Ono in 1980 with the new album Double Fantasy. He was murdered three weeks after its release.

wn.com/John_Lennon
Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana.
Coming to prominence in the 1920s as an "inventive" cornet and trumpet player, Armstrong was a foundational influence in jazz, shifting the music's focus from collective improvisation to solo performance. With his instantly recognizable deep and distinctive gravelly voice, Armstrong was also an influential singer, demonstrating great dexterity as an improviser, bending the lyrics and melody of a song for expressive purposes. He was also greatly skilled at scat singing (vocalizing using sounds and syllables instead of actual lyrics).
Renowned for his charismatic stage presence and voice almost as much as for his trumpet-playing, Armstrong's influence extends well beyond jazz music, and by the end of his career in the 1960s, he was widely regarded as a profound influence on popular music in general. Armstrong was one of the first truly popular African-American entertainers to "cross over," whose skin-color was secondary to his music in an America that was severely racially divided. It allowed him socially acceptable access to the upper echelons of American society that were highly restricted for a black man. While he rarely publicly politicized his race, often to the dismay of fellow African-Americans, he was privately a strong supporter of the Civil Rights movement in America.^{[citation needed]}

wn.com/Louis_Armstrong
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young,OC,OM (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation.
Young began performing as a solo artist in Canada in 1960, before moving to California in 1966, where he co-founded the band Buffalo Springfield along with Stephen Stills and Richie Furay, and later joined Crosby, Stills & Nash as a fourth member in 1969. He forged a successful and acclaimed solo career, releasing his first album in 1968; his career has since spanned over 40 years and 34 studio albums, with a continual and uncompromising exploration of musical styles. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame website describes Young as "one of rock and roll’s greatest songwriters and performers". He has been inducted into the Hall of Fame twice: first as a solo artist in 1995, and second as a member of Buffalo Springfield in 1997.
Young's work is characterized by his distinctive guitar work, deeply personal lyrics and signature alto or high tenor singing voice. Although he accompanies himself on several different instruments, including piano and harmonica, his idiosyncratic electric and clawhammer acoustic guitar playing are the defining characteristics of a varyingly ragged and melodic sound. While Young has experimented with differing music styles, including swing and electronic music throughout a varied career, his best known work usually falls into two primary styles: acoustic (folk and country rock) and electric (amplified hard rock, very often in collaboration with the band Crazy Horse). Young has also adopted elements from newer styles such as alternative rock and grunge. His influence on the latter caused some to dub him the "Godfather of Grunge".

wn.com/Neil_Young
Norah Jones
Norah Jones (born Geethali Norah Jones Shankar; March 30, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter, pianist, and actress. She is the daughter of Indian sitar player Ravi Shankar. She is also the paternal half-sister of Anoushka Shankar.
In 2002, she launched her solo music career with the release of the commercially successful and critically acclaimed album Come Away With Me, a fusion of jazz, pop, and country music, which was certified a diamond album in 2002, selling over 20 million copies. The record earned Jones five Grammy Awards, including the Album of the Year, Record of the Year, and Best New Artist. Her subsequent studio albums, Feels Like Home, released in 2004, Not Too Late, released in 2007, the same year she made her film debut in My Blueberry Nights, and her 2009 release The Fall all gained Platinum status after selling over a million copies and were generally well received by critics. Jones' fifth studio album, Little Broken Hearts was released on April 27, 2012.
Jones has won nine Grammy Awards and was Billboard magazine's 60th-best-selling music artist of the 2000–2009 decade. Throughout her career, Jones has won numerous awards and has sold over 40 million albums worldwide.Billboard named her the top jazz artist of the 2000–2009 decade, establishing herself as one of the best-selling artists of her time.

wn.com/Norah_Jones
Pat Boone
Charles Eugene "Pat" Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer, actor and writer. He was a successful pop singer in the United States during the 1950s and early 1960s. Among his hit songs were cover versions of black R&B artists' songs (when parts of the country were segregated). He sold over 45 million albums, had 38 Top 40 hits and appeared in more than 12 Hollywood movies. Boone's talent as a singer and actor, combined with his old-fashioned values, contributed to his popularity in the early rock and roll era.
According to Billboard, Boone was the second biggest charting artist of the late 1950s, behind only Elvis Presley but ahead of Ricky Nelson and The Platters, and was ranked at No. 9—behind The Rolling Stones and Paul McCartney but ahead of artists such as Aretha Franklin and The Beach Boys—in its listing of the Top 100 Top 40 Artists 1955–1995. Boone still holds the Billboard record for spending 220 consecutive weeks on the charts with one or more songs each week.
At the age of twenty-three, he began hosting a half-hour ABC variety television series, The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom, which aired for 115 episodes (1957–1960). Many musical performers, including Edie Adams, Andy Williams, Pearl Bailey and Johnny Mathis made appearances on the show. His cover versions of rhythm and blues hits had a noticeable effect on the development of the broad popularity of rock and roll. During his tours in the 1950s, Elvis Presley was one of his opening acts.

wn.com/Pat_Boone
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM (born 18 June 1942) is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of the Beatles (1960–1970) and Wings (1971–1981), he has been described by Guinness World Records as "The Most Successful Composer and Recording Artist of All Time", with 60 gold discs and sales of over 100 million albums and 100 million singles. With John Lennon, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr, he gained worldwide fame as a member of the Beatles, and with Lennon formed one of the most celebrated songwriting partnerships of the 20th century. After leaving the Beatles, he began a solo career and later formed the band Wings with his first wife, Linda Eastman, and singer-songwriter Denny Laine.
According to the BBC, his Beatles song "Yesterday" has been covered by over 2,200 artists—more than any other song. Wings' 1977 release, "Mull of Kintyre", became one of the best-selling singles ever in the UK, and he is "the most successful songwriter" in UK chart history, according to Guinness. As a songwriter or co-writer, he is included on thirty-one number one titles on the Billboard Hot 100, and as of 2012 he has sold over 15.5 million RIAA certified units in the United States.

wn.com/Paul_McCartney
Peter Morton
Peter Morton (born Chicago in 1947) was the co-founder with Isaac Tigrett of the Hard Rock Café, a chain of casual dining restaurants. His father is Arnie Morton, founder of Morton's, and his son is Harry Morton, founder of Pink Taco restaurants. His former stepdaughter was Domino Harvey, who was the subject of the October 2005 film Domino starring Keira Knightley and directed by Tony Scott. Morton is a graduate of the University of Denver, where he was a member of the Phi Sigma Delta fraternity.
Morton's first Hard Rock Cafe opened near Hyde Park Corner in London, England. The chain began global expansion in 1982 when the two agreed to develop their own cafes across the world. Morton (Hard Rock America) opened Hard Rocks in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, and Houston, Las Vegas; San Diego, La Jolla, and Newport Beach, California; Sydney and Melbourne, Australia; Honolulu and Maui, Hawaii; among many others.
He is the godfather of film producer Matthew Vaughn, and introduced him to a Hard Rock Cafe tour. It was through Peter, that Matthew was introduced to Guy Ritchie and some well known aristocrats in the London area.

wn.com/Peter_Morton
Ray Nagin
Clarence Ray Nagin, Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American consultant, entrepreneur, author, and public speaker. He served as mayor of New Orleans, Louisiana, United States from 2002 to 2010. Nagin gained international note in 2005 in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, a historic, catastrophic disaster which devastated the New Orleans area.
Nagin was first elected on March 2, 2002 and received significant crossover vote from just about every segment of the population. He was re-elected in 2006 even though the election was held with at least two-thirds of New Orleans citizens still displaced after the storm hit. He was term limited by law and left office on May 3, 2010.
After leaving office, Nagin founded CRN Initiatives LLC, a firm that focuses on Emergency Preparedness, Green Energy product development, Publishing and Public Speaking. He has written and published his first book, Katrina Secrets: Storms after the Storms which gives a first-hand account on how New Orleans overcame unimaginable devastation.

wn.com/Ray_Nagin
Reggie Houston
Reggie Houston (born July 2, 1947) is an American saxophonist.
Houston was born in New Orleans, Louisiana to Ralph Houston, a pianist and acoustic bassist, and Margarete Houston, who was both an educator and social activist. At the age of 10 Reggie Houston began studying the saxophone. His first professional gig came at the age of 12 when he joined the Batiste family band, The Gladiators, widely considered to be one of the pioneering bands of funk.
Houston continued to perform with The Gladiators throughout high school and while home on holiday from his undergraduate studies at Southern University and Xavier University University of Louisiana. Although performing jazz, blues and funk throughout New Orleans during this time, it was forbidden to practice these musical styles in any African American university in the United States.
After returning from fighting in the Vietnam War, Houston learned that his former Southern University music professor, Alvin Batiste had just begun a jazz program at Southern University. Houston made a phone call to Southern University and one day later was studying with Alvin Batiste in the country's first university jazz program . (Years later Houston returned to Southern to reunite with the former students of that class, and to be inducted into The Music Hall of Fame at Southern University where Alvin Batiste worked until his death in 2007.)

wn.com/Reggie_Houston
Richard Perry
Richard Perry (born June 18, 1942) is an American music producer. Perry began as a performer in his adolescence, but shifted gears after graduating college and rose through the late 1960s and early 1970s to become a highly successful and popular record producer with over a dozen gold records to his credit by 1982. From 1978 to 1983, he ran his own record label, Planet Records, but continued after its sale to RCA as an independent producer. With hit records stretching from the 1960s through the 2000s, Perry's more successful modern releases includes albums by Rod Stewart and Carly Simon.
Born in Brooklyn, New York City, Perry came to his interest in rock music young. In 1955, at the age of 12, he attended the first of Alan Freed's live rock shows at the Paramount Theatre. He began his career in rock music as a local performer during his adolescence. After graduating from the University of Michigan, he shifted into songwriting briefly, collaborating with Kenny Vance. Perry was launched on his career as a producer, with early projects including Captain Beefheart's debut Safe as Milk and Fats Domino's Fats Is Back. In 1967, Perry moved to Los Angeles and in 1968 produced God Bless Tiny Tim, the debut album of Reprise Records artist Tiny Tim. The album was Perry's first charting hit, reaching #7 on Billboard magazine's Pop Albums chart.

wn.com/Richard_Perry
Warren Storm
A talented drummer and vocalist, Warren Storm is a pioneer of the musical genre known as swamp pop, a combination of rhythm and blues, country and western, and Cajun music and black Creole music.
Born Warren Schexnider on February 18, 1937, in Abbeville, Louisiana, Storm learned to play drums and guitar from his father, a Cajun musician, and in the early 1950s Storm began to perform publicly with Larry Brasso and the Rhythmaires.
Around this time he befriended fellow Abbeville musician Bobby Charles, and the two would travel to New Orleans to hear black rhythm and blues artists in the local nightclubs. These visits to New Orleans greatly influenced Storm's musical tastes and his own drumming style. Storm cites New Orleans rhythm and blues musician Charlie "Hungry" Williams as a major drumming influence.
In 1956 Storm founded his own rhythm and blues/early rock and roll group, and in 1958 he began recording for Crowley, Louisiana, record producer J. D. "Jay" Miller. Miller convinced Nasco records of Nashville to release a 45 RPM record of Storm's version of the old country composition "Prisoner's Song"; the flip side was "Mama Mama Mama (Look What Your Little Boy's Done)." The release broke into the Billboard Hot 100 and both songs became lifelong standards for Storm.

wn.com/Warren_Storm
Wikipedia Persondata
wn.com/Wikipedia_Persondata
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson (pronounced /wɪli nɛlsən /; born April 30, 1933) is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger (1975) and Stardust (1978), made Nelson one of the most recognized artists in country music. He was one of the main figures of outlaw country, a subgenre of country music that developed at the end of the 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restrictions of the Nashville sound. Nelson has acted in over 30 films, co-authored several books, and has been involved in activism for the use of biofuels and the legalization of marijuana.

wn.com/Willie_Nelson

Fats Domino - The Fat Man (Live)

His first record from 1949......

published: 03 Apr 2007

author: checkingmail

FATS DOMINO I'm Walking

Jazz Festival -The Hague Holland...

published: 21 Apr 2009

author: coockiestv

Fats Domino - Live 18 - Going to the river - .mpg

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2004...

published: 05 Jan 2012

author: Kozmic2010

Fats Domino - I Want To Walk You Home (live appearance)

PLEASE NOTE: I divided my uploads between multiple channels, Bookmark this link in your br...

published: 29 Mar 2010

author: John1948FourD

Sentimental journey - Fats Domino (Live)

"Sentimental Journey" is a popular song, published in 1944. The music was written by Les B...

published: 03 Feb 2010

author: jodhve515

I'm in Love Again - Fats Domino (Live)

The king of Louisiana Rock & Roll/Rhythm and Blues live on early TV show......

published: 27 Jun 2011

author: ERICAJUNDELYON

Fats Domino - Live 17 - My girl Josephine -

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2004...

published: 04 Jan 2012

author: Kozmic2010

Fats Domino - Blueberry Hill (From "Legends of Rock 'n' Roll")

Some of the greatest names in rock 'n' roll history perform live in this definitive progra...

published: 20 Jun 2008

author: eaglerocktv

Fats Domino - Live 10 - Blue Monday

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2001...

published: 28 Nov 2011

author: Kozmic2010

Fats Domino - Live 03 - My blue heaven

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2001...

published: 26 Nov 2011

author: Kozmic2010

Fats Domino - Live From Austin Texas

Fats Domino - Blue Monday - Live From Austin Texas...

published: 03 Jul 2008

author: LiveFromAustinTexas

Fats Domino - Live 14 - When my dreamboat comes home -

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2001...

published: 10 Dec 2011

author: Kozmic2010

Fats Domino-In Concert (Live 1965) Audio

MERCURY (ES Press) 424 594-1 R&B; NOLA from one of his live 65' concerts. Nice issue from 1...

published: 23 Oct 2012

author: SpecialtiesFullLengh

Fats Domino - Live 16 - The Fat Man

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2001...

published: 10 Dec 2011

author: Kozmic2010

fats domino walkin back to new orleans

fats domino last filmed performance what a night it must have been...

published: 13 Oct 2011

author: chuckyfunstir

Fats Domino-In Concert (Live 1965) Audio

MERCURY (ES Press) 424 594-1 R&B; NOLA from one of his live 65' concerts. Nice issue from 1...

published: 23 Oct 2012

author: SpecialtiesFullLengh

,Top 10 Greatest Rock Songs 1950 elvis,chuck berry,perkins,fast domino etc

años 1950 comienza el rock and roll y no para hasta ahora,,los pioneros,Bill Haley, Elvis,...

published: 19 Jan 2011

author: papayjonathan

Fats Domino Antibes 1962 part IV

Contact me for the others Parts....

published: 13 Jul 2011

author: Michael Jakson

Fats Domino: The Fabulous Mr. D/Fats Domino Swings (12000000 Records) [Full CD]

Originally issued as Imperial LP 9055 (1958) and LP 12091 (1959) Reissued in 2002 as Colle...

published: 03 Jan 2013

author: kennyrocksable2

Fats Domino-This Is Fats (Full LP) R&B;/R&R; NOLA

The Original First Marron Press...R&B; with Antoine IMPERIAL LP 9040 (Mono) recorded in 8/1...

published: 22 Dec 2012

author: SpecialtiesFullLengh

The Animals - The Animals (US Album - 1964) Full Album

Album da banda inglesa The Animals lançado no Estados Unidos em 1964. Para ouvir o album l...

published: 13 Dec 2012

author: Willian Ricardo

The Animals (British Album) 1964 Full Album

Primeiro album da banda inglesa The Animals, lançado no ano de 1964. Para ouvir o album Th...

published: 13 Dec 2012

author: Willian Ricardo

Breezy McKenley Interview on The Paul Leslie Hour

This interview with Breezy McKenley was originally broadcast on The Paul Leslie Hour. Bree...

published: 09 Oct 2011

author: thepaulleslie

The Monkees - "33 1/3 Revolutions Per Monkee" (Complete TV Special)

The Monkees' 1969 NBC Television Special "33 1/3 Revolutions Per Monkee" 60-Minute Special...

published: 03 Nov 2012

author: MisterMusicMan382

Let The Good Times Roll (1973)

This is one of my favorite films. Its a great inspiration for me and I'm sure will be for ...

published: 01 Dec 2012

author: Arjun Kaul

Eric Anzalone, What Matters Most Host, Interviews R&B; Music Legend, JB Kline

Check out our web site for more episodes - www.experiencenirvana.org JB KLINE is a solid, ...

published: 09 Sep 2012

author: ExperienceNirvana1

My Rock N Roll Collection

This video is about the CDs I have gotten over the years. CDs shown: Elvis Presley- "Elvis...

published: 09 May 2012

author: J0NAB0NA

African American Family: Living in Mississippi in the 1950s

Group Project for Human Development 375I Music Blueberry Hill by Fats Domino Rock Around t...

published: 12 Oct 2011

author: rubyelizabeth

Fats Domino CBS Evening News 2/25/06

Rare interview with Fats Domino. He talks about Hurricane Katrina and his new CD. Reporter...

published: 05 Apr 2010

author: galaxies352

Fats Domino - Ain't That A Shame

Antoine Dominique "Fat's" Domino Jr (born February 26, 1928) is an American rhythm and blu...

published: 16 Aug 2011

author: jmfudgie

Little Richard Interview with Bill Boggs

Richard Wayne Penniman (born December 5, 1932), known by the stage name Little Richard, is...

published: 10 Jul 2012

author: BillBoggsTV

Fats Domino - I Want To Walk You Home

PLEASE NOTE: I divided my uploads between multiple channels, Bookmark this link in your br...

published: 29 Mar 2010

author: John1948FourD

Fats Domino - Blueberry hill

Fats Domino - Blueberry hill colour...

published: 18 May 2006

author: Jesper Kool

fats domino - blueberry hill

Blueberry Hill is a popular song published in 1940. The music was written by Vincent Rose,...

published: 23 Jun 2008

author: Mexicano109

fats domino walkin back to new orleans

fats domino last filmed performance what a night it must have been...

published: 13 Oct 2011

author: chuckyfunstir

Fats Domino-Walking To New Orleans

The Fat Man...

published: 29 Dec 2008

author: Shane Woodbury

FATS DOMINO I'm Walking

Jazz Festival -The Hague Holland...

published: 21 Apr 2009

author: coockiestv

FATS DOMINO Blue Monday

Jazz Festival The Hague Holland...

published: 21 Apr 2009

author: coockiestv

Fats Domino - The Fat Man (Live)

His first record from 1949......

published: 03 Apr 2007

author: checkingmail

Ain't That A Shame-Fats Domino-original song-1955

original song, oldie....

published: 15 Mar 2008

author: AK47bandit

Fats Domino - Blueberry Hill (From "Legends of Rock 'n' Roll")

Some of the greatest names in rock 'n' roll history perform live in this definitive progra...

published: 20 Jun 2008

author: eaglerocktv

Fats Domino-In Concert (Live 1965) Audio

MERCURY (ES Press) 424 594-1 R&B; NOLA from one of his live 65' concerts. Nice issue from 1...

published: 23 Oct 2012

author: SpecialtiesFullLengh

<li class="playlistitemli thumbnail border_color bgr_color_content font_color">
        <div class="video_facebook">
            <a href="http://web.archive.org./web/20130115071501/http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http://wn.com/Fats_Domino&t=<%= title %>" title="Share this video" data-title="Share this video" target="_blank" style="target-name: new; target-new: tab;"></a>
        </div>

photo: AP / Mohamed Sheikh Nor

File - Al-Shabaab fighters display weapons as they conduct military exercises in northern Mogadishu, Somalia,Thursday, Oct. 21, 2010.

French secret service hostage and soldiers killed in Somali rescue mission

The Guardian

12 Jan 2013

Helicopter raid fails to rescue agent 'Denis Allex' from Islamist group al-Shabaab, as French combat pilot killed in Mali. French secret service hostage 'Denis Allex' pictured in Somalia in October 2012. Photograph. SITE Monitoring Service/AFP/Getty Images. A French hostage and two French soldiers have been killed during a failed secret service rescue mission in Somalia ... The group said it had also captured a wounded French commando ... ....(size: 4.7Kb)

photo: AP / Adj Nicolas-Nelson Richard, ECPAD

This Sunday Jan.13, 2013 photo provided by the French Army Monday Jan.14, 2013 shows a French Rafale jetfighter landing after a mission to Mali in N'Djamena, Chad.

France strikes Mali rebels

Independent online (SA)

14 Jan 2013

Bamako/Paris - French fighter jets pounded Islamist rebel strongholds deep in northern Mali on Sunday as Paris poured more troops into the capital, Bamako, awaiting a West African force to dislodge al-Qaeda-linked insurgents from the country’s north ... Defence Minister Jean-Yves le Drian said France’s intervention on Friday prevented the advancing rebels from seizing Bamako and vowed air strikes would continue ... – ... Doubt....(size: 6.6Kb)

photo: US Navy / MCS2 Gretchen Albrecht

File - Electronics Technician 3rd Class Jackie McBride hands a box to Electronics Technician 2nd Class Shawn Cutter as they attempt to clear a street in Staten Island, New York that was leveled during Hurricane Sandy, Nov. 9, 2012.

Now no one can deny that the world is getting warmer

The Observer

13 Jan 2013

The draft version of the US National Climate Assessment, released on Friday, makes remarkable reading – not just for Americans but for all humanity. Put together by a special panel of more than 240 scientists, the federally commissioned report reveals that the US is already reeling under the impact of global warming ... Nor is there any doubt about the cause of these rising temperatures ... A bitter struggle lies ahead ... Sender's name ... ....(size: 6.2Kb)

photo: AP / Kevin Frayer

Indian Hindu holy men, or Naga Sadhus, run naked into the water at Sangam, the confluence of the rivers Ganges, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati, during the royal bath on Makar Sankranti at the start of the Maha Kumbh Mela in Allahabad, India, Monday, Jan. 14, 2013.

Pilgrims Flock to India's Ganges for World's Biggest Festival

Jakarta Globe

14 Jan 2013

Allahabad. Hundreds of thousands of Hindu pilgrims led by naked, ash-covered holy men streamed into the sacred river Ganges on Monday at the start of the world's biggest religious festival. The Kumbh Mela in the Indian town of Allahabad will see up to 100 million worshippers gather over the next 55 days to take a ritual bath in the holy waters, believed to cleanse sins and bestow blessings ... "I am ecstatic ... Agence France-Presse ....(size: 4.2Kb)

photo: White House / Pete Souza

File - President Barack Obama talks with Chief of Staff Jack Lew and Rob Nabors, Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs, in the Oval Office, Nov. 28, 2012.

Obama On Debt Ceiling: 'We Are Not A Deadbeat Nation'

Huffington Post

14 Jan 2013

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama issued a strong warning to Republicans on Monday that he will not negotiate over the debt ceiling or allow Republicans to use it as a bargaining chip. "To even entertain the idea of the United States of America not paying our bills is irresponsible. It's absurd," Obama said in a press conference ... "They will not collect a ransom in exchange for not crashing the economy," Obama said ... Also on HuffPost ... ....(size: 10.3Kb)

timeline:
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001

Mellow Mushroom Pizza Bakers Opening in Metairie, Louisiana, on Monday, January 21

Yahoo Daily News

15 Jan 2013

Handcrafted pizza, ever-changing craft beers and a tribute to the local jazz and blues heritage of the area are just a few great reasons to stop into Mellow Mushroom Metairie, beginning Monday, January 21 ... Moffatt, Leon L. Grigio, Jr. and William T. Maisano are thrilled to bring another Mellow Mushroom to the greater New Orleans area ... Original and imaginative murals of local musicians such as Fats Domino, The Neville Brothers, Dr ... ### ... ....(size: 3.6Kb)

New councilman withdraws Katrina tour fee proposal

San Francisco Chronicle

11 Jan 2013

Councilman James Gray, who took office last month, says he needs more time to research the issue, which was introduced by his predecessor ... 29, 2005, storm ... About 9 million people visit New Orleans each year, and Katrina tours are popular among those wanting an up-close look at the houses being built by Make It Right, the foundation launched after Katrina by actor Brad Pitt, as well as the home of rock 'n roll star Fats Domino ... ....(size: 2.3Kb)

New city councilman withdraws proposed fee for tours of Katrina-damaged Lower 9th Ward

Yahoo Daily News

11 Jan 2013

1956 in Music: Rock n Roll and Racism

The Examiner

10 Jan 2013

Music changed dramatically in 1956 ... However, he needed a white act to do so ... Six weeks after “Heartbreak Hotel” debuted, Carl Perkins entered the R&B charts with “Blue Suede Shoes.” Frankie Lymon, Little Richard, and Fats Domino scored hits ... Berry, Little Richard, Fats Domino, and others enjoyed success that the entertainment industry provided during a time when white America limited the economic opportunities of African-Americans ... ....(size: 4.9Kb)

Pestaño: Patti Page and other stars who play chess

Sun Star

10 Jan 2013

I GREW up with her music. Patti Page, 85, one of the greatest entertainers of all time, passed away a few days ago after a career that span almost seven decades and close to 1,000 recordings ... Bono ... Yeah, I play chess ... Fats Domino invited Bobby Charles, also a composer, to a show in New Orleans ... “Well,” the fat man said, “You’d better start walking.” And sure enough, a song popped into Charles’ head ... Orleans.” Fats was a strong player ... ....(size: 3.8Kb)

HBO's Treme 'My Lil' Darlin' All Star Review at Tipitina's (Photos)

The Examiner

10 Jan 2013

Whether you've tuned into HBO's Treme for the drama or the NOLA setting and themes one thing is certain - you can't help but come away with the music. So then who better to host a benefit concert in New Orleans? ... There will also be extra special appearances by Fats Domino and Dave Bartholomew.View slideshow ... HBO's Treme 'My Lil' Darlin' All Star Review at Tipitina's ... Location ... ....(size: 2.3Kb)

>New councilman withdraws Katrina tour fee proposal

Seattle Post

10 Jan 2013

The Animals: Five-star flashback (Photos)

The Examiner

08 Jan 2013

Rating for The Animals’ "The Best of the Animals". 5. The “Listen Again” series was popular enough that your favorite record reviewer has decided to follow the lead of some TV execs and do a spin-off ... This time we look at The Animals’ The Best of the Animals ... The Animals. Photo credit. . Courtesy of Original Owner ... The covers continue here with their version of Fats Domino’s lesser known number "I'm In Love Again" ... ... ... ....(size: 5.7Kb)

The crate

Sydney Morning Herald

03 Jan 2013

Summertime Blues. (1958) Eddie Cochran. THE earliest rock'n'roll and rockabilly was about frustration and nothing much more. Frustration, cars and sex ... Blueberry Hill started it I think, written in the '40s but made big by Fats Domino in 1956. It's back-seat love action at a make-out spot, right? In Billy Bragg's From a Vauxhall Velox it was the same deal, but rather more hopeless ... Advertisement ....(size: 1.8Kb)

Some famous singers not only had big hits, but #99 and #100 charters

The Examiner

19 Dec 2012

When an oldies pop music fan thinks of recording artists such as Nat King Cole, Fats Domino, Andy Williams and The Shirelles, they are probably recalling chart-topping tunes and a number of hits that had major impact on national Top 40 listings. However, those artists -- along with Mary Wells and Brook Benson -- also had some songs that barely scraped the lower levels of the national Billboard Magazine pop music charts ... * FATS DOMINO ... ....(size: 3.9Kb)

Rocking and rolling through the ages - The genre that created fathers, kings, queens and jesters

The Gleaner

16 Dec 2012

The Platters were the real deal and easily the chief protagonist of the slower, sentimental style of rock and roll in the 1950s. But there was much more to rock and roll than the Platters or that of similar groups ... Hill-billy music is country music of, or like that of, music coming from the hilly southern US ... Blindness no damper ... Fats Domino, Professor Longhair, and Shirley and Lee, also made valuable contributions to the genre ... ....(size: 6.5Kb)

Lil' Band O' Gold mines pure rock 'n' roll ore

my SA

12 Dec 2012

Swamp pop can most easily be described as Fats Domino-inspired triplet rock 'n' roll and R&B slathered with a layer of South Louisiana bayou grit ... The band's repertoire includes songs from the Fats Domino and Bobby Charles songbooks, classics such as “Shirley,” “7 Letters” and “Please Mr ... “Plays Fats.” There's also a documentary, “Promised Land....(size: 4.0Kb)

Tom Brokaw, Randy Zuckerberg and David Zinczenko’s Next Chapter

mediabistro

05 Dec 2012

Quite the contrary ... Here’s hoping ... It’s signed by music men Jimmy Buffet, Willie Nelson, Fats Domino and Elton John (on the day Joe hosted a lunch for Elton in celebration of the Broadway debut of Billy Elliot in this very dining room) as well as Laura Bush who happened to spy it on Joe’s table during a visit a while back and whipped out a Sharpie before Joe knew what hit him ... Stay tuned.   ... 1 ... 2 ... 3 ... 4....(size: 4.1Kb)

timeline:
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001

Fats Domino
Domino in concert in Germany in 1977
Background information
Birth name	Antoine Dominique Domino
Also known as	Fats, The Fat Man
Born	(1928-02-26) February 26, 1928 (age 84) New Orleans, Louisiana United States
Origin	New Orleans, Louisiana United States
Genres	R&B, rock and roll, piano blues, boogie-woogie
Occupations	Songwriter, musician
Instruments	Piano, vocals
Years active	1949–present
Labels	Imperial, ABC, Mercury, Broadmoor, Reprise, Sonet, Warner Bros. Records, Toot Toot

Antoine Dominique "Fats" Domino Jr. (born February 26, 1928) is an American R&B and rock and roll pianist and singer-songwriter. He was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana. Domino was French Creole and Creole was his first language. Domino was delivered at home by his midwife grandmother who was born into enslavement in 1857. Like most families in the Lower Ninth Ward, Domino's family were new arrivals from the sugar and cotton plantations.^[1] His father was a well known violinist, and Domino was inspired to play himself. He eventually learned from his Uncle, jazz guitarist Harrison Verrett. ^[2] Fats released five Gold (million selling) records before 1955.^[2] Domino also had 35 Top 40 American Hits and has a music style based on traditional R&B ensembles or Bass, Piano, Electric Guitar, Drums, and Saxophone.^[2]

1 Life
2 Influence
3 Singles discography
4 References
5 External links

Life [link]

Imperial Records era (1949–1962)[link]

Fats Domino singing "Blueberry Hill" on "The Ed Sullivan Show" circa 1956

Domino first attracted national attention with "The Fat Man" in 1949 on Imperial Records. This song is an early rock and roll record, featuring a rolling piano and Domino doing "wah-wah" vocalizing over a strong back beat. "The Fat Man" sold one million copies by 1953. ^[3] Fats Domino released a series of hit songs with producer and co-writer Dave Bartholomew, saxophonists Herbert Hardesty and Alvin "Red" Tyler and drummer Earl Palmer. Other notable and long-standing musicians in Domino's band were saxophonists Reggie Houston, Lee Allen, and Fred Kemp, Domino's trusted bandleader. Domino finally crossed into the pop mainstream with "Ain't That A Shame" (1955), which hit the Top Ten, though Pat Boone characteristically hit #1 with a milder cover of the song^[4] that received wider radio airplay in a racially-segregated era. Domino eventually had 37 Top 40 singles.

Domino's first album, Carry on Rockin', was released under the Imperial imprint, #9009, in November 1955 and subsequently reissued as Rock and Rollin' with Fats Domino in 1956.^[5] Combining a number of his hits along with some tracks that had not yet been released as singles,^[5] the album went on under its alternate title to reach #17 on the "Pop Albums" chart.^[6]

His 1956 up-tempo version of the 1940 Vincent Rose, Al Lewis & Larry Stock song, "Blueberry Hill" reached #2 in the Top 40, was #1 on the R&B charts for 11 weeks, and was his biggest hit.^[4] "Blueberry Hill" sold more than 5 million copies worldwide in 1956–57. The song had earlier been recorded by Gene Autry, and Louis Armstrong among many others. He had further hit singles between 1956 and 1959, including "When My Dreamboat Comes Home" (Pop #14), "I'm Walkin'" (Pop #4), "Valley of Tears" (Pop #8), "It's You I Love" (Pop #6), "Whole Lotta Loving" (Pop #6), "I Want to Walk You Home" (Pop #8), and "Be My Guest" (Pop #8).

Domino appeared in two films released in 1956: Shake, Rattle & Rock!^[7] and The Girl Can't Help It.^[8] On December 18, 1957, Domino's hit "The Big Beat" was featured on Dick Clark's American Bandstand.

On November 2, 1956, a riot broke out at Fats Domino's show in Fayetteville, NC, with police resorting to tear gas to break up the unruly crowd. Domino jumped out of a window to avoid the melee; he and two other band members were slightly injured.^[9]

Domino continued to have a steady series of hits for Imperial through early 1962, including "Walkin' to New Orleans" (1960) (Pop #6), co-written by Bobby Charles, and "My Girl Josephine" (Pop #14) from the same year. After Imperial Records was sold to outside interests in early 1963, Domino left the label: "I stuck with them until they sold out," he claimed in 1979. In all, Domino recorded over 60 singles for the label, placing 40 songs in the top 10 on the R&B charts, and scoring 11 top 10 singles on the pop charts. Twenty-two of Domino's Imperial singles were double-sided hits.

Post-Imperial recording career (1963–1970s)[link]

Domino moved to ABC-Paramount Records in 1963. The label dictated that he record in Nashville rather than New Orleans. He was assigned a new producer (Felton Jarvis) and a new arranger (Bill Justis); Domino's long-term collaboration with producer/arranger/frequent co-writer Dave Bartholomew, who oversaw virtually all of his Imperial hits, was seemingly at an end.

Jarvis and Justis changed the Domino sound somewhat, notably by adding the backing of a countrypolitan-style vocal chorus to most of his new recordings. Perhaps as a result of this tinkering with an established formula, Domino's chart career was drastically curtailed. He released 11 singles for ABC-Paramount, but only had one top 40 entry with "Red Sails In The Sunset" (1963). By the end of 1964 the British Invasion had changed the tastes of the record-buying public, and Domino's chart run was over.

Despite the lack of chart success, Domino continued to record steadily until about 1970, leaving ABC-Paramount in mid-1965 and recording for a variety of other labels: Mercury, Dave Bartholomew's small Broadmoor label (reuniting with Bartholomew along the way), and Reprise. His final Top 100 chart single was on Reprise, a cover of The Beatles' "Lady Madonna" which peaked at #100 in 1968. He also continued as a popular live act for several decades.

He made a cameo appearance in the movie Any Which Way You Can, filmed in 1979 and released in 1980, which resulted in a Country Chart hit, "Whiskey Heaven".

Later career (1980s–2005)[link]

In the 1980s, Domino decided he would no longer leave New Orleans, having a comfortable income from royalties and a dislike for touring, and claiming he could not get any food that he liked any place else. His induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and an invitation to perform at the White House failed to persuade Domino to make an exception to this policy.

Fats Domino was persuaded to perform out of town periodically for Dianna Chenevert, agent, founder and president of New Orleans-based Omni Attractions, during the 1980s and early 1990s. Most of these engagements were in and around New Orleans, but also included a concert in Texas at West End Market Place in downtown Dallas on October 24, 1986.

On October 12, 1983, USA Today reported that Domino was included in Chenevert's Southern Stars poster ^[10] which was created for the agency (along with historically preserving childhood photographs of other famous living musicians from New Orleans and Louisiana).^[11] Domino provided a photograph of his first recording session, which was the only one he had left from his childhood. Domino autographed these posters, whose recipients included USA Today's Gannett president Al Neuharth, and Peter Morton founder of the Hard Rock Cafe. Times-Picayune columnist Betty Guillaud noted on September 30, 1987 that Domino also provided Chenevert with an autographed pair of his shoes ^[12] (and signed a black grand piano lid) for the Hard Rock location in New Orleans.

Domino lived in a mansion in a predominantly working-class Lower Ninth Ward neighborhood, where he was a familiar sight in his bright pink Cadillac automobile. He makes yearly appearances at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival and other local events. Domino was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987. Domino's last tour was a three week European Tour in 1995 ^[13] 1998, President Clinton awarded him the National Medal of Arts.^[14] In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked him #25 on their list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time."^[15]

By the end of his career, Domino was credited with more charted Rock hits than any other classic rock artist except for Elvis Presley ^[3]

Domino and Hurricane Katrina [link]

Graffiti on Domino's home from the time he was rumored dead

Fats Domino's office, June 2007

When Hurricane Katrina was approaching New Orleans in August 2005, Dianna Chenevert encouraged Domino to evacuate, but he chose to stay at home with his family, partly because of his wife Rosemary's poor health. His house was in an area that was heavily flooded. Chenevert e-mailed writers at the Times Picayune newspaper and the Coast Guard with the Dominos' location.

Someone thought Domino was dead, and spray-painted a message on his home, "RIP Fats. You will be missed", which was shown in news photos. On September 1, talent agent, Al Embry, announced that he had not heard from the musician since before the hurricane had struck.

Later that day, CNN reported that Domino was rescued by a Coast Guard helicopter. Prior to this, even family members had not heard from Domino since before the storm. ^[16] Embry confirmed that Domino and his family had been rescued. The Domino family was then taken to a Baton Rouge shelter, after which they were picked up by JaMarcus Russell, the starting quarterback of the Louisiana State University football team, and Fats' granddaughter's boyfriend. He let the Dominos stay in his apartment. The Washington Post reported that on September 2, they had left Russell's apartment after sleeping three nights on the couch. "We've lost everything," Domino said, according to the Post.^[17]

By January 2006, work to gut and repair Domino's home and office had begun. For the meantime, the Domino family resided in Harvey, Louisiana.

Chenevert replaced the Southern Stars poster^[10] Fats Domino lost in Katrina and President George W. Bush also made a personal visit and replaced the National Medal of Arts that President Bill Clinton had previously awarded Fats. The gold records were replaced by the RIAA and Imperial Records catalog owner Capitol Records.^[18]

Post-Katrina activity [link]

Fats Domino, wearing a National Medal of Arts; a replacement by President George W. Bush on August 29, 2006, after the original, bestowed upon him by former President Bill Clinton was lost in the flood waters of Hurricane Katrina.

Domino was the first artist to be announced as scheduled to perform at the 2006 Jazz & Heritage Festival. However, he was too ill to perform when scheduled and was only able to offer the audience an on-stage greeting. Domino also released an album Alive and Kickin' in early 2006 to benefit the Tipitina's Foundation, which supports indigent local musicians. The title song was recorded after Katrina, but most of the cuts were from unreleased sessions in the 1990s.

On January 12, 2007, Domino was honored with OffBeat magazine's Lifetime Achievement Award at the annual Best of the Beat Awards held at House of Blues in New Orleans. New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin declared the day "Fats Domino Day in New Orleans" and presented Fats Domino with a signed declaration. OffBeat publisher Jan Ramsey and WWL-TV's Eric Paulsen presented Fats Domino with the Lifetime Achievement Award. An all-star musical tribute followed with an introduction by the legendary producer Cosimo Matassa. The Lil' Band O' Gold rhythm section, Warren Storm, Kenny Bill Stinson, David Egan and C. C. Adcock, not only anchored the band, but each contributed lead vocals, swamp pop legend Warren Storm leading off with "Let the Four Winds Blow" and "The Prisoner Song," which he proudly introduced by saying, "Fats Domino recorded this in 1958.. and so did I." The horn section included Lil' Band O' Gold's Dickie Landry, the Iguanas' Derek Huston, and long-time Domino horn men Roger Lewis, Elliot "Stackman" Callier and Herb Hardesty. They were joined by Jon Cleary (who also played guitar in the rhythm section), Al "Carnival Time" Johnson, Irma Thomas, George Porter, Jr. (who, naturally, came up with a funky arrangement for "You Keep On Knocking"), Art Neville, Dr. John and Allen Toussaint, who wrote and debuted a song in tribute of Domino for the occasion. Though Domino did not perform, those near him recall him playing air piano and singing along to his own songs.

Fats Domino returned to stage on May 19, 2007, at Tipitina's at New Orleans, performing to a full house. A foundation has been formed and a show is being planned for Domino and the restoration of his home, where he intends to return someday. "I like it down there" he said in a February, 2006 CBS News interview.^[19]

In September 2007, Domino was inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. He has also been inducted into the Delta Music Museum Hall of Fame in Ferriday. In December 2007, Fats Domino was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame.

In May 2009, Domino made an unexpected appearance for The Domino Effect, a namesake concert aimed at raising funds to help rebuild schools and playgrounds damaged by Hurricane Katrina.

Influence [link]

He was an important influence on the music of the 1960s and 1970s and acknowledged as such by some of the top artists of that era. Paul McCartney reportedly wrote The Beatles song "Lady Madonna" in an emulation of Domino's style, combining it with a nod to Humphrey Lyttelton's 1956 hit "Bad Penny Blues," a record Joe Meek engineered.^{[citation needed]} Domino did manage to return to the "Hot 100" charts one final time in 1968—with his own recording of "Lady Madonna." That recording, as well as covers of two other songs by The Beatles, appeared on his Reprise LP Fats Is Back, produced by Richard Perry and recorded by a band that included New Orleans piano player James Booker; Domino played piano only on one track, "I'm Ready." Also was the influence behind the naming of Jamaican ska band Justin Hinds and the Dominoes in the 1960s; Justin's favorite singer being Fats Domino. In 2007, various artists came together for a tribute to Fats Domino by recording a live session with all Fats Domino covers. Guests included on the album, titled "Going Home: A Tribute to Fats Domino" include Paul McCartney, Norah Jones, Willie Nelson, Neil Young, and Elton John ^[20]

Both John Lennon and Paul McCartney later recorded Fats Domino songs. Domino's rhythm, accentuating the offbeat as in the song "Be My Guest," was an influence on ska music.^[21]

Singles discography [link]

Nationally charted hits shown in bold.

A-Side	B-Side	Year	Label + Cat. No.	Chart positions
A-Side	B-Side	Year	Label + Cat. No.	US Hot 100	US R&B	UK
Detroit City Blues	The Fat Man	1949	Imperial 5058		2
Boogie-Woogie Baby	Little Bee	1950	Imperial 5065
Hide Away Blues	She's My Baby	1950	Imperial 5077
Hey La Bas Boogie	Brand New Baby	1950	Imperial 5085
Every Night about This Time	Korea Blues	1950	Imperial 5099		5
Tired of Crying	What's the Matter Baby	1951	Imperial 5114
Don't You Lie to Me	Sometimes I Wonder	1951	Imperial 5123
Right From Wrong	No, No Baby	1951	Imperial 5138
Rockin' Chair	Careless Love	1951	Imperial 5145		9
I'll Be Gone	You Know I Miss You	1952	Imperial 5167
Goin' Home	Reeling and Rocking	1952	Imperial 5180	30	1
Poor Poor Me	Trust in Me	1952	Imperial 5197		10
How Long	Dreaming	1952	Imperial 5209		9
Nobody Loves Me	Cheatin'	1953	Imperial 5220
Going to the River	Mardi Gras in New Orleans	1953	Imperial 5231	24	2
Please Don't Leave Me	The Girl I Love	1953	Imperial 5240		3
Rose Mary	You Said You Loved Me	1953	Imperial 5251		10
Something's Wrong	Don't Leave Me This Way	1953	Imperial 5262		6
You Done Me Wrong	Little School Girl	1954	Imperial 5272		10
Where Did You Stay	Baby Please	1954	Imperial 5283
You Can Pack Your Suitcase	I Lived My Life	1954	Imperial 5301
Love Me	Don't You Hear Me Calling You	1954	Imperial 5313
I Know	Thinking of You	1954	Imperial 5323		14
Don't You Know	Helping Hand	April 1955	Imperial 5340		7
Ain't That a Shame	La La	August 1955	Imperial 5348	10	1	23
All By Myself	Troubles of My Own	September 1955	Imperial 5357		1
Poor Me		November 1955	Imperial 5369		1
	I Can't Go On	1955	Imperial 5369		6
Bo Weevil		April 1956	Imperial 5375	35	5
	Don't Blame It on Me	1956	Imperial 5375		9
I'm in Love Again		March 1956	Imperial 5386	3	1	12
	My Blue Heaven			19	5
When My Dreamboat Comes Home		July 1956	Imperial 5396	14	2
	So Long			44	5
Blueberry Hill		September 1956	Imperial 5407	2	1	6
	Honey Chile				2	29
Blue Monday		December 1956	Imperial 5417	5	1	23
	What's the Reason I'm Not Pleasing You			50	12
I'm Walkin'	I'm in the Mood for Love	February 1957	Imperial 5428	4	1	19
The Rooster Song	My Happiness//As Time Goes By//Hey La Bas (4 song EP)	1957	Imperial 147		13
Valley of Tears		April 1957	Imperial 5442	8	2	25
	It's You I Love			6	2
When I See You		July 1957	Imperial 5454	29	14
	What Will I Tell My Heart			64	12
Wait and See		September 1957	Imperial 5467	23	7
	I Still Love You			79
The Big Beat		December 1957	Imperial 5477	26	15	20
	I Want You to Know			32
Yes My Darling	Don't You Know I Love You	February 1958	Imperial 5492	55	10
Sick and Tired		April 1958	Imperial 5515	22	14	26
	No, No			55	14
Little Mary	Prisoner's Song	July 1958	Imperial 5526	48	4
Young School Girl	It Must Be Love	August 1958	Imperial 5537	92	15
Whole Lotta Loving		October 1958	Imperial 5553	6	2
	Coquette			92	26
Telling Lies		January 1959	Imperial 5569	50	13
	When the Saints Go Marching In			50
I'm Ready		April 1959	Imperial 5585	16	7
	Margie		Imperial 5585	51		18
I Want to Walk You Home		July 1959	Imperial 5606	8	1	14
	I'm Gonna Be a Wheel Someday			17	22
Be My Guest		October 1959	Imperial 5629	8	2	11
	I've Been Around			33	19
Country Boy		January 1960	Imperial 5645	25		19
	If You Need Me					98
Tell Me That You Love Me		April 1960	Imperial 5660	51
	Before I Grow Too Old			84		17
Walking to New Orleans		June 1960	Imperial 5675	6	2	19
	Don't Come Knockin'			21	28
Three Nights a Week		August 1960	Imperial 5687	15	8	45
	Put Your Arms Around Me Honey			58
My Girl Josephine		October 1960	Imperial 5704	14	7	32
	Natural Born Lover			38	28
Ain't That Just Like a Woman		January 1961	Imperial 5723	33	19
	What a Price			22	7
Shu Rah		March 1961	Imperial 5734	32
	Fell in Love on Monday			32
It Keeps Rainin'	I Just Cry	May 1961	Imperial 5753	23	18	49
Let The Four Winds Blow	Good Hearted Man	July 1961	Imperial 5764	15	2
What A Party		September 1961	Imperial 5779	22		43
	Rockin' Bicycle			83
I Hear You Knocking		November 1961	Imperial 5796	67
	Jambalaya (On the Bayou)			30		41
You Win Again		February 1962	Imperial 5816	22
	Ida Jane			90
My Real Name	My Heart Is Bleeding	May 1962	Imperial 5833	59	22
Dance with Mr. Domino		July 1962	Imperial 5863	98
	Nothing New (Same Old Thing)			77
Did You Ever See a Dream Walking		September 1962	Imperial 5875	79
	Stop the Clock			103
Won't You Come on Back	Hands Across the Table	November 1962	Imperial 5895
Hum Diddy Doo	Those Eyes	January 1963	Imperial 5909	124
You Always Hurt the One You Love	Trouble Blues	March 1963	Imperial 5937	102
True Confession	Isle of Capri	May 1963	Imperial 5959
One Night	I Can't Go on This Way	1963	Imperial 5980
There Goes (My Heart Again)		May 1963	ABC 10444	59
	Can't Go on Without You			123
When I'm Walking (Let Me Walk)		July 1963	ABC 10475	114
	I've Got a Right to Cry			128
Red Sails in the Sunset	Song For Rosemary	1963	ABC 10484	35	24	34
I Can't Give You Anything But Love	Goin' Home	August 1963	Imperial 66005	114
Who Cares		1963	ABC 10512	63	27
	Just a Lonely Man	1963	ABC 10512	108
Your Cheatin' Heart	When I Was Young	1964	Imperial 66016	112
Lazy Lady		1964	ABC 10531	86	34
	I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire	1964	ABC 10531	122
If You Don't Know What Love Is	Something You Got Baby	1964	ABC 10545
Mary, Oh Mary	Packin' Up	1964	ABC 10567	127
Sally Was a Good Old Girl	For You	1964	ABC 10584	99
Kansas City	Heartbreak Hill	1964	ABC 10596	99
Why Don't You Do Right	Wigs	1965	ABC 10631
Let Me Call You Sweetheart	Goodnight Sweetheart	1965	ABC 10644
I Done Got Over It	I Left My Heart In San Francisco	1965	Mercury 72463
What's That You Got?	It's Never Too Late	1965	Mercury 72485
The Lady in Black	Working My Way Up Steady	1967	Broadmoor 104
Big Mouth	Wait 'Til It Happens to You	1967	Broadmoor 105
One For The Highway	Honest Papas Love Their Mamas Better	1968	Reprise 0696
Lady Madonna	One for the Highway	1968	Reprise 0763	100
Lovely Rita	Wait 'Till It Happens to You	1968	Reprise 0775
Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey	So Swell When You're Well	1969	Reprise 0843
Make Me Belong to You	Have You Seen My Baby	1970	Reprise 0891
New Orleans Ain't the Same	Sweet Patootie	1970	Reprise 0944
Sleeping on the Job	After Hours	1978	Sonet 2168 -UK
Whiskey Heaven	--	1980	Warner Bros. 49610

References [link]

^ Sublette, Ned. The Year Before The Flood. Chicago: Lawrence Hill Books, 2009. 56-60. Print.
^ ^a ^b ^c Friedlander, Paul. Rock And Roll: A Social History. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 2006. 28-32. Print.
^ ^a ^b Friedlander, Paul. Rock And Roll: A Social History. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 2006. 28. Print.
^ ^a ^b Show 6 – Hail, Hail, Rock 'n' Roll: The rock revolution gets underway. [Part 2] : UNT Digital Library
^ ^a ^b Strong, Martin C. (2004). The Great Rock Discography: Complete Discographies Listing Every Track Recorded by More Than 1,200 Artists. Canongate U.S.. p. 434. ISBN 1-84195-615-5. http://books.google.com/?id=_WoRAPJQ58sC&pg=PA436&dq=%22Fats+Domino%22+album+discography.
^ Rock and Rollin' with Fats Domino Billboard Albums at Allmusic
^ "Shake, Rattle & Rock!". IMDB. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0049749/. Retrieved 2006-11-01.
^ "The Girl Can't Help It". IMDB. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0049263/. Retrieved 2006-11-01.
^ "Oldies Music". About.com. http://oldies.about.com/od/oldieshistory/a/november2.htm. Retrieved 2010-04-26.
^ ^a ^b Southern Stars Poster
^ White, Miles. "Southern Stars Poster," USA Today, 12 October 1983, LIFELINE column “TOUTS” p. 1D
^ Guillaud, Betty. "Fats Domino's Shoes: Hitting the high notes from coast to coast," Times-Picayune, 30 September 1987, p. E4. "Here in the middle of it all is Dianna Chenevert, who’s chasing stars with a Crescent City connection for head rocker Peter Morton, founder of the famous Hard Rock Cafes. Morton’s latest link in his around-the-world chain will open here December 11 in Jax Brewery with a benefit for the New Orleans Children’s Museum. Dianna, a local booking agent, is putting the final decorative touches on the club with memorabilia from such local stars as Fats Domino, who’s donating a pair of shoes, the better for “Walking to New Orleans,” one of his hits that’s even bigger than he is."
^ Spera, Keith. Groove Interrupted. New York: St Martin's Press, 2011. 88-107. Print.
^ Lifetime Honors – National Medal of Arts
^ "The Immortals: The First Fifty". Rolling Stone (Rolling Stone) Issue 946. http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5939214/the_immortals_the_first_fifty.
^ "Fats Domino Found Alive." New York Amsterdam News 96.37 (2005): 21. Academic Search Premier. Web. 26 Mar. 2012.
^ Saslow, Eli (September 2 2005). "Music Legend 'Fats' Domino Coping With Katrina". washingtonpost.com. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/02/AR2005090201578.html. Retrieved 2006-11-01.
^ Ap Photo. "Fats Domino holds his gold records once again | NOLA.com". Blog.nola.com. http://blog.nola.com/living/2007/08/fats_domino_holds_his_gold_rec.html. Retrieved 2012-05-10.
^ "Fats Domino 'Alive And Kicking'". cbsnews.com. February 25 2006. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/02/25/eveningnews/main1346150.shtml. Retrieved 2007-09-26.
^ Kehe, John. "Goin' Home: A Tribute To Fats Domino -- Various Artists (Vanguard)." Christian Science Monitor 05 Oct. 2007: 13. Academic Search Premier. Web. 26 Mar. 2012.
^ Coleman, Rick (2006). Blue Monday: Fats Domino and the lost dawn of rock 'n' roll. Da Capo Press. p. 210. ISBN 0-306-81491-9. http://books.google.com/?id=Galk1rd04GEC&pg=PA210&lpg=PA210

External links [link]

New Orleans portal


	Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Fats Domino

Persondata
Name	Domino, Fats
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	February 26, 1928
Place of birth	New Orleans, Louisiana United States
Date of death
Place of death

http://wn.com/Fats_Domino

http://it.wn.com/Fats Domino

http://cs.wn.com/Fats Domino

http://id.wn.com/Fats Domino

http://es.wn.com/Fats Domino

http://ru.wn.com/Домино, Фэтс

http://nl.wn.com/Fats Domino

http://pt.wn.com/Fats Domino

http://pl.wn.com/Fats Domino

http://fr.wn.com/Fats Domino

http://de.wn.com/Fats Domino

This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fats_Domino

This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, which means that you can copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.

For the album, see Ricky Nelson (album). For the baseball player, see Ricky Nelson (baseball).

Ricky Nelson

Background information
Birth name	Eric Hilliard Nelson
Born	(1940-05-08)May 8, 1940 Teaneck, New Jersey, U.S.
Died	December 31, 1985(1985-12-31) (aged 45) De Kalb, Texas, U.S.
Genres	Rockabilly, rock 'n' roll, pop, folk, country
Occupations	Actor, musician, singer
Years active	1949-1985
Labels	Imperial, Decca (MCA), Epic
Associated acts	Elvis Presley, The Everly Brothers, Fats Domino, Connie Francis, Carl Perkins, James Burton
Website	http://www.rickynelson.com/

Eric Hilliard Nelson (May 8, 1940 – December 31, 1985), better known as Ricky Nelson or Rick Nelson, was an American singer-songwriter, instrumentalist, and actor. He placed 53 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 between 1957 and 1973 including "Poor Little Fool", which holds the distinction of being the first #1 song on Billboard magazine's then newly created Hot 100 chart. He recorded nineteen additional top-ten hits,^[1] and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on January 21, 1987.^[2]

Nelson began his entertainment career in 1949 playing himself in the radio sitcom series, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, and, in 1952, appeared in his first feature film, Here Come the Nelsons. In 1957, he recorded his first single, debuted as a singer on the television version of the sitcom, and recorded a number one album, Ricky. In 1958, Nelson recorded his first number one single, "Poor Little Fool", and, in 1959, received a Golden Globe Most Promising Male Newcomer nomination after starring in the western film, Rio Bravo. A few films followed, and, when the television series was cancelled in 1966, Nelson made occasional appearances as a guest star on various television programs.

Nelson and Sharon Kristin Harmon were married on April 20, 1963, and divorced in December 1982. They had four children: Tracy Kristine, twin sons Gunnar Eric and Matthew Gray, and Sam Hilliard. On February 14, 1981, a son (Eric Crewe) was born to Nelson and Georgeann Crewe. A blood test in 1985 confirmed Nelson was the child's father. Nelson was engaged to Helen Blair at the time of his death in an airplane crash on December 31, 1985.

In 1996, Ricky Nelson was ranked #49 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time.^[3]

1 Early life
2 Education
3 Music career
- 3.1 Debut
- 3.2 First album, band, and number one single
4 "Garden Party"
5 Personal life
6 Death
7 Tributes, honors, recognition
8 Discography
9 See also
10 References
11 Notes
12 External links

Early life [link]

Ricky Nelson was born on May 8, 1940 at 1:25 p.m. at Holy Name Hospital in Teaneck, New Jersey.^[4]^[5]^[6] He was the second son of big band leader Ozzie Nelson, who was of half Swedish descent, and his wife, big band vocalist Harriet Hilliard Nelson (née Peggy Louise Snyder). Harriett remained in Englewood, New Jersey with her newborn and her older son David while Ozzie toured the nation with the Nelson Orchestra.^[7] The Nelsons bought a two-story Colonial in Tenafly, New Jersey,^[7]^[8] and six months after the purchase, moved with son David to Hollywood, California where Ozzie and Harriet were slated to appear in the 1941-42 season of Red Skelton's The Raleigh Cigarette Hour; Ricky remained in Tenafly in the care of his paternal grandmother.^[9] In November 1941, the Nelsons bought what would become their permanent home: a green and white, two-story, Cape Cod Colonial at 1822 Camino Palmero in Los Angeles.^[10]^[11] Ricky joined his parents and brother in Los Angeles in 1942.^[10]

Ricky was a small and insecure child who suffered from severe asthma. At night, his sleep was eased with a vaporizer emitting tincture of evergreen.^[12] He was described by Red Skelton's producer John Guedel as "an odd little kid," likable, shy, introspective, mysterious, and inscrutable.^[13] When Skelton was drafted in 1944, Guedel crafted the radio sitcom, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, for Ricky's parents.^[13]^[14] The show debuted on Sunday, October 8, 1944 to favorable reviews.^[15]^[16] Ozzie eventually became head writer for the show and based episodes on the fraternal exploits and enmity of his sons.^[17] The Nelson boys were first played in the radio series by professional child actors until twelve-year-old Dave and eight-year-old Ricky joined the show on February 20, 1949 in the episode, "Invitation to Dinner."^[18]^[19]

In 1952, the Nelsons tested the waters for a television series with the theatrically released film, Here Come the Nelsons. The film was a hit and Ozzie was convinced the family could make the transition from radio's airwaves to television's small screen. On October 3, 1952, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet made its television debut and was broadcast in first run until September 3, 1966 to become one of the longest running sitcoms in television history.

Education [link]

Nelson attended Gardner Street Public School,^[20] Bancroft Junior High,^[21] and Hollywood High School between 1954 and 1958 from which he graduated with a B average.^[22]^[23]^[24] He played football at Hollywood High^[22]^[23] and represented the school in interscholastic tennis matches.^[25] Twenty-five years later, Nelson told the Los Angeles Weekly he hated school because it "smelled of pencils" and he was forced to rise early in the morning to attend.^[22]

Hollywood High (2008)

At Hollywood High, Nelson was blackballed by the Elksters, a fraternity of a dozen conservative sports-loving teens who thought him too wild.^[26]^[27] Many of the Elksters were family friends and spent weekends at the Nelson home playing basketball or relaxing around the pool.^[27] In retaliation, he joined the Rooks, a greaser car club of sideburned high school teens clad in leather jackets and motorcycle boots.^[27]^[28] He tattooed his hands, wrist, and shoulder with India ink and a sewing needle, slicked his hair with oil, and accompanied the Rooks on nocturnal forays along Hollywood Boulevard randomly harassing and beating up passersby.^[27]^[28] Nelson was jailed twice in connection with incidents perpetrated by the Rooks, and escaped punishment after sucker-punching a police officer only through the intervention of his father.^[28] Nelson's parents were alarmed. Their son's juvenile delinquency did little to enhance the All-American image of Ozzie and Harriet and they quickly put an end to Ricky's involvement with the Rooks by banishing one of the most influential of the club's members from Ricky's life and their home.^[25]

Ozzie Nelson was a Rutgers alumnus and keen on college education,^[29] but eighteen-year-old Ricky was already in the 93-percent income-tax bracket and saw no reason to attend.^[23] At thirteen, Ricky was making over $100,000 per annum and, at sixteen he had a personal fortune of $500,000.^[30] Nelson's wealth was astutely managed by parents who channeled his earnings into trust funds. Although his parents permitted him a $50 allowance at the age of eighteen, Rick was often strapped for cash, and, one evening, collected and redeemed empty pop bottles to gain entrance to a movie theater for himself and a date.^[31] Accustomed to affluence, Nelson had a cavalier attitude about money and never managed his finances very well.^[26]

Music career [link]

Debut [link]

Nelson played clarinet and drums in his tweens and early teens, learned the rudimentary guitar chords, and vocally imitated his favorite Sun Records rockabilly artists in the bathroom at home or in the showers at the Los Angeles Tennis Club.^[32]^[33]^[34] He was strongly influenced by the music of Carl Perkins and once said he tried to emulate the sound and the tone of the guitar break in Perkins' March 1956 Top Ten hit, "Blue Suede Shoes".^[33]^[34]

At sixteen, he wanted to impress a friend who was an Elvis Presley fan, and, although he had no record contract at the time, told her that he, too, was going to make a record.^[32]^[35]^[36]^[37] With his father's help, he secured a one-record deal with Verve Records, an important jazz label looking for a young and popular personality who could sing or be taught to sing.^[36]^[37]^[38]^[39] On March 26, 1957, he recorded the Fats Domino standard "I'm Walkin'" and "A Teenager's Romance" (released in late April 1957 as his first single), and "You're My One and Only Love".^[39]^[40]

Before the single was released, he made his television rock and roll debut on April 10, 1957 lip-synching "I'm Walkin'" in the Ozzie and Harriet episode, "Ricky, the Drummer".^[41]^[42] About the same time, he made an unpaid public appearance as a singer at a Hamilton High School lunch hour assembly in Los Angeles with the Four Preps and was greeted by hordes of screaming teens who had seen the television episode.^[43]^[44]

"I'm Walkin'" reached #4 on Billboard's Best Sellers in Stores chart, and its flip side, "A Teenager's Romance", hit #2.^[36]^[44] When the television series went on summer break in 1957, Nelson made his first road trip and played four state and county fairs in Ohio and Wisconsin with the Four Preps who opened and closed for him.^[45]

First album, band, and number one single [link]

In early summer 1957, Ozzie Nelson pulled his son from Verve after disputes about royalties, and signed him to a lucrative five-year deal with Imperial Records that gave him approval over song selection, sleeve artwork, and other production details.^[46]^[47] Ricky's first Imperial single, "Be-Bop Baby", generated 750,000 advance orders, sold over one million copies, and reached number three on the charts. Nelson's first album, Ricky, was released in October 1957 and hit number one before the end of the year.^[48] Following these successes, Nelson was given a more prominent role on the Ozzie and Harriet show and ended every two or three episodes with a musical number.^[49]

Nelson grew increasingly dissatisfied performing with older jazz session musicians who were openly contemptuous of rock and roll. After his Ohio and Minnesota tours in the summer of 1957, he decided to form his own band with members closer to his age.^[50] Eighteen-year-old electric guitarist James Burton was the first signed and lived in the Nelson home for two years.^[51] Bassist James Kirkland, drummer Richie Frost, and pianist Gene Garf completed the band.^[52] Their first recording together was "Believe What You Say". Rick selected material from demo acetates submitted by songwriters. Ozzie Nelson forbade suggestive lyrics or titles, and his late-night arrival at recording sessions forced band members to hurriedly hide their beers and cigarettes. The Jordanaires, Elvis Presley's back-up vocalists, worked for Nelson but at Presley's behest were not permitted credit on Nelson's albums.

In 1958, Nelson recorded seventeen-year-old Sharon Sheeley's "Poor Little Fool" for his second album Ricky Nelson released in June.^[53]^[54] Radio airplay brought the tune notice and Imperial suggested releasing a single; but Nelson opposed the idea, believing a single would diminish EP sales. When a single was released nonetheless, he exercised his contractual right to approve any artwork and vetoed a picture sleeve.^[53]^[55] On August 4, 1958, "Poor Little Fool" became the number one single on Billboard's newly instituted Hot 100 singles chart,^[56]^[57] and sold over two million copies.^[53] Nelson so loathed the song he refused to perform it on Ozzie and Harriet.^[53] Sheeley claimed he ruined her song by slowing the tempo.^[56] More generally, Nelson stated

“

Anyone who knocks rock 'n' roll either doesn't understand it, or is prejudiced against it, or is just plain square.

”

NME - November 1958^[58]

During 1958 and 1959, Nelson placed twelve hits on the charts in comparison with Presley's eleven (it should be remembered that the latter was then serving in Germany with the U.S. Army). During the sitcom's run, Ozzie Nelson, either to keep his son's fans tuned in or as an affirmation of his reputed behind-the-scenes persona as a controlling personality, kept his son from appearing on other television shows that could have enhanced his public profile, American Bandstand and The Ed Sullivan Show in particular.^[56] In the summer of 1958, Nelson conducted his first full-scale tour, and averaged $5,000 nightly. By 1960, the Ricky Nelson International Fan Club had 9,000 chapters around the world.^[59]

“

Perhaps the most embarrassing moment in my career was when six girls tried to fling themselves under my car, and shouted to me to run over them. That sort of thing can be very frightening!

”

NME - May 1960^[60]

Nelson was the first teen idol to utilize television to promote hit records. Ozzie Nelson even had the idea to edit footage together to create some of the first music videos. This creative editing can be seen in videos Ozzie produced for "Travelin' Man."^{[citation needed]} Nelson finally did appear on the Sullivan show in 1967, but his career by that time was in limbo. He also appeared on other television shows (usually in acting roles). In 1973, he had an acting role in an episode of The Streets of San Francisco, in which he played the part of a hippie flute-playing leader of a harem of young prostitutes. In 1979, he guest-hosted on Saturday Night Live, in which he spoofed his television sitcom image by appearing in a Twilight Zone send-up, in which, always trying to go "home", he finds himself among the characters from other 1950s/early 1960s-era sitcoms, Leave It to Beaver, Father Knows Best, Make Room for Daddy, and I Love Lucy.

Nelson knew and loved music, and was a skilled performer even before he became a teen idol, largely because of his parents' musical background. Nelson worked with many musicians of repute, including James Burton, Joe Osborn, and Allen "Puddler" Harris, all natives of Louisiana, and Joe Maphis, The Jordanaires, Scotty Moore and Johnny and Dorsey Burnette.

From 1957 to 1962, Nelson had 30 Top-40 hits, more than any other artist except Presley (who had 53) and Pat Boone (38). Many of Nelson's early records were double hits with both the A and B sides hitting the Billboard charts.

While Nelson preferred rockabilly and uptempo rock songs like "Believe What You Say" (Hot 100 #4), "I Got a Feeling" (#10), "My Bucket's Got a Hole in It" (#12), "Hello Mary Lou" (#9), "It's Late" (#9), "Stood Up" (#2), "Waitin' in School" (#18), "Be-Bop Baby" (#3), and "Just a Little Too Much" (#9), his smooth, calm voice made him a natural to sing ballads. He had major success with "Travelin' Man" (#1), "A Teenager's Romance" (#2), "Poor Little Fool" (#1), "Young World" (#5), "Lonesome Town" (#7), "Never Be Anyone Else But You" (#6), "Sweeter Than You" (#9), "It's Up to You" (#6), and "Teenage Idol" (#5), which clearly could have been about Nelson himself.

Nelson performing on The Jim Nabors Show in 1970.

In addition to his recording career, Nelson appeared in movies, including the Howard Hawks western classic Rio Bravo with John Wayne and Dean Martin (1959), plusThe Wackiest Ship In the Army (1960) and Love and Kisses (1965).

On May 8, 1961 (his 21st birthday), he officially modified his recording name from "Ricky Nelson" to "Rick Nelson". (However, not too long before his untimely death, he realized a dream of his. He met his idol, Carl Perkins, who, while musing that they were the last of the "rockabilly breed", addressed him as "Ricky".) In 1963, Nelson signed a 20-year contract with Decca Records. After some early successes with the label, most notably 1964's "For You" (#6), Nelson's chart career came to a dramatic halt in the wake of The British Invasion.

In the mid-1960s, Nelson began to move towards country music, becoming a pioneer in the country-rock genre. He was one of the early influences of the so-called "California Sound" (which would include singers like Jackson Browne and Linda Ronstadt and bands like the Eagles). Yet Nelson himself did not reach the Top 40 again until 1970, when he recorded Bob Dylan's "She Belongs to Me" with the Stone Canyon Band, featuring slide guitarist Ric Mix.

"Garden Party"[link]

In 1972, Nelson reached the Top 40 one last time with "Garden Party", a song he wrote in disgust after a Madison Square Garden audience booed him, because, in his mind, he was playing new songs instead of just his old hits. When he performed the Stones' "Honky Tonk Woman" he was booed off the stage. He watched the rest of the performance on a TV monitor backstage and quietly left the Madison Garden without taking a final bow for the finale. He wanted to record an album featuring original material, but the single was released before the album because Nelson had not completed the entire Garden Party album yet. "Garden Party" reached number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 1 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and was certified as a gold single. The second single release from the album was "Palace Guard", which reached number 65 in the charts.

Nelson was with MCA at the time, and his comeback was short-lived. Nelson's band soon resigned, and MCA wanted Nelson to have a producer on his next album. His band moved to Aspen and changed their name to "Canyon". Nelson soon put together a new Stone Canyon Band and began to tour for the Garden Party album. Nelson still played nightclubs and bars, but soon advanced to higher-paying venues because of the success of Garden Party. In 1974 MCA was at odds as to what to do with the former teen idol. Albums like Windfall failed to have an impact. Nelson became an attraction at theme parks like Knott's Berry Farm and Disneyland. He also started appearing in minor roles on television shows.

Nelson tried to score another hit, but did not have any luck with songs like "Rock and Roll Lady". With seven years to go on his contract, MCA dropped him from the label.

Nelson studied karate, earning a brown belt before going on to learn Jeet Kune Do under Dan Inosanto. Inosanto described Nelson as a "good martial artist for those times".^[61]

Personal life [link]

In 1957, Nelson was seventeen when he met and fell in love with Marianne Gaba, who played the role of Ricky's girlfriend in three episodes of Ozzie and Harriet.^[62]^[63] Nelson and Gaba were too young to entertain a serious relationship although, according to Gaba, "we used to neck for hours."^[64]^[65] The next year, Nelson fell in love with 15-year-old Lorrie Collins, a country singer appearing on a weekly telecast called Town Hall Party.^[66]^[67] The two wrote Nelson's first composition, the song "My Gal", and she introduced him to Johnny Cash and Tex Ritter. Collins appeared in an Ozzie and Harriet episode as Ricky's girlfriend and sang "Just Because" with him in the musical finale.^[68] They went steady and discussed marriage, but their parents discouraged the idea.^[68]^[69]

At the age of 45, Nelson said the only girl he ever really loved was involved with him for two years in the late 1950s. After she became pregnant and had a nearly fatal abortion, she married another man.^[70]^[71]

Kris Harmon [link]

Television publicity photo of Rick and Kris Nelson, 1964.

At Christmas 1961, Nelson began dating Sharon Kristin "Kris" Harmon (born June 25, 1945), the daughter of football legend Tom Harmon and actress Elyse Knox (née Elsie Kornbrath), and the older sister of Kelly and Mark.^[72]^[73] The Nelsons and the Harmons had long been friends and a union between their children held great appeal.^[74] Rick and Kris had much in common: quiet dispositions, Hollywood upbringings, and high-powered, domineering fathers.^[75]

They married on April 20, 1963. Kris was pregnant,^[76] and Rick later described the union as a "shotgun wedding".^[77] Nelson, a non-practicing Protestant, received instruction in Catholicism at the insistence of the bride's parents,^[77]^[78] and signed a pledge to have any children of the union baptized in the Catholic faith.^[76] Kris Nelson joined the television show as a regular cast member in 1963.^[71]^[79] They had four children: actress Tracy Kristine Nelson, twin sons Gunnar Eric Nelson and Matthew Gray Nelson who formed the band Nelson, and Sam Hilliard Nelson.

Following the birth of their last child, the marriage deteriorated by 1975, and a very public controversial divorce involving both families was covered in the press for several years. In October 1977, Kris filed for divorce and asked for alimony, custody of their four children, and a portion of community property. The couple temporarily resolved their differences but Kris retained her attorney to pursue a permanent break.^[80] Kris was contentious and jealous. Both spent enormous sums of money: Kris on parties, Rick on renting a private Lear jet.^[81] Nelson had a tremendous sexual appetite and a casual attitude toward sex, once estimating he had had sex with thousands of women.^[82] Kris wanted Rick to give up music, spend more time at home, and focus on acting, but the family enjoyed a recklessly expensive lifestyle, and Kris's extravagant spending left Rick no choice but to tour relentlessly.^[83] The impasse over Rick's career created unpleasantness at home. Kris became an alcoholic and left the children in the care of household help.^[84] After years of legal proceedings, they were divorced in December 1982. The divorce was financially devastating for Nelson with attorneys and accountants taking over $1 million.^[85] Years of legal wrangling followed.^[86]^[87]

Georgeann Crewe [link]

On May 16, 1980, Nelson met Georgeann Crewe at the Playboy Resort in Great Gorge, New Jersey.^[88]^[89] Crewe later claimed she felt "an attachment, an immediate attraction" to Nelson.^[88]^[89] Crewe unsuccessfully attempted to contact Nelson several times to let him know that she was pregnant, and on March 25, 1981, she gave birth to Nelson's son, Eric Jude Crewe.^[88] In 1985, a blood test confirmed Nelson was the father,^[88] but Nelson was not interested in Crewe or their son. He declined to meet with them to the point that he avoided playing concerts in Atlantic City. Although Nelson agreed to provide $400 a month in child support, he did not provide for the child in his will.^[90]

Helen Blair [link]

In 1980, Nelson met Helen Blair, a part-time model and exotic animal trainer, in Las Vegas.^[91] Within months of their meeting, she became his road companion, and, in 1982, moved in with him. She was the only woman he dated after his divorce.^[91]^[92]

Blair tried to make herself useful in Nelson's life by organizing his day and acting as a liaison for his fan club,^[91] but Nelson's mother, brother, business manager, and manager disapproved of her presence in his life.^[93] He contemplated marrying her, but eventually declined.^[94] Blair died with Nelson in the airplane fire. Her name was never mentioned at Nelson's funeral.^[95] Blair's parents wanted their daughter buried next to Nelson at Forest Lawn Cemetery but Harriet Nelson dismissed the idea.^[96] The Blairs refused to bury Helen's remains and filed a $2 million wrongful death suit against Nelson's estate.^[95] They received a small settlement. Nelson did not provide for Blair in his will.^[90]

Drug use [link]

Nelson used marijuana early in his musical career, and became a regular user. He buried his stash in his yard. He supported marijuana's legalization. He tried mescaline, was a regular cocaine user and carried the drug in an empty ginseng capsule.^[97]^[98]

During the Nelson divorce proceedings, Rick was accused by his wife's attorney of using cocaine, quaaludes, and other drugs, and of having "a severe drug problem" encouraged by his managers, his entourage, and his groupies. The attorney noted that Nelson's "personal manager" secured drugs for Nelson, wild parties took place in Nelson's home whether he was present or not, and his children, aware of his drug use, were in great physical danger from drugged persons entering and exiting the house at all hours.^[99] Following Nelson's divorce, while he was involved with Helen Blair, his drug use grew so dire friends urged him to seek treatment for substance abuse.^[100]

Death [link]

Nelson dreaded flying but refused to travel by bus. In May 1985, he decided he needed a private plane and leased a luxurious, fourteen-seat, 1944 Douglas DC-3 for private use that once belonged to the DuPont family and later to Jerry Lee Lewis. The plane's history was plagued with annoying mechanical issues.^[101] In one incident, the band was forced to push the plane off the runway after an engine blew, and in another incident in September, a malfunctioning magneto prevented Nelson from participating in the first Farm Aid concert in Champaign, Illinois.

On 26 December 1985, Nelson and the band left for a three-stop tour of the Southern United States. Following shows in Orlando, Florida and Guntersville, Alabama, Nelson and band members boarded the DC-3 in Guntersville and took off for a New Year's Eve extravaganza in Dallas, Texas.^[102] The plane crash-landed northeast of Dallas in De Kalb, Texas less than 2 miles from a landing strip at approximately 5:14 p.m. CST on 31 December 1985, impacting trees as it came to earth. Seven of the nine occupants were killed: Nelson and his fiancée, Helen Blair; bass guitarist Patrick Woodward; drummer Rick Intveld; keyboardist Andy Chapin; guitarist Bobby Neal; and road manager/soundman Donald Clark Russell. Pilots Ken Ferguson and Brad Rank escaped via cockpit windows, though Ferguson was severely burned.

Nelson's remains were lost in transit from Texas to California, delaying the funeral for several days. On 6 January 1986, 250 mourners entered the Church of the Hills for funeral services while 700 fans gathered outside. Attendees included 'Colonel' Tom Parker, Connie Stevens, Angie Dickinson, and dozens of actors, writers, and musicians. Nelson was privately buried days later in the Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles, California. Kris Nelson threatened to sue the Nelson clan for her former husband's life insurance money and tried to wrest control of his estate from David Nelson, its administrator. Her bid was rejected by a Los Angeles Superior Court Judge. Nelson bequeathed his entire estate to his children and did not provide for Eric Crewe, Helen Blair, or Kris Nelson. Only days after the funeral, rumors and newspaper reports suggested cocaine freebasing was one of several possible causes for the plane crash. Those allegations were refuted by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).^[103]

The reports vary as to whether or not the plane was on fire before it crashed. According to witnesses, the plane appeared to be on fire before it force-landed. Jim Burnett, then-Chairman of the NTSB, however, said that even though the plane was infested with smoke, the plane landed and came to a stop before it was swallowed by flames.^[104] The NTSB conducted a year-long investigation and finally stated that, while the definitive cause was still unknown, the crash was probably due to a gas-fueled heater that reportedly had caused in-flight problems.^[105]

When questioned by the NTSB, Pilots Brad Rank and Ken Ferguson had diversely different accounts of key events. According to co-pilot Ferguson, the cabin heater was acting up after the plane took off. Ferguson continued that Rank kept going back to the back of the plane to see if he could get the heater to function correctly and that Rank told Ferguson several times to turn the heater back on. "One of the times, I refused to turn it on," said Ferguson. He continued, "I was getting more nervous. I didn't think we should be messing with that heater en-route." After the plane crashed, Ferguson and Rank climbed out the windows, suffering from extensive burns. They shouted to the passenger cabin, but there was no response. Ferguson and Rank backed away from the plane, fearing explosion. Ferguson stated that Rank told him, "Don't tell anyone about the heater, don't tell anyone about the heater."^[106]

Pilot Rank, however, told a different story: Rank said that he was checking on the passengers when he noticed smoke in the middle of the cabin, where Rick Nelson and Helen Blair were sitting. Even though he never mentioned a problematic heater, Rank stated that he went to the rear of the plane to check the heater, saw no smoke, and found the heater was cool to the touch. After activating an automatic fire extinguisher and opening the cabin's fresh air inlets, Rank said that he returned to the cockpit where Ferguson was already asking traffic controllers for directions to the nearest airfield.^[106]

Rank was criticized by the NTSB for not following the in-flight fire checklist; opening the fresh air vents instead of leaving them closed, not instructing the passengers to use supplemental oxygen, and not attempting to fight the fire with the hand-held fire extinguisher that was in the cockpit. The board said that while these steps might not have prevented the crash, "they would have enhanced the potential for survival of the passengers."^[107] The words of the NTSB seem to echo that of firefighter, Lewis Glover, who was one of the first on the scene. Glover stated, "All the bodies are there at the front of the plane. Apparently, they were trying to escape the fire."^[108]

An examination indicated that a fire had originated in the right side of the aft cabin area at or near the floor line. Some reports said the passengers were killed when the aircraft struck obstacles during the forced landing. The ignition and fuel sources of the fire could not be determined. According to another report, the pilot indicated that the crew tried to turn on the gasoline cabin heater repeatedly shortly before the fire occurred, but that it failed to respond. After the fire, the access panel to the heater compartment was found unlatched. The theory is supported by records that showed that DC-3s in general, and this aircraft in particular, had a history of problems with the cabin heaters.

Tributes, honors, recognition [link]

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2006)

Nelson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, and to the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1515 Vine Street.

Along with the recording's other participants, Nelson earned the 1987 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for "Interviews from the Class of '55 Recording Sessions."

In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked Nelson number 91 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.^[109]

At the 20th anniversary of Nelson's death, PBS televised Ricky Nelson Sings, a documentary featuring interviews with his children, James Burton, and Kris Kristofferson. On December 27, 2005, EMI Music released an album titled Ricky Nelson's Greatest Hits that peaked at number 56 on the Billboard 200 album chart.

Bob Dylan wrote about Nelson's influence on his music in his 2004 memoir, "Chronicles, Vol. 1".

Nelson's estate (The Rick Nelson Company, LLC) owns ancillary rights to the Ozzie and Harriet television series, and, in 2007, Shout! Factory released official editions of the show on DVD. Also in 2007, Nelson was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame.

John Frusciante song "Ricky" was inspired by Ricky Nelson.

For the 25th anniversary of Nelson's death, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer James Burton, Nelson's original guitarist for nearly ten years, spoke about his friendship and experiences with the singer in an extensive series of interviews for Examiner.com. The first installment is entitled "Remembering Rick Nelson: An Interview With His Friend, Guitarist James Burton."

Discography [link]

Main article: Ricky Nelson discography

References [link]

Bashe, Philip (1992). Teenage Idol, Travelin' Man: The Complete Biography of Rick Nelson. New York: Hyperion. ISBN 1-56282-969-6.
Brackett, Nathan (Ed.); Hoard, Christian (Deputy Ed.) (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. New York: Simon & Schuster, Inc.. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
Bronson, Fred (2003). Billboard's Hottest Hot 100 Hits. New York: Watson-Guptill Publications. ISBN 0-8230-7738-1.
Dennis, Jeffrey P. (2006). Queering Teen Culture: All-American Boys and Same-Sex Desire in Film and Television. Binghamton, NY: Haworth Press, Inc.. ISBN 1-56023-349-4.
Holdship, Bill (2005). Ricky Nelson Greatest Hits. Hollywood, CA: Capitol Records.
Pohlen, Jerome (2006). Oddball Texas: A Guide to Some Really Strange Places. Chicago Review Press. ISBN 1-55652-583-4.
Selvin, Joel (1990). Ricky Nelson: Idol for a Generation. Contemporary Books, Inc.. ISBN 0-8092-4187-0.

Notes [link]

^ Whitburn
^ Bashe 284
^ "Special Collectors' Issue: 50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time". TV Guide (December 14–20). 1996.
^ Bashe 2,16-7
^ Selvin 25
^ Nelson was called "Ricky" from birth (Bashe 16).
^ ^a ^b Bashe 17
^ Selvin 26
^ Bashe 18
^ ^a ^b Bashe 19
^ Selvin 28
^ Bashe 19-20
^ ^a ^b Bashe 20
^ Selvin 29
^ Bashe 21
^ Selvin 30
^ Bashe 22
^ Bashe 24-5
^ Dennis 15
^ Bashe 23
^ Selvin 47
^ ^a ^b ^c Selvin 53
^ ^a ^b ^c Bashe 52
^ Selvin states Nelson never graduated Hollywood High (Selvin 85).
^ ^a ^b Selvin 55
^ ^a ^b Bashe 55
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Selvin 54
^ ^a ^b ^c Bashe 56
^ Selvin 15
^ Bashe 53
^ Bashe 54
^ ^a ^b Bashe 66
^ ^a ^b Selvin 62
^ ^a ^b Holdship 2
^ Selvin 60
^ ^a ^b ^c Bronson 154
^ ^a ^b Holdship 1
^ Bashe 69
^ ^a ^b Selvin 64
^ Bashe 71
^ Bashe 72
^ Selvin 66
^ Bashe 75
^ ^a ^b Selvin 68
^ Selvin 70
^ Bashe 78-9
^ Selvin 73-4
^ Selvin 76
^ Bashe 80
^ Bashe 81
^ Bashe 82-3
^ Bashe 83
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Bashe 90
^ Selvin 89
^ Selvin 89-90
^ ^a ^b ^c Bashe 91
^ Selvin 90
^ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 60. CN 5585.
^ Bashe 92-3
^ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 82. CN 5585.
^ Kelly 145
^ Bashe 136
^ Selvin 72
^ Bashe 137
^ Selvin 73
^ Bashe 106
^ Selvin 81
^ ^a ^b Selvin 83
^ Bashe 138
^ Selvin 116
^ ^a ^b Bashe 145
^ Bashe 138,140-1
^ Selvin 140
^ Bashe 139
^ Bashe 140
^ ^a ^b Selvin 149
^ ^a ^b Bashe 144
^ Selvin 137,149
^ Selvin 150
^ Selvin 230
^ Selvin 236, 238
^ Bashe 205
^ Selvin 251
^ Bashe 218
^ Bashe 221
^ Bashe 237
^ Selvin 262
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Bashe 229
^ ^a ^b Selvin 277
^ ^a ^b Bashe 271
^ ^a ^b ^c Bashe 242
^ Selvin 260
^ Bashe 242,244
^ Bashe 246
^ ^a ^b Bashe 273
^ Bashe 244
^ Selvin 113,185
^ Selvin 240
^ Selvin 257
^ Selvin 261
^ Bashe 259
^ Bashe 261-2
^ "Free-Basing Ruled Out in Nelson Crash". United Press International. May 28, 1987. http://articles.latimes.com/1987-05-28/news/mn-3328_1_nelson-crash. Retrieved 2 October 2011.
^ Jones, Jack (3 January 1986). "Probers Look to 2 Survivors for Clues in Crash That Killed Rick Nelson". LA Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1986-01-03/local/me-23919_1_rick-nelson. Retrieved 2 October 2011.
^ Pagano, Penny (29 May 1987). "Probe Discounts Drugs as Cause of Air Crash That Killed Rick Nelson". http://articles.latimes.com/1987-05-29/news/mn-2163_1_rick-nelson. Retrieved 2 October 2011.
^ ^a ^b Pagano, Penny (29 May 1987). "Probe Discounts Drugs as Cause of Air Crash That Killed Rick Nelson". LA Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1987-05-29/news/mn-2163_1_rick-nelson. Retrieved 2 October 2011.
^ Pagano, Penny (29 May 1987). "Probe Discounts Drugs as Cause of Air Crash That Killed Rick Nelson". L.A. Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1987-05-29/news/mn-2163_1_rick-nelson. Retrieved 2 October 2011.
^ Beitler, Stu. "De Kalb, TX Rick Nelson Dies In Airplane Crash, Dec 1985". GenDisasters. http://www3.gendisasters.com/texas/3622/de-kalb,-tx-rick-nelson-dies-airplane-crash,-dec-1985. Retrieved 2 October 2011.
^ "The Immortals: The First Fifty". Rolling Stone (946). April 15, 2004. ISSN 0035-791X. http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5939214/the_immortals_the_first_fifty. Retrieved December 12, 2007.

External links [link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ricky Nelson

Rick/Ricky Nelson's Official Website
Ricky Nelson at the Internet Movie Database
Ricky Nelson at Allmusic
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
U.S. National Transportation Safety Board Report on plane crash
Rockabilly Hall
Ricky Nelson^{[dead link]}
Ricky Nelson interviewed on The Pop Chronicles (recorded 11.17.1967)[1]
RCS Artist Discography
Ricky Nelson at Find a Grave

v t e Ricky Nelson

James Burton Richie Frost Gene Garf James Kirkland

Studio albums	Ricky Rocks Ricky Nelson Ricky Sings Again Songs By Ricky (Ricky Sings Spirituals) More Songs By Ricky Rick Is 21 Album Seven By Rick Best Sellers By Rick Nelson It's Up to You Million Sellers A Long Vacation Rick Nelson Sings For You For Your Sweet Love Rick Nelson Sings "For You" The Very Thought of You Spotlight on Rick Best Always Love and Kisses Bright Lights and Country Music On the Flip Side Another Side of Rick Nelson Country Fever Perspective In Concert at the Troubadour, 1969 Rick Sings Nelson Rudy The Fifth Garden Party Windfall Intakes Playing to Win The Memphis Sessions Lonesome Town Greatest Hits Ricky Rocks

Related Articles	Discography Gunnar Nelson Kristin Nelson Matthew Nelson Nelson (band)

Portal:Biography Portal:Rock and Roll Portal:Rock music

Persondata
Name	Nelson, Ricky
Alternative names	Nelson, Eric Hilliard
Short description	Actor, Musician, Singer
Date of birth	May 8, 1940
Place of birth	Teaneck, New Jersey, U.S.
Date of death	December 31, 1985
Place of death	De Kalb, Texas, U.S.

http://wn.com/Ricky_Nelson

http://ru.wn.com/Нельсон, Рики

http://fr.wn.com/Rick Nelson

http://nl.wn.com/Ricky Nelson

http://pt.wn.com/Ricky Nelson

http://de.wn.com/Ricky Nelson

http://it.wn.com/Ricky Nelson

http://pl.wn.com/Ricky Nelson

http://es.wn.com/Ricky Nelson

This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ricky_Nelson

This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, which means that you can copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.

Perry Como
Perry Como on The Perry Como Show set, 1956.
Background information
Birth name	Pierino Ronald Como
Born	(1912-05-18)May 18, 1912 Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	May 12, 2001(2001-05-12) (aged 88) Jupiter Inlet Colony, Florida, U.S.
Genres	Easy Listening, Adult Contemporary, Pop, Big Band, Jazz, Latin, Swing, Country, Rock and Roll, Religious music
Instruments	Vocalist
Years active	1933–1998
Labels	Decca, RCA Victor
Associated acts	Freddy Carlone Orchestra Ted Weems Orchestra

Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an American singer and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century he recorded exclusively for the RCA Victor label after signing with them in 1943.^[1] "Mr. C.", as he was nicknamed, sold millions of records for Radio Corporation of America (RCA) and pioneered a weekly musical variety television show, which set the standards for the genre and proved to be one of the most successful in television history. Como was seen weekly on television from 1949 to 1963, then continued hosting the Kraft Music Hall variety program on a monthly basis until 1967.^[2]^[3]^[4] His television shows and seasonal specials were broadcast throughout the world.^[5]^[6] Also a popular recording artist, Perry Como produced numerous hit records with record sales so high the label literally stopped counting at Como's behest.^[7] His combined success on television and popular recordings was not matched by any other artist of the time.^[8] Como's appeal spanned generations and he was widely respected for both his professional standards and the conduct in his personal life. In the official RCA Records Billboard magazine memorial, his life was summed up in these few words: "50 years of music and a life well lived. An example to all."^[9] Composer Ervin Drake said of him, "... [o]ccasionally someone like Perry comes along and won't 'go with the flow' and still prevails in spite of all the bankrupt others who surround him and importune him to yield to their values. Only occasionally."^[10]

One of the many factors in his success was Como's insistence on his principles of good taste; if he considered something to be in bad or poor taste, it was not in the show or broadcast.^[11]^[12] When a remark made by Julius La Rosa about television personality Arthur Godfrey on The Perry Como Show was misconstrued, Como offered an on-air apology at the beginning of his next show, against the advice of his staff.^[13]^[14]^[15] While his performance of "Ave Maria" was a tradition of his holiday television programs, Como refused to sing it at live performances, saying, "It's not the time or place to do it", even though it was the number one request of his audiences.^[16]^[17] Another was his naturalness; the man viewers saw on the screen was the same person who could be encountered behind a supermarket shopping cart, at a bowling alley, or in a kitchen making breakfast.^[18]^[19]^[20] From his first Chesterfield Supper Club television show, if scripts were written at all, they were based on the way Como would say something.^[12]^[21] Como was not devoid of a temper, and it could be seen at times as a result of the frustrations of daily life. His music director from 1948 – 1963, Mitchell Ayres, said, "Perry has a temper like everyone else. And he loses his temper at the normal things everyone else does. When we're driving, for instance, and somebody cuts him off, he really lets the offender have it."^[22]^[23]

Como received the 1959 Grammy Award for Best Vocal Performance, Male, five Emmys from 1955 to 1959,^[24] a Christopher Award (1956) and shared a Peabody Award with good friend Jackie Gleason in 1956.^[25]^[26] He was inducted into the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame in 1990^[27]^[28]^[29] and received a Kennedy Center Honor in 1987.^[30] Posthumously, Como received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002;^[31] he was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame in 2006 and the Hit Parade Hall of Fame in 2007.^[32]^[33] Como has the distinction of having three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his work in radio, television, and music.^[34]

Personal life [link]

Como was born in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania.^[35] He was the seventh of the 13 children of Pietro Como (1877–1945),^[27] and Lucia Travaglini (1883–1961),^[36]^[37] who both emigrated to the US in 1910 from the Abruzzese town of Palena, Italy.^[38]^[39]^[40] Perry was the first of their children born in the United States.^[40] He did not begin speaking English until he entered school, since the Comos spoke Italian at home.^[41] The family had a second-hand organ Pietro had bought for $3; as soon as Perry was able to toddle, he would head to the instrument, pump the bellows, and play music he had heard by ear.^[42] His father, a mill hand and an amateur baritone, had all his children attend music lessons even if he could barely afford them.^[43] In a rare 1957 interview, Como's mother, Lucia, described how her young son also took on other jobs to pay for more music lessons; Como learned to play many different instruments, but never had a voice lesson.^[40] Perry showed more musical talent in his teenage years as a trombone player in the town's brass band, playing guitar, singing at weddings, and as an organist at church.^[44]^[45] He was a member of the Canonsburg Italian Band along with the father of singer Bobby Vinton, bandleader Stan Vinton, who was often a customer at his barber shop.^[46]^[47]^[48]

Young Como started helping his family at age 10, working before and after school in Steve Fragapane's barber shop for 50¢ a week. By age 13, he had graduated to having his own chair in the Fragapane barber shop, although he stood on a box to tend to his customers.^[42]^[49]^[50] It was also around this time when young Como lost his week's wages in a dice game. Filled with shame, he locked himself in his room and did not come out until hunger got the better of him. He managed to tell his father what had happened to the money his family depended on. His father told him he was entitled to make a mistake and that he hoped his son would never do anything worse than this.^[42] When Perry was 14, his father became unable to work due to a severe heart condition. Como and his brothers became the support of the household.^[43]

File:Perry and Roselle Como 1987 Kennedy Center.jpg

Perry and wife Roselle Como
at Kennedy Center Honors, 1987.

Despite his musical ability, Como's primary ambition was to become the best barber in Canonsburg. Practicing on his father, young Como mastered the skills well enough to have his own shop at age 14.^[27]^[51] One of Como's regular customers at the barber shop owned a Greek coffee house that included a barber shop area, and asked the young barber if he would like to take over that portion of his shop. Como had so much work after moving to the coffee house, he had to hire two barbers to help with it. His customers mainly worked at the nearby steel mills. They were well-paid, did not mind spending money on themselves and enjoyed Como's song renditions. Perry did especially well when one of his customers would marry. The groom and his men would avail themselves of every treatment Como and his assistants had to offer. Como sang romantic songs while busying himself with the groom as the other two barbers worked with the rest of the groom's party. During the wedding preparation, the groom's friends and relatives would come into the shop with gifts of money for Como. He became so popular as a "wedding barber" in the Greek community he was asked to provide his services in Pittsburgh and Ohio.^[49]

In 1929, the 17 year old Como met Roselle Belline at a picnic on Chartiers Creek that attracted many young people from the Canonsburg area. Como, who attended the cookout with another girl, did not spot Roselle until everyone was around the campfire singing and the gathering was coming to a close. When it came Como's turn to sing, he chose More Than You Know, with his eyes on Roselle for the entire song.^[49] The teenage sweethearts were married July 31, 1933.^[27]^[52] They raised three children, Ronnie, David, and Terri, with traditional, non-show-business values.^[44]^[53] Because Perry Como believed his professional life and his personal life should be kept separate, he declined repeated interview requests from Edward R. Murrow's Person to Person.^[25]^[27]^[54]

In 1958, the Comos celebrated their silver wedding anniversary with a family trip to Italy. On the itinerary was an audience with Pope Pius XII.^[55] Como, who sat in a side wing of the Long Island church where he attended Sunday Mass in an effort to avoid attracting attention, was both puzzled and upset on returning home that photos from the visit made the newspapers throughout the world. A thorough check of both the Como and National Broadcasting Company (NBC) publicity offices found that neither was responsible for the release of the photos to the media; it was done by the Vatican's press department. When Perry and Roselle became Knight Commander and Lady Commander of the Equestrian Order of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre in 1952, it was a news item only after Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, who had been honored at the same ceremony, mentioned it some time later.^[7]^[18]^[27]^[44]^[56]^[57]

Como suffered a debilitating fall from a stage platform in 1971 while taping Perry Como's Winter Show in Hollywood.^[58] X-rays showed no serious injury to his knee, but by the next morning, it was twice normal size. The ailing Como chartered a jet back to his home and doctors in Florida, where a second exam showed it had been seriously broken. His knee was re-set and placed in a cast with a recuperation time of eight months.^[59]^[60] In 1993, he was successfully treated for bladder cancer.^[52] When Roselle died suddenly on August 12, 1998 at age 84, the couple had been married for 65 years.^[52] Como was reportedly devastated by her loss.^[27]^[61]^[62]

Bing Crosby once described Como as, "the man who invented casual".^[63] His preference for casual clothing did not keep him from being named one of the Best Dressed Men beginning in 1946, and continuing long after Como stopped appearing on weekly television.^[64]^[65]^[66] Como also had his own line of sports/casual men's clothing made by Bucknell circa early 1950s.^[67]

Perry was an accomplished golfer; there was always time to try getting in a game of golf.^[6]^[68] "Perry Como Putters" were sold by MacGregor, each stamped with a Como facsimile autograph.^[69] His colleagues held an annual Perry Como Golf Tournament to honor him and his love for the game.^[70]^[71] In what must have been one of his favorite shows of his weekly series, Como's guests on the October 3, 1962 broadcast were Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, and Gary Player. The four golfers played 18 holes for the cameras at Sands Point, New York, where the Comos made their home in the television years.^[18]^[27]^[72] Como also enjoyed fishing and could be found out on his boat almost every day after the family moved to Florida. Perry's "catches" would turn out to be the Como family's dinners.^[6]^[73] Como also used his boat as a rehearsal hall with pre-recorded instrumental tapes sent to him by RCA Victor. Perry would work on material while he was waiting for the fish to bite.^[74] Having enjoyed golfing and fishing in the North Carolina mountains for several years, Como built a vacation home in Saluda, North Carolina in 1980. He allowed no photos of his home, as it was his private place to get away from the celebrity life.^[75]^[76]^[77]

Professional singer [link]

Main article: Perry Como discography

Freddy Carlone and Ted Weems [link]

In 1932, Como left Canonsburg, moving about 100 miles away to Meadville, Pennsylvania, where his uncle had a barber shop in the Hotel Conneaut. About 80 miles from Cleveland, it was a stop on the itinerary for dance bands who worked up and down the Ohio Valley. Como, Roselle, and their friends had gone to nearby Cleveland; their good times took them to the Silver Slipper Ballroom where Freddy Carlone and his orchestra were playing. Carlone invited anyone who thought he might have singing talent to come up and sing with his band. Young Como was terrified, but his friends urged him onto the stage. Carlone was so impressed with his performance that he offered him a job.^[78]

The young man was not certain if he should accept the offer Freddy Carlone made, so he returned to Canonsburg to talk the matter over with his father. Perry expected he would tell him to stay in the barber business, but to his surprise, the senior Como told him if he did not try this, he would never know whether or not he could be a professional singer.^[78] The decision was also made with an eye on finances; Como earned $125 per week from his barber shop while the job with Carlone paid $28 per week.^[53] Roselle was willing to be a wife on the road, traveling with her husband and the band, but the salary could not support two people like this.^[27] Perry and Roselle were married in Meadville on July 31, 1933; four days later, Como joined Freddy Carlone's band and began working with them.^[79]^[80] Roselle returned home to Canonsburg; her new husband would be on the road for the next 18 months.^[81]

Como in 1939, when he was with the Ted Weems Orchestra.

Three years after joining the Carlone band, Como moved to Ted Weems' Orchestra and his first recording dates.^[1]^[82] Como and Weems met in 1936 while the Carlone orchestra was playing in Warren, Ohio.^[83] Perry initially did not take the offer to join Weems' orchestra. Apparently realizing it was the best move for his young vocalist, Freddy Carlone urged him to sign with Weems.^[84] Art Jarrett had just left the Weems organization to start his own band. Weems was in need of a vocalist; Como got a raise, as Weems paid $50 per week, and his first chance for nationwide exposure. Ted Weems and his orchestra were based in Chicago, and were regulars on radio shows such as The Jack Benny Program and Fibber McGee and Molly.^[85]^[86]^[87] The Weems band also had its own weekly radio program on the Mutual Broadcasting System from 1936 – 1937.^[88]^[89]^[90]

It was here where the young Como acquired polish and his own unique style, with the help of Ted Weems. Mutual Broadcasting System member WGN radio threatened to stop carrying the Weems broadcasts from Chicago's Palmer House if Weems' new singer did not improve. Weems had recordings of some previous radio programs; one evening he and Como listened to them after the show. From listening to them, Como realized no one could make out the words to the songs he was singing. Weems told Como there was no need for him to resort to vocal tricks; what was necessary was to sing from the heart.^[91]^[92]

Como's first recording with the Weems band was a novelty tune called "You Can't Pull the Wool Over My Eyes", recorded for the Decca Records label in May, 1936. During one of Como's early Decca recording sessions with the Weems orchestra, Weems was told to get rid of "that kid" (Como) because he sounded too much like Bing Crosby. Before Como could reply, Ted Weems spoke up, saying that Como was part of the session or it was over.^[41] By the time Como had been with Ted Weems about a year, he was mentioned in a 1937 Life magazine NBC Radio ad for Fibber McGee and Molly as "causing cardiac flutters with his crooning."^[93] The weekly radio show, Beat the Band, which ran on NBC from 1940 – 1944, was a "stump the band" type musical quiz show where Weems and his orchestra were the featured band from 1940 – 1941.^[88]^[89]

RCA Victor and radio [link]

Arriving in Chicago for performances in 1947, Como is met by his young fans who get a trim along with a song.

The Como's first child, Ronnie, was born in 1940 while the Weems band was working in Chicago. Como left the performance to be at his wife's side even though he was threatened with dismissal if he did so.^[52] Though Perry was now making $250 a week and travel expenses for the family were no problem, young Ronnie could not become used to a normal routine when they were able to stay in one place for a period of time. The radio program Beat the Band did not always originate from Chicago, but was often done from locations such as Milwaukee, Denver and St. Louis, as the band continued to play road engagements while part of the radio show cast.^[94] The Comos decided road life was no place to try raising a child, and Roselle and the baby went back to Canonsburg.

In late 1942, Como made the decision to quit the Weems band, even if it meant giving up singing.^[81] He returned to Canonsburg, his family, and his trade, tired of life on the road without his wife and young son.^[95] Como received an offer to become a Frank Sinatra imitator, but chose to keep his own style.^[96]^[97] While Perry was negotiating for a store lease to re-open a barber shop, he had a call from Tommy Rockwell at General Artists Corporation, who also represented Ted Weems. Como had many other calls bringing offers; what was different was that he knew and trusted Rockwell, who was offering him his own sustaining (non-sponsored) Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) radio show and to get him a recording contract.^[98] It also mattered that the offers meant staying in New York with no more road tours.^[27]^[84]^[99] As Perry pondered the offer, Roselle Como told him, "You can always get another barber shop if it doesn't work out!"^[1]^[44]^[100] Until the radio show and recording contract offers, he did not really view singing as his career, believing the years with Carlone and Weems had been enjoyable, but now it was time to get back to work. Como said in an 1983 interview, "I thought I'd have my fun and I'd go home to work."^[41]^[101]

Perry went on the air for CBS on March 12, 1943.^[102] Rockwell's next move was to book Como into the renowned Copacabana night club for two weeks beginning on June 10, 1943.^[27] One week later he signed his first RCA Victor contract and three days after that cut his first record for the company: "Goodbye, Sue".^[103]^[104] It was the beginning of a 44 year professional relationship; no major artist has been with a recording company longer.^[1]^[27]^[51] He became a very successful performer in theater and night club engagements; Como's initial two weeks at the Copacabana in June stretched into August.^[27] There were times when Frank Sinatra would ask Como to fill in for him at his Paramount Theater performances.^[105] The crooning craze was at its height during this time and the "bobby soxer" and "swooner" teenage girls who were wild about Sinatra added Como to their list, a "swooners" club voting him "Crooner of the Year" in 1943.^[106] The line for a Perry Como Paramount performance was three deep and wound around the city block. Como's popularity also extended to a more mature audience when he played the Versailles and returned to the Copacabana, where the management placed "SRO-Swooning Ruled Out" cards on their tables.^[25]^[106]^[107]

File:Chesterfield Supper Club in the air.jpg

Como and Jo Stafford at the microphones from a Trans World Airlines Lockheed Constellation, April 5, 1946.

Doug Storer, who was an advertising manager with the Blackman Company at the time, became convinced of Como's abilities after hearing him on his non-sponsored CBS Radio show. Storer produced a demo radio program recording with Como and the Mitchell Ayres Orchestra which he brought to the advertising agency that handled the Chesterfield cigarettes account. Initially, the agency liked the format of the show, but wanted someone else as the star, asking Storer to obtain the release of the singer they preferred, so he would be free for their new program. Storer decided to do nothing about getting the singer released from his contract. When he was contacted by the agency some weeks later, saying they were ready to put the program on the air on NBC, Storer bluntly told them the man for their show was the man they had heard on the demo recording. The program was scheduled to make its debut in about a week; the only option was to hire Como for the show. Storer then arranged for Como's release from his CBS contract.^[108] On December 11, 1944, he moved from CBS to NBC for a new radio program, Chesterfield Supper Club.^[109]^[110]^[111]

The April 5, 1946 broadcasts of the Chesterfield Supper Club took place 20,000 feet in the air; these were the first known instances of a complete radio show being presented from an airplane. Como, Jo Stafford, the Lloyd Shaffer Orchestra and the entire "Supper Club" crew made the flights for the shows.^[27]^[112] There were two "Supper Club" broadcast flights that evening: at 6 PM and again at 10 PM for the West Coast broadcast of the show. In addition to the instruments for the band, the plane also carried a small piano. Because the stand-held microphones were not very useful on the plane, hand-held mikes were then used, but due to the cabin pressure, they became extremely heavy to hold after a few minutes.^[113] This mid-air performance caused the American Federation of Musicians to consider this a new type of engagement and issue a special set of rates for it.^[114]

Como in concert [link]

After 26 years of not making night club appearances, Como accepted an engagement at the International Hotel in Las Vegas in June 1970, which also resulted in his first "live" album, Perry Como in Person at the International Hotel, Las Vegas.^[11] Ray Charles, whose Ray Charles Singers were heard with Como for over 35 years, formed a special edition of the vocal group for his Las Vegas opening. Prior to this he had last appeared at New York's Copacabana in 1944.^[51]^[115]^[116]^[117] Como continued to do periodic engagements in Las Vegas and Lake Tahoe, limiting his night club appearances to Nevada.^[118]

Performing live again brought Como a new sense of enjoyment. In May 1974, he embarked on his first concert appearance outside of the United States, a show at the London Palladium for the Variety Club of Great Britain to aid children's charities.^[119]^[120] It was here where he discovered what he had been missing when the audience cheered for ten minutes after he walked onstage. At the show's end, Como sat in a chair, delightedly chatting back and forth with his equally delighted fans.^[73] Perry returned to the United Kingdom (UK) in November for a Royal Variety Performance to benefit the Entertainment Artistes' Benevolent Fund with the Queen Mother in attendance.^[121]^[122]^[123] Como was invited to visit Buckingham Palace the day after the show. Since the invitation did not extend to his associates traveling and working with him, Como politely declined.^[124] When word reached the Palace regarding the reason for Perry's turning down the invitation, it was then extended to include all in the Como party.^[125] Soon after, he announced his first concert tour that began in the UK in the spring of 1975.^[126]

In 1982, Como and Frank Sinatra were invited to entertain Italian President Sandro Pertini at a White House State dinner when he made an official visit. President Pertini enjoyed their performance enough to join them in singing "Santa Lucia".^[127] The pair reprised this routine the next year in California as part of the entertainment for Queen Elizabeth's Royal visit.^[41]^[128] Perry was on the program by special request of the Queen.^[129]^[130]

1984 found Como traveling the US with his 50th Anniversary tour. Having spent most of his professional life in radio or recording studios and on television soundstages, he was enjoying doing live performances.^[131] Even after his 80th birthday, Perry continued the concert tours.^[78]^[132] Gone however, were the cardigan sweaters which were a staple of his weekly television shows. Como now performed in a tuxedo, saying, "It shows respect for the audience." ^[133]^[134] The return to live appearances also provided Como with an opportunity to have a little fun with his "Mister Nice Guy" image in a song Ray Charles and Nick Perito^[135]^[136] his closest collaborator since 1963,^[137] wrote for him:^[95]^[138]^[139]

It doesn't take a guy equipped with ESP, to see what's cookin' with your curiosity!
Is "Mister Nice Guy" just a press agent's pitch? his dearest friends say he's a . . .
You never thought you'd see me in Las Vegas 'live' I haven't played a "club" since 1885!
It's spelled out in dollar signs ( you better believe it! ) I can almost read your minds!

–Nick Perito and Ray Charles, "If I Could Almost Read Your Mind"

Vocal characteristics [link]

Perry Como credited Bing Crosby for influencing his voice and style.^[140]^[141] Perry Como's voice is widely known for its good-natured vocal acrobatics as portrayed in his highly popular novelty songs such as "Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom)", but there was another side to Perry Como. Music critic Gene Lees describes it in his sleeve note to Como's 1968 album Look To Your Heart:^[142]

Despite his immense popularity, Como is rarely given credit for what, once you stop and think of it, he so clearly is: one of the great singers and one of the great artists of our time.

Perhaps the reason people rarely talk about his formidable attributes as a singer is that he makes so little fuss about them. That celebrated ease of his has been too little understood. Ease in any art is the result of mastery over the details of the craft. You get them together to the point where you can forget about how you do things and concentrate on what you are doing. Como got them together so completely that the muscles don’t even show. It seems effortless, but a good deal of effort has gone into making it seem so. Como is known to be meticulous about rehearsal of the material for an album. He tries things out in different keys, gives the song thought, makes suggestions, tries it again, and again, until he is satisfied. The hidden work makes him look like Mr. Casual, and too many people are taken in by it — but happily so.

–Gene Lees-sleeve note, Look To Your Heart

From 1989 until his death in 2001, Como co-hosted a weekly syndicated radio show with John Knox, called Weekend With Perry.^[143]^[144]^[145]

Films [link]

Fox publicity photo of Perry Como.

Como's Hollywood type good looks earned him a seven year contract with 20th Century-Fox in 1943. He made five films: Something for the Boys (1944), March of Time (1945), Doll Face (1945),^[146]^[147]^[148] If I'm Lucky (1946), and Words and Music (1948), but he never appeared to be truly comfortable with the medium, feeling his roles did not match his personality.^[21]^[149]^[150]

Some misguided advisers sought to alter Como's life story by changing his previous occupation from barber to coal miner, claiming it would make for better press.^[146] Fred Othman, a Hollywood columnist, publicly stated he believed Como the barber was just a publicity gimmick. Perry gave him a shave and haircut at the Fox Studios barber shop to prove him wrong.^[101]^[151] In 1985, Como related the story of his first film role experience in Something for the Boys. He sat ready to work in his dressing room for two weeks without being called. Perry spent the next two weeks playing golf, still not missed by the studio.^[95] It was five weeks before he was actually called to the set, despite the studio's initial urgent report for work notice. When Como finally appeared, the director had no idea who he was.^[152]

At the time Como was signed, fewer musicals were being made by the studios because audiences were not going to the box office for this type of film. He was put into a sort of stock company, where the actors or actresses worked only when the studio needed to fill out a schedule.^[152] Though his last movie, Words and Music, was a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer production, Como fared no better. Less than two weeks before the film's release, Walter Winchell printed in his syndicated column, "Someone at MGM must have been dozing when they wrote the script for Words and Music. In most of the film Perry Como is called Eddie Anders and toward the end (for no reason) they start calling him Perry Como."^[153] Como asked for and received a release from the remainder of his movie contract in the same year.^[51]^[140]^[154] Quoting Como, "I was wasting their time and they were wasting mine." ^[95]

Como's comments during a 1949 interview were prophetic, as far as his success was concerned. At the time he was doing the Chesterfield Supper Club on both radio and television, "Television is going to do me a lot more personal good than the movies ever have...The reason should be obvious. On television, I'm allowed to be myself; in pictures, I was always some other guy. I come over like just another bum in a tuxedo."^[21] Como received some movie offers that pleased him while he was doing the weekly television shows, but there was just never enough time to pursue the film work.^[2]^[3]^[155]

Television [link]

Early years: 1948 – 1955 [link]

File:MutualComo54a.jpg

Perry Como for Chesterfield, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
Mutual Radio Network–1954

Perry Como made the move to television when NBC initially televised the Chesterfield Supper Club radio program on December 24, 1948. A very special guest on that first television show was Como's eight year old son, Ronnie, as part of a boys' choir singing "Silent Night" with his father.^[4]^[156] The show was the usual Friday night Chesterfield Supper Club with an important exception—it was also being broadcast on television.^[157] The experimental simulcast was to continue for three Friday "Supper Club" shows, but had gone so well, NBC decided to extend the televised version through August 1949.^[21]^[158] Years later, Como admitted to being scared and feeling awkward initially, but somehow managed to just be himself.^[159] Said Como, "You can't act on TV. With me, what you see is what you get." While still in its experimental phase, Como and the television show survived an on location broadcast in Durham, North Carolina, on April 15, 1949.^[27]

On September 8, 1949, it became a weekly half-hour offering on Sunday nights, directly opposite Ed Sullivan's Toast of the Town.^[111]^[160] In 1950, Perry moved to CBS and the show's title was changed to The Perry Como Chesterfield Show, again sponsored by Liggett & Myers' Chesterfield cigarettes.^[27] Como hosted this informal 15 minute musical variety series on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, immediately following the CBS Television News. The Faye Emerson Show was initially broadcast in the same time slot on Tuesday and Thursday.^[53]^[161] By 1952, it was evident that television would replace radio as the major entertainment medium. Gary Giddins, the biographer of Bing Crosby, said in 2001, "He (Como) came from this whole generation of crooners--Crosby and Sinatra, but he was the only one of them who figured out TV." ^[27] Como's 15-minute television show was also simulcast on radio via the Mutual Broadcasting System beginning on August 24, 1953; while the Chesterfield Supper Club broadcasts were simulcast on radio and television, this was the first instance of a simulcast between two networks.^[27]

Como's CBS contract was to expire on July 1, 1955.^[162] The year before, he had been asked to be the master of ceremonies and narrator of the NBC Radio 35th anniversary special.^[163] That April, Perry Como signed a 12 year "unbreakable" contract with NBC.^[162] On his last CBS show, June 24, 1955, Como was in high spirits, bringing all those who worked off camera on the air for introductions. Perry tried his hand at camera work, getting a picture on the air but one that was upside-down.^[27] In appreciation for the 11 year association, his sponsor, Chesterfield, presented him with all the musical arrangements used during this time as a parting gift.^[164]

Sing to me, Mr. C.: 1955 – 1959 [link]

He moved back to NBC with a weekly hour long variety show featuring additional musical and production numbers, comedy sketches and guest stars called The Perry Como Show, premiering Saturday, September 17, 1955.^[44] This version of his show was also so popular that in the 1956 – 1957 television season, it reached ninth in the Nielsen ratings, the only show on NBC that season to land in the top ten.^[27]

File:Ray charles singers and perry.jpg

Como and The Ray Charles Singers on the set of The Perry Como Show during "Sing To Me, Mr, C." segment, circa 1950s. Como's "sweater era".

Como's "Dream Along With Me" ^[165]^[166] became the show's opening theme song,^[4] "Mr. C." received the first of many "stacks and stacks of letters" requesting him to sing a specific song.^[50]^[165]^[167] It was also here where he began wearing his trademark cardigan sweaters.^[4]^[168]^[169] The "Sing to me, Mr. C." segment of the Como shows with Perry seated on a stool singing viewer requested songs had its roots in the first television broadcasts of Chesterfield Supper Club. When cameras entered the "Supper Club" radio studio, they found Como and his guests sitting on stools behind music stands.^[134]^[157] The show's closing theme was, "You Are Never Far Away From Me".^[4]^[165]

Perry's announcer on the broadcasts, Frank Gallop, became a foil for Como's jokes. When the television show began, there was not enough room for Gallop to appear on stage; he was an invisible "voice from the clouds" until the show's 1958 – 1959 season.^[170]^[171] There was as much fun at rehearsals as on the show itself.^[172] Como's relaxed and fun-loving manner at rehearsals put many nervous guests at ease.^[173] It was common for Como to leave the Saturday afternoon rehearsal for about a half-hour to go to confession. He managed to save some time by asking his music publisher, Mickey Glass, to wait in line for him at the confessional. Glass, who was Jewish, was most agreeable to this, but wondered what to do if his turn came before Como arrived.^[174]^[175]^[176]

Perry thoroughly enjoyed what he was doing, saying in a 1989 interview, "I got a kick out of live television. The spontaneity was the fun of it." ^[27] Spontaneity and the ability to be himself came in handy for swimmer/actress Esther Williams' guest appearance of March 16, 1957.^[177] A wardrobe malfunction meant that viewers were seeing more of Esther than 1950s television considered to be in good taste; more live show mishaps followed. At the show's end, Williams was swimming in a pool specially constructed on the set for her appearance. Como simply said, "Goodnight, folks," and leaped, fully clothed, into the swimming pool.^[178]

File:Perry and kirk douglas.jpg

Kirk Douglas prepares to lose his Lust For Life beard to Como's razor on The Perry Como Show, December 17, 1955.

On December 17, 1955, viewers were able to see first-hand what Perry did for a living before he was a professional singer. Actor Kirk Douglas was one of Como's television guests; Douglas had grown a beard for his Vincent Van Gogh role in Lust For Life, which finished filming that week. Como shaved Douglas' movie beard live on national television.^[8]^[27]^[179] On September 15, 1956, the season premiere of The Perry Como Show was broadcast from NBC's new color television studios at the New York Ziegfeld Theatre, making it one of the first weekly color TV shows.^[180] In addition to this season premiere as a color television show, there was also a royal visit from Prince Rainier of Monaco and his bride of six months, Grace Kelly.^[177]

Como competed with Jackie Gleason in what was billed as the "Battle of the Giants" and won.^[8] This is now rarely mentioned, in part because Como commonly downplayed his own achievements, and also because the two men were friends.^[7] The weekly ratings winner would phone the loser for some mock gloating.^[181]^[182] At the height of this television competition, Como asked Gleason a favor: to visit his home when his mother-in-law, a big Gleason fan, was there. Though Mrs. Belline spoke no English and Gleason no Italian, Roselle's mother was thrilled. Como's words to Gleason after the visit, "Anything you want, you got it. In fact, I'll even do one of your shows so the ratings will be better." ^[178] Como was among those who filled in for Gleason on The Jackie Gleason Show in 1954 when the entertainer suffered a broken ankle and leg in an on-air fall.^[183]^[184]

An example of Como's popularity came in 1956, when Life conducted a poll of young women, asking them which man in public life most fit the concept of their ideal husband: it was Perry Como.^[185] A 1958 nationwide poll of U.S. teenagers found Perry Como to be the most popular male singer, beating Elvis Presley, who was the winner of the previous year's poll.^[186]^[187] At one point, his television show was broadcast in at least 12 other countries.^[5]^[44]^[50]

Another way to judge the value of the Como show to the network can be found in the following: during sound checks at rehearsals, it was often difficult to hear Como's soft voice without having a large microphone ruin a camera shot. NBC had RCA design a microphone for the show, which was known as the "Como mike"; the microphone was able to pick up Como's voice properly and was small enough not to interfere with camera shots.^[188]

Kraft Music Hall: 1959 – 1967 [link]

In 1959, Como moved to Wednesday nights, hosting Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall weekly for the next eight years; the last four seasons from 1963 to 1967 were done as monthly specials alternating with Kraft Suspense Theatre, The Andy Williams Show, and finally The Road West.^[2]^[3]^[4] Como became the highest-paid performer in the history of television to that date, earning mention in the Guinness Book of World Records. Como himself took part in none of this; his production company, Roncom, named for son Ronnie Como, handled the transaction along with all other Como business matters.^[189] Como also had control of the show which would replace his during the summer television hiatus. While "Mr. C." was having a holiday, viewers would see Perry Presents, beginning in 1959.^[190]^[191]

In late 1962, after the Cuban Missile Crisis had settled well enough to permit the evacuated servicemen's families to return to Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara was eager to do more for morale there. He asked Perry Como to bring his television show to the Naval base.^[192] Perry and his cast and crew were at Guantanamo when the loved ones began their return.^[193] The first entertainers to visit the base since the crisis, the Como show filmed there for eight days. Some highlights of the program, which was seen in the US on December 12, 1962, included Como's shaving a serviceman with a Castro-like beard and the enthusiastic participation when Perry asked for volunteers to come on stage to do the Twist with the lovely ladies who were part of the visiting dance troupe.^[194]^[195]

Filming for the Kraft Music Hall Christmas show that was aired on December 17, 1964 began at the Vatican November 7.^[196] By special permission of Pope Paul VI, Como and his crew were able to shoot segments in the Vatican gardens and other areas where cameras had never been permitted previously.^[27]^[197]^[198] The show featured the first television appearance of the Sistine Chapel Choir, and also the first time a non-choir member (Como) sang with them.^[198]^[199] The choir performed a Christmas hymn in Latin written by their director, Domenico Bartolucci, called "Christ Is Born", as part of their presentation. Como asked his associate, Ray Charles, to write English lyrics for the song, using it many times on both television shows and his Christmas albums.^[198]^[200] The Carpenters also recorded the song on their first Christmas album, Christmas Portrait.^[198]

Specials [link]

Between 1963 and 1986, Como's television appearances began tapering off, gradually becoming limited to seasonal and holiday specials with the emphasis being on Christmas.^[155]^[201] Como had numerous Christmas television specials, beginning on Christmas Eve 1948, and continuing to 1994, when his final Christmas special was recorded in Ireland. They were recorded in many countries, including the Holy Land, Mexico, and Canada, as well as many locations throughout the United States. The 1987 Christmas special was cancelled at the behest of Como; American Broadcasting Company (ABC) was willing to offer him only a Saturday 10 PM time slot for it 3 weeks before the holiday.^[202] Perry filled the yearly gap for his fans with live Christmas concerts in various locations.^[78]^[132]^[203]^[204]

A farewell concert from Ireland [link]

Como's final Christmas special was filmed in January 1994 in Dublin's Point Theatre before an audience of 4,500 people, including Irish President Mary Robinson. Perry Como's Irish Christmas was a Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) production. Como appeared to be in less than the best of health; though the show as broadcast was less than ninety minutes long, its recording took over four hours.^[201]^[205] The performance is heartbreaking as it was evident he was unwell, but at the same time, heart-warming, because despite all that, Como persevered and sang those songs for his fans this one last time. At the show's conclusion, Como apologized to his Dublin audience for a performance he felt was not up to his usual standards.^[27]

During his visit to Dublin, Como visited a barber shop called "The Como" on Thomas Street. The owners, lifelong fans who named their business in his honor, had sent photographs of the shop and letters to Como inviting him to visit. Photos of Como with the barbers were framed in the shop. "The Como" closed in 2002 but it remains a household name in The Liberties.^[27]

Hometown honors [link]

Canonsburg has always been very proud to be the birthplace of Perry Como; the local newspaper of the time, Canonsburg Daily Notes, seems to have been the first to write an article about him. Their edition of July 19, 1934, featured a photo and the following: "A young Canonsburg boy threatens to snatch the crown from Bing Crosby's head. Perry Como, son of Mr. and Mrs. Pietro Como of 530 Franklin street is said to have one of the grandest baritone voices in the country." ^[45]^[206] The borough honored him three times over the course of his life.^[207] The first of these events took place September 14, 1946, when Third Street, where Perry worked in the barber shop of Steve Fragapane, was renamed "Perry Como Avenue". Perry, Roselle, and Como's mother, Lucy, attended the ceremonies and banquet held at the State Armory.^[27]^[45]^[208]

A second ceremony marking Perry Como Day took place August 24, 1977, but the most ambitious project began in 1997 – a statue of the singer.^[35]^[45]^[209] The planned statue had the blessing of Como's wife, Roselle, who died the year before it was unveiled on May 15, 1999.^[52] As part of the festivities, Como's stool and music stand from The Perry Como Show and the equipment he used at Steve Fragapane's barber shop were donated to the borough.^[206] Como was not present at the unveiling because of poor health. The inscription on the base, "To This Place God Has Brought Me", was a favorite saying of Como's; the musical feature was added in 2002.^[35]^[210]

The Como celebration crossed the Atlantic in August 2002. Palena, Italy, the birthplace of Como's parents, had a long-standing week-long festival in honor of the singer.^[211] A smaller version of the statue was taken to Palena by the mayor of Canonsburg, Anthony Colaizzo.^[212] Perry's son, David, and his wife were also in attendance when the town of Palena renamed a street for Como.^[210] There is a marble plaque on a Palena town wall stating that Pietro and Lucia Como, parents of Perry Como, emigrated from this village to the United States which dates from these ceremonies.^[213]^[214]

In 2007, the local McDonald's was totally rebuilt. The new building decor features memorabilia of Como along with that of fellow singer and Canonsburg native, Bobby Vinton.^[215] A children's playground in Canonsburg on Giffin Avenue is also named for Como.^[216] In downtown Canonsburg, all of the tree grates are marked with information about the records that sold a million copies and the town clock hourly plays one of the hits of Como (141), Vinton (44), or the Four Coins (7), also from Canonsburg.^[217]^[218]^[219]

Perry Como never forgot Canonsburg either.^[220]^[221] One of the things he did to give a helping hand to his home town was to convince RCA to open a record-pressing plant there.^[48]^[222] Those who needed to raise funds for local projects like Boys' and Girls' Clubs found him always ready to do whatever was needed.^[35]^[70]^[223]

Death [link]

Como died in his sleep on May 12, 2001, at his home in Jupiter Inlet Colony, Florida, six days before his eighty-ninth birthday. He was reported to have suffered from symptoms of Alzheimer's disease during the final two years of his life.^[224] His funeral Mass took place at St. Edward's Catholic Church in Palm Beach, Florida.^[225] Perry and Roselle are buried at Riverside Memorial Park, Tequesta (Palm Beach County), Florida. ^[226]^[227]

References [link]

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Special Perry Como RCA Victor 10th Anniversary section (pages 18-24). Billboard. 4 July 1953. http://books.google.com/books?id=WQoEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA18&lpg=PA18&dq=perry+como+canonsburg&source=bl&ots=jCEE0rsA5x&sig=miziidBc1yiLmPCssKuiPNiTdKA&hl=en&ei=KPW4S4iKOJX2Na7m5OEL&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CBQQ6AEwBjhu#v=onepage&q=perry%20como%20canonsburg&f=false. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c Morse, Jim (27 February 1960). "The Most Relaxing Show On Earth-Como And Crosby". The Miami News. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=81oyAAAAIBAJ&sjid=muoFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4247,6989752&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c Altschuler, Harry (29 Mau 1965). "What Perry Como Is Doing Now". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jV4bAAAAIBAJ&sjid=QE8EAAAAIBAJ&pg=6974,2398673&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 10 December 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F., eds. (1987), The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, Ballantine Books, pp. 1071–1072, ISBN 0-345-49773-2, http://books.google.com/books?id=flZ0wqsOnjkC&pg=PA1071&dq=perry+como&lr=&as_drrb_is=q&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&as_brr=3&cd=16#v=onepage&q=perry%20como&f=false, retrieved 14 April 2010.
^ ^a ^b Bacon, James (8 November 1960). "Como's Best Liked of Shows Abroad". Montreal Gazette. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=O10rAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Pp0FAAAAIBAJ&pg=4607,1387297&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c O'Brian, Jack (1 July 1971). "Como Far From Retired But He Fishes A Lot". Sarasota Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=XJEtAAAAIBAJ&sjid=EY0EAAAAIBAJ&pg=7410,169430&dq=perry+como+pope&hl=en. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c O'Brian, Jack (4 January 1973). "Como Wears White Hat". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=N2wsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=-8wEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4458,403214&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c A World of Nice Guys. Time. 15 December 1955. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,861756,00.html. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ RCA Memorial-Perry Como (page 79). Billboard. 26 May 2001. http://books.google.com/books?id=jhMEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA79&dq=perry+como+intitle:billboard&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=1&as_miny_is=2001&as_maxm_is=12&as_maxy_is=2001&as_brr=0&as_pt=MAGAZINES&cd=6#v=onepage&q=perry%20como%20intitle%3Abillboard&f=false. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ "Doug Bell's Corner-Message Archives". Kokomo. 13 April 2004. http://kokomo.ca/cd_review/_perito/dbc_archive_02.htm. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
^ ^a ^b O'Brian, Jack (21 November 1970). "Como Return a Triumph". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=MzMsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=vMsEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4845,4281437&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b "Perry Como's Success: It's Good Taste". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 18 January 1958. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7AodAAAAIBAJ&sjid=K2UEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7140,3031083&dq=perry+como+ace+goodman&hl=en. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
^ Wilson, Earl (17 October 1955). "Como Reconstruction To Comedy Isn't Easy". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=lngcAAAAIBAJ&sjid=5GQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1938,3527518&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 24 October 2010.
^ Kleiner, Dick (21 April 1956). "Perry Como Just Takes It Easy". Ottawa Citizen. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=qNMxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cuQFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3365,1480593&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 24 October 2010.
^ Wilson, Earl (8 June 1957). "Como Keeps Shady Stuff Off Show". The Miami News. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=JKEyAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fOoFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2435,3290890&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 19 November 2010.
^ Bark, Ed (23 November 1986). "Como Gets The Christmas Spirit". Beaver Country Times. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jdwqAAAAIBAJ&sjid=WNoFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2594,4899789&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ "People in the News-Hope Favors 'Silver Bells'". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 14 November 1977. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Ukk0AAAAIBAJ&sjid=X2cEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5157,5588917&dq=perry+como+marilyn+maxwell&hl=en. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c Ketcham, Diane (10 June 1990). "Memories Are Made Of This". New York Times. Archived from the original on 17 March 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5xGFXspmc. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ "Pin Splinters". Milwaukee Journal. 24 March 1956. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=mjQaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ByYEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4410,1845591&dq=perry+como+show+nbc&hl=en. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
^ Taylor, Dick (29 January 1956). "Eggs Ala Como For Toney's Gal". Palm Beach Post. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=KP0sAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Lc0FAAAAIBAJ&pg=1433,5496189&dq=mitchell+ayres&hl=en. Retrieved 27 July 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Sasso, Joey (27 August 1949). "Como Believes in Television". Lewiston Evening Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ioIpAAAAIBAJ&sjid=JWcFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3912,4892640&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 24 June 2010.
^ Kleiner, Dick (12 January 1961). "Pops To Met-The Hard Way". The Sumter Daily Item. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8QEvAAAAIBAJ&sjid=xqkFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3531,768619&dq=mitchell+ayres&hl=en. Retrieved 27 July 2010.
^ Como, Perry, Jablons, Beverly (10 May 1959). "Who Says I'm So Relaxed?". Herald-Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=-XosAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Y8wEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5454,1647656&dq=ray+charles+como&hl=en. Retrieved 8 January 2010.
^ "Primetime Emmy Database". American Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. http://www.emmys.com/award_history_search?person=perry+como&program=&start_year=1949&end_year=2010&network=All&web_category=All&winner=All. Retrieved 8 July 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c Moore, Jacqueline (5 January 1957). "Perry Como: Even His Rivals Are Fans (pages-40,41,53)". Ottawa Citizen Magazine. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=iEkxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=8eMFAAAAIBAJ&pg=6153,886207&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ "Peabody Awards Honor Como and Gleason". Milwaukee Journal. 11 April 1956. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=f2EaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=uCUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7410,258987&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z Macfarlane, Malcolm, ed. (2009), Perry Como: A Biography and Complete Career Record, McFarland, pp. 310, ISBN 0-7864-3701-4, http://books.google.com/books?id=iymN4zko8JkC&pg=PA76&lpg=PA76&dq=perry+como+sands+point&source=bl&ots=jS2EmKP72m&sig=kn-5GRUFqADRo4Kxm1vsvffZaTo&hl=en&ei=tkrWS4fpBoTcM7DQyc8D&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CBgQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=perry%20como%20sands%20point&f=false, retrieved 28 April 2010.
^ "Como inducted into TV Hall of Fame tonight". Observer-Reporter. 24 January 1990. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=XKxdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fV0NAAAAIBAJ&pg=3045,2723684&dq=roselle+como&hl=en. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
^ "Hall of Fame Lists Inductees". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. 12 December 1989. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=XeseAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2M4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=5221,6942256&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ "Kennedy Center Honorees-Perry Como". Kennedy Center. 1987. http://www.kennedy-center.org/programs/specialevents/honors/history/home.html. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ "Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award for Perry Como". United Press International. 26 February 2002. http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2002/02/26/Old-pros-up-for-top-pop-Grammy/UPI-83541014768758/. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ "Hit Parade Hall of Fame-Perry Como". Hit Parade Hall of Fame. 2007. http://www.hitparadehalloffame.com/Inductees_all/PerryComo.html.
^ "Long Island starts music Hall of Fame". United Press International. 16 October 2006. http://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/2006/10/16/Long-Island-starts-music-Hall-of-Fame/UPI-58271161011092/. Retrieved 6 September 2010.
^ "Perry Como Hollywood Star Walk". LA Times. http://projects.latimes.com/hollywood/star-walk/perry-como/. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Silver, Jonathan D., Belko, Mark (13 May 2001). "Canonsburg Remembers Perry Como". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. http://www.post-gazette.com/obituaries/20010513comoside6.asp. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ "Perry Como's Mother Dies At 78". Reading Eagle. 22 April 1961. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1955&dat=19610422&id=4W4rAAAAIBAJ&sjid=S5wFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2329,1841224. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ "Graves of Pietro & Lucia Como-Oak Spring Cemetery-Canonsburg, PA". Find A Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=11503866. Retrieved 26 June 2010.
^ Graybill, Guy, ed. (2008), Bravo! Greatness of Italian Music, Dante University of America Press, pp. 211, ISBN 0-937832-49-9, http://books.google.com/books?id=ZEm-XW1-Hz4C&pg=PA211&dq=perry+como+intitle:bravo&lr=&as_drrb_is=q&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&as_brr=0&cd=1#v=onepage&q=perry%20como%20intitle%3Abravo&f=false, retrieved 13 April 2010.
^ "Christmas, family and faith still important to Perry Como". St. Petersburg Times. 22 December 1979. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=nQUOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=eXwDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5372,5809408&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c Carlin, Margie (11 May 1957). "Perry Como a Nice Boy Who Grew Up to Be a Nice Guy". The Milwaukee Sentinel. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=GrAVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=RBAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7181,550250&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 January 2011.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Campbell, Mary (11 June 1983). "Fifty years in show business". Rome News Tribune. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=HYgxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cUUDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5034,1610508&dq=perry+como+rca&hl=en. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c Como.Perry, Zolotow, Maurice (10 January 1954). "My Story-Perry Como (pages 21-22)". Milwaukee Sentinel/American Weekly. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=hzUaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=xA8EAAAAIBAJ&pg=6207,6132686&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b Como, Perry (11 March 1955). "Success Is Result of Faith". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=BcQwAAAAIBAJ&sjid=4moDAAAAIBAJ&pg=1185,2940254&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 24 October 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "Perry Como, An Early Biography-RCA Records-Perry Como at Home". RCA Records. 1957. http://www.kokomo.ca/cd_review/press/earlybio.htm. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Nelson Jones, Diana (17 December 1995). "In search of the soul of Perry Como". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ Bishop, Pete (4 June 1982). "Love of Music, Gimmicks, Keep Lee Barrett In Swing at 68". Pittsburgh Press. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ZLQeAAAAIBAJ&sjid=-F4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=5092,1213943&dq=perry+como+stan+vinton&hl=en. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
^ Atkinson, Gord (3 August 1968). "Entertainment World". Ottawa Citizen. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=JLMyAAAAIBAJ&sjid=k-wFAAAAIBAJ&pg=704,590244&dq=perry+como+vinton+barber&hl=en. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
^ ^a ^b Greffenstette, Jerry, ed. (2009). Canonsburg. Arcadia Publishing. pp. 128. ISBN 0-7385-6533-4. http://books.google.com/books?id=vr31Qfo34g0C&pg=PA8&dq=bobby+vinton+statue&hl=en&ei=qRMXTMutBIvcNvvUmaYL&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CFoQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q=perry%20como&f=false. Retrieved 15 June 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c Como.Perry, Zolotow, Maurice (17 January 1954). "My Story-Perry Como Part 2". The American Weekly. http://www.webcitation.org/60FwTzCFz. Retrieved 17 July 2011.
^ ^a ^b ^c Severo, Richard (13 May 2001). "Perry Como, Relaxed and Elegant Troubadour of Recordings and TV, Dies at 88". New York Times. Archived from the original on 17 March 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5xGG2shmS. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Grudens, Richard, ed. (1986), The Italian Crooners Bedside Companion, Celebrity Profiles Publishing, pp. 63–69, ISBN 0-9763877-0-0, http://books.google.com/books?id=2nryuOQJP_MC&pg=PA62&dq=perry+como&lr=&cd=25#v=onepage&q=perry%20como&f=false, retrieved 14 April 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Fitch, Antoinette (1 August 1998). "Perry Como's Wife Sings His Praises At 65th Wedding Anniversary". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=MF4xAAAAIBAJ&sjid=S28DAAAAIBAJ&pg=2380,114079&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c Boyle, Hal (25 January 1955). "Perry Como Turns Down $250,000 A Year To Relax". The Tuscaloosa News. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8h0fAAAAIBAJ&sjid=25kEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7237,2740891&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ O'Brian, Jack (17 February 1954). "Bob Montgomery To Be Guest On Durante Show on March 14". Reading Eagle. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=NcYuAAAAIBAJ&sjid=0doFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2896,6249392&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 September 1954.
^ "Como Received By Pope Pius". Herald-Journal. 14 July 1958. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=rWwsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=d8sEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6030,1686900&dq=perry+como+pope&hl=en. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
^ O'Brien, Jack (26 June 1971). "Never Far From Tee". Herald-Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ZYcsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=tIoFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4780,4348004&dq=nick+perito&hl=en. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
^ "Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem-What it means to be a Member of the Order". Vatican.va. http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/institutions_connected/oessh/en/cenni_storici_en.html. Retrieved 9 May 2011.
^ "Host Perry Como Welcomes Mitzi Gaynor and Art Carney". Rome News-Tribune. 3 December 1971. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=AAYvAAAAIBAJ&sjid=QzMDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5633,547230&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ Thomas, Bob (4 November 1972). "Perry Como's Pace Even More Deliberate Now". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=YE8fAAAAIBAJ&sjid=rdEEAAAAIBAJ&pg=803,1182227&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ Oppenheimer, Peer J. (2 July 1972). "Whatever Happened To Perry Como, America's Favorite?". Lakeland Ledger. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=D7EqAAAAIBAJ&sjid=k2YEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5302,754969&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ Deni, Laura (24 August 1998). "Roselle Como Obituary". Broadway to Vegas. http://kokomo.ca/cd_review/press/roselle_como.htm. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ Smith, Thom (12 May 2008). "A Salute to Perry Como, Jupiter's Favorite Crooner". Palm Beach Post. http://www.palmbeachpost.com/entertainment/content/entertainment/arts_entertainment/epaper/2008/05/18/ae_perrycomo_web_0518.html. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ Newman, Maria (31 May 2002). "Touch of Celebrity Attracts Bidders to Auction of Perry Como Memorabilia". New York Times. Archived from the original on 17 March 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5xGFo0aRr. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ "Tailors Choose Best Dressed Men Of US". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. 26 March 1946. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=b2EoAAAAIBAJ&sjid=7sYEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6046,2370431&dq=perry+como+best+dressed&hl=en. Retrieved 7 January 2011.
^ "Names in the News". The Sun. 11 May 1966. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=DZRlAAAAIBAJ&sjid=GYoNAAAAIBAJ&pg=7216,3549177&dq=perry+como+best+dressed&hl=en. Retrieved 7 January 2011.
^ "People In The News". Park City Daily News. 2 May 1983. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=CDUqAAAAIBAJ&sjid=RUcEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5340,697185&dq=perry+como+best+dressed&hl=en. Retrieved 7 January 2011.
^ "Al Burk ad featuring Perry Como wearing one of the sports jackets in his line of clothing". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 13 May 1950. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=KwgNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=OGoDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6620,2998517&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 January 2011.
^ "Fleisher Leads in Como Golf". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. 29 November 1969. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=KoceAAAAIBAJ&sjid=lMsEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4332,7464177&dq=perry+como+golf&hl=en. Retrieved 11 October 2010.
^ "MacGregor Perry Como Putter". the golf zoo. http://www.thegolfzoo.com/OtherPutters.html. Retrieved 24 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b McManus, Margaret (2 January 1955). "Como Handles Kid Fans Same as Own Children". Miami News. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=3bAzAAAAIBAJ&sjid=CesFAAAAIBAJ&pg=974,504324&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
^ Who Shot What And How?. Billboard. 30 June 1951. http://books.google.com/books?id=8h4EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA16&dq=mitchell+ayres+como+golf&hl=en&ei=3XBcTLfpAYO88gba-9jcCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CE8Q6AEwBg#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
^ "Perry Como at Sands Point-Video of the television show". Sands Point Golf Club. 1962. http://www.sandspointgc.org/html/perrycomo_sp.html.
^ ^a ^b "Perry Como Sails on Placid Waters". Milwaukee Journal. 7 April 1979. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=1VoaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=oCkEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2380,4744372&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
^ O'Brian, Jack (12 October 1981). "'Nickleby' Is Nicked". Herald-Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=-4EsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=qc0EAAAAIBAJ&pg=3744,2931152&dq=perry+como+rca&hl=en. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
^ McCrary, Elissa (28 August 1981). "Crooner Seeks Sanctuary In Privacy Of Mountains". The Times-News. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Qj8aAAAAIBAJ&sjid=RiQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5273,6641893&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 18 November 2010.
^ O'Brian, Jack (25 August 1981). "Voice of Broadway". Sarasota Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=peQcAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Q44EAAAAIBAJ&pg=6797,2843015&dq=perry+como+rca&hl=en. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
^ Parce, Mead (7 April 1983). "Perry Como: just a regular grandfather". The Times-News. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=73EjAAAAIBAJ&sjid=NiQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2442,5580599&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 2 December 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Fishman, Charles (24 January 1993). "A Few Moments With Perry Como". Orlando Sentinel. http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1993-01-24/news/9301210863_1_perry-como-christmas-charles-fishman. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ Shapiro, Stephanie (22 December 1992). "Chairman of the Leisure Board's Fine Pop music: After 59 years in the business, Perry Como isn't about to retire. 'Mr. Relaxation' is still touring--and charming a new generation of fans". Baltimore Sun. http://articles.latimes.com/1992-12-22/entertainment/ca-2593_1_perry-como/2. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ Leary, Norma (29 October 1972). "The Day I Met Perry Como". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=W08fAAAAIBAJ&sjid=sdEEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3838,3975147&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b Foster, Ernest (9 July 1944). "Close Shave For Crooner". The Milwaukee Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=tyohAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Vn4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=3515,2761669&dq=weems&hl=en. Retrieved 31 October 2010.
^ "Ted Weems Orchestra with Perry Como "I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now"". YouTube. 1939. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTXL1sFhpDs.
^ Mulcahy, Charles J. (11 December 1940). "Perry Como, With Weems Show, Gives Palace Fans 5 Encores". Youngstown Vindicator. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=WbtJAAAAIBAJ&sjid=KoUMAAAAIBAJ&pg=4944,3905341&dq=elmo+tanner&hl=en. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
^ ^a ^b "Perry Como Started Out To Be Barber". Herald-Journal. 28 October 1951. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=FzEsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=P8sEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7136,6423077&dq=como+shaves&hl=en. Retrieved 26 November 2010.
^ "Perry Como Biography". Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. http://www.kennedy-center.org/explorer/artists/?entity_id=3710&source_type=A. Retrieved 26 May 2010.
^ "Ted Weems and his Orchestra". RedHot Jazz.com. http://www.redhotjazz.com/weems.html. Retrieved 26 May 2010.
^ "Audio file-Perry Como with Ted Weems Orchestra singing "Cabin of Dreams" on the NBC Fibber McGee & Molly show". 11 October 1937. http://www.richsamuels.com/nbcmm/jordans/audio/fmm193710113.ram. (RealPlayer)
^ ^a ^b Dunning, John, ed. (1998), On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio, Oxford University Press, USA, pp. 75, ISBN 0-19-507678-8, http://books.google.com/books?id=EwtRbXNca0oC&pg=PA75&dq=perry+como&lr=&cd=208#v=onepage&q=perry%20como&f=false, retrieved 7 April 2010.
^ ^a ^b "Perry Como-Old Time Radio". Old Time Radio Catalog. http://www.otrcat.com/perry-como-p-1719.html. Retrieved 10 June 2010.
^ Cochran, Marie (26 March 1937). "Mr. Weems' Mr. Gibbs Comes Home, Tells All". The Toledo News-Bee. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=XZtXAAAAIBAJ&sjid=BUUNAAAAIBAJ&pg=700,1934398&dq=elmo+tanner&hl=en. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
^ Simon, George T. (1967). "The Big Bands-Ted Weems". http://kokomo.ca/cd_review/_perito/perito_01.htm. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
^ Bloom, Ken; Feinstein, Michael, eds. (2005). The American Songbook: The Singers, Songwriters & The Songs. Black Dog & Leventhal. pp. 320. ISBN 978-1-57912-448-9. http://books.google.com/books?id=02UzLwNB_jMC&pg=PA29&dq=nick+perito&hl=en&ei=S-aTTffFF8iD0QHQsOD-Cw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CEwQ6AEwBzgU#v=onepage&q=nick%20perito&f=false. Retrieved 30 March 2011.
^ Monday Night Comes To Life. Life. 12 April 1937. http://books.google.com/books?id=gUsEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA7&dq=perry+como+ted+weems&hl=en&ei=Vq3uTL-TN5btnQedxficCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CEAQ6AEwBTge#v=onepage&q=perry%20como%20ted%20weems&f=false. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
^ Goldin, David. "list of 'Beat the Band' episodes". RadioGold. http://radiogoldindex.com/cgi-local/p2.cgi?ProgramName=Beat+The+Band. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Thomas, Bob (25 August 1985). "Cool, calm singer Perry Como just missed being a barber". Gainesville Sun. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2bQRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iOkDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2451,3760562&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ Daniel, Jesse (23 June 1946). "Perry Como Sings For His Supper". Milwaukee Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0CwaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=8SQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4114,3601061&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ "Perry Como Abjured Imitation, Rose to Top on His Own Merits". Montreal Gazette. 7 January 1947. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ZjArAAAAIBAJ&sjid=CZkFAAAAIBAJ&pg=5309,935464&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 24 June 2010.
^ Sher, Jack (23 March 1947). "He Got Rich Quick". The Milwaukee Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ymEaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=CiUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2402,4535909&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 16 December 2010.
^ "Perry Como Gets More 'Swoons' Than Anyone". St. Petersburg Times. 25 July 1943. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=oLUKAAAAIBAJ&sjid=hU0DAAAAIBAJ&pg=7113,6006454&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ Eyeman, Scott (4 January 1991). "Perry Como Still Relaxed, Singing To Sold-out House". Orlando Sentinel. http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1991-01-04/news/9101040233_1_perry-como-bing-sinatra. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b Laffler, William D. (21 August 1983). "Chopin Tune Helped Bring Fame to Perry Como". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=d7keAAAAIBAJ&sjid=eGgEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6723,911556&dq=perry+como+rca&hl=en. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
^ Cohen, Harold V. (5 March 1943). "The Drama Desk". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=mcMwAAAAIBAJ&sjid=A2oDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3195,140022&dq=perry+como+build+up&hl=en. Retrieved 2 December 2010.
^ "'Goodbye, Sue'". Kokomo. http://www.kokomo.ca/early_years/goodbye_sue.htm. Retrieved 23 November 2010.
^ "Former Barber Perry Como Did Well In The Last 50 Years". Gainesville Sun. 23 June 1983. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=o4MRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=rekDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7250,2143529&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 18 November 2010.
^ Sinatra, Nancy, ed. (1986), Frank Sinatra: My Father, Pocket, p. 47, ISBN 0-671-62508-X, http://books.google.com/books?id=9EiE2i6i-PUC&pg=PA47&dq=perry+como&lr=&cd=262#v=onepage&q=perry%20como&f=false, retrieved 7 April 2010
^ ^a ^b "Teenage Girls Choose Como as 'Crooner of Year'". Pittsburgh Press. 19 September 1943. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=nDUbAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iUwEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2511,6334422&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ Dana, Robert (16 February 1944). "Perry Como Set to Croon at the Versailles". Craig's Big Bands and Big Names. http://www.bigbandsandbignames.com/perrycomo.html. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
^ Storer, Doug (14 October 1983). "Doing it his way paid off for famous trio". The Evening Independent. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=sLhaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zFkDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5363,3399391&dq=perry+como+fifty&hl=en. Retrieved 1 April 2011.
^ Mackenzie, Harry, ed. (1999), The Directory of the Armed Forces Radio Service Series, Greenwood Press, pp. 87–88, ISBN 0-313-30812-8, http://books.google.com/books?id=L3WyZ9A4_XEC&pg=PA87&dq=perry+como&lr=&as_drrb_is=q&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&as_brr=3&cd=28#v=onepage&q=perry%20como&f=false, retrieved 14 April 2010.
^ Fleming, Robert (23 November 1947). "Crosby Takes It Easy, But So Does Perry Como". Milwaukee Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=wR4aAAAAIBAJ&sjid=5iQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3453,1443618&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
^ ^a ^b Hammerston, Claude (8 August 1949). "Two Gypsy Folk Tales". Ottawa Citizen. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8mEvAAAAIBAJ&sjid=49wFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4280,2872001&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 24 June 2010.
^ "Big Plane To Serve As Broadcast Studio". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 28 March 1946. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=iuMcAAAAIBAJ&sjid=mWQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1527,6651826&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 24 October 2010.
^ BCL (8 April 1946). "Flyin' High". The Milwaukee Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=mh0aAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ECUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1922,3325213&dq=martin+block&hl=en. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
^ Stratosphere Date For 'Club'; Jittery Cast Is Insured. Billboard. 30 March 1946. http://books.google.com/books?id=JBoEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT15&lpg=PT15&dq=chesterfield+supper+club+airplane&source=bl&ots=clHyNgoNzw&sig=o06wlvMbykEa1ONT9xo072VnAZM&hl=en&ei=7SUpTJSRC4LonQeQ34STAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CCgQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
^ Perry Likes to Sing; Dean Has a comedy Fling (page 50). Billboard. 19 September 1970. http://books.google.com/books?id=wCkEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA50-IA12&dq=perry+como+intitle:billboard&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&as_brr=0&as_pt=MAGAZINES&cd=31#v=onepage&q=perry%20como%20intitle%3Abillboard&f=false. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ Boyle, Hal (22 June 1970). "Living Is Enjoying What You Do: Como". Ocala Star-Banner. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=TlAxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=RgUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7432,8840606&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ "Como, 58 and Grey, in first Night Club Stint in 26 Years". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. 1 July 1970. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=m4gfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=lcsEAAAAIBAJ&pg=817,135310&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ 3 Old Pros-Tony, Vic and Perry Improve MOR's Appearance (page 24). Billboard. 4 November 1972. http://books.google.com/books?id=Bw8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA24&dq=perry+como+intitle:billboard&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&as_brr=0&as_pt=MAGAZINES&cd=55#v=onepage&q=perry%20como%20intitle%3Abillboard&f=false. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ "A Charity Feast with Perry Como". Kokomo. http://www.kokomo.ca/harry_smith/chapters/a_charity_feast_with_perry_como.htm. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ "Copy of Variety Club ticket". Kokomo. http://www.kokomo.ca/harry_smith/photo_pages/hs/variety_club_1974_ticket.htm. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ "Royal Performance information". Kokomo. http://www.kokomo.ca/harry_smith/photo_pages/hs/variety_1.htm. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ "The Royal Variety Performance". Kokomo. http://www.kokomo.ca/harry_smith/chapters/royal_variety_performance.htm. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ "Royal Variety Performance". Entertainment Artistes Benevolent Fund. 1974. http://www.eabf.org.uk/royal-variety-performance/archive/1970s/1974. Retrieved 22 January 2011.
^ O'Brian, Jack (5 December 1974). "Perry Shatters London Audience, Also Protocol". Sarasota Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=lvgeAAAAIBAJ&sjid=T40EAAAAIBAJ&pg=7039,1251576&dq=harry+sobol+como&hl=en. Retrieved 29 November 2010.
^ O'Brian, Jack (27 November 1974). "Jack O'Brian". Toledo Blade. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=AtFOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=JQIEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5499,6008560&dq=perry+como+queen&hl=en. Retrieved 1 April 2011.
^ Como UK Tour His First Ever (page 56). Billboard. 7 December 1974. http://books.google.com/books?id=fQkEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA56&dq=perry+como+intitle:billboard&lr=&as_brr=0&as_pt=MAGAZINES&cd=116#v=onepage&q=perry%20como%20intitle%3Abillboard&f=false. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ "Sinatra, Como White House Hit". The Press-Courier. 26 March 1982. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=RRtKAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ASINAAAAIBAJ&pg=4995,6139554&dq=perry+como+frank+sinatra&hl=en. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
^ "Hollywood stars treat the queen like 'royalty'". Spokane Chronicle. 28 February 1983. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=TTwaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=XycEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5770,4154691&dq=perry+como+frank+sinatra+queen&hl=en. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
^ Sharp, Frederick (1 March 1983). "Mixed reviews for Queen in Hollywood". The Glasgow Herald. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0Ow9AAAAIBAJ&sjid=wEgMAAAAIBAJ&pg=1517,9732&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 2 December 2010.
^ "Royalty will visit". Star-News. 26 February 1983. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=-9ZOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cRMEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3239,7122564&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 2 December 2010.
^ Cranford, Beaufort, McFarlin, Jim (17 August 1984). "50 years later, Perry Como's still a big hit". Deseret News. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=kpAzAAAAIBAJ&sjid=A4MDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6951,763253&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b Corr, John (25 December 1992). "On the Concert Trail With Mr. C.". Orlando Sentinel. http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1992-12-25/entertainment/9212240239_1_perry-como-barber-rca. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ Hawn, Jack (31 July 1985). "Life On The Road Brings Como This Way Again". LA Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1985-07-31/entertainment/ca-5484_1_perry-como. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ ^a ^b "It's impossible! Perry Como actually hated those sweaters". Milwaukee Journal. 24 July 1985. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=QV0aAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ayoEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1859,3426659&dq=nick+perito&hl=en. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
^ "Composer Nick Perito dead at 81". United Press International. 3 August 2005. http://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/2005/08/16/Composer-Nick-Perito-dead-at-81/UPI-15851124212822. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ "The Como Team". Perry Como Appreciation Society. http://theperrycomoappreciationsociety.webs.com/thecomoteam.htm. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
^ Ankeny, Jason. Nick Perito at Allmusic. Retrieved 30 March 2011.
^ "Perry Como in Person at the International Hotel, Las Vegas". Kokomo. 1970. http://www.kokomo.ca/album_24.htm. Retrieved 7 June 1970.
^ "If I Could Almost Read Your Mind Lyrics". Kokomo. http://kokomo.ca/pop_standards/if_i_could_almost_read_your_mind_1970.htm. Retrieved 20 June 2010.
^ ^a ^b Hemming, Roy; Hajdu, David, eds. (1999), Discovering Great Singers of Classic Pop:, Newmarket Press, pp. 130–133, ISBN 1-55704-148-2, http://books.google.com/books?id=zbYtmOIHvfcC&pg=PA130&dq=perry+como&lr=&cd=13#v=onepage&q=perry%20como&f=false, retrieved 13 April 2010.
^ Gilliland, John. Pop Chronicles the 40's: The Lively Story of Pop Music in the 40's. ISBN 978-1-55935-147-8. OCLC 31611854. , tape 1, side B.
^ Lees, Gene (1968). "Look to Your Heart-Liner Notes". RCA Victor. http://www.kokomo.ca/_private/album222.htm. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
^ "Perry Como Obituary". CNN. 13 May 2001. http://archives.cnn.com/2001/SHOWBIZ/Music/05/12/como.obit/. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ Carnes, Mark C., ed. (2005). American national biography:Supplement issue 2. Oxford University Press USA. pp. 848. ISBN 0-19-522202-4. http://books.google.com/books?id=wZczV8ZxgL4C&pg=PA103&dq=chesterfield+supper+club&hl=en&ei=7W4pTJLBCYvrnQeymoCTAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCcQ6AEwADgo#v=onepage&q=chesterfield%20supper%20club&f=false. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
^ "A gift to the community, A Perry Como Christmas Special". TCPalm. 20 December 2010. http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2010/dec/20/a-gift-to-the-community-a-perry-como-christmas-spe/. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
^ ^a ^b Garrison, Maxine (30 September 1945). "Canonsburg Barber is Hoofing Now". Pittsburgh Press. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1144&dat=19450930&id=V-UdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=OE4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=2583,4727728. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
^ "Perry Como and Martha Stewart sing "Hubba, Hubba, Hubba"". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPoZeeOuY5s.
^ "Doll Face-Full Movie Download". Internet Archives. 1945. http://www.archive.org/details/dollface. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
^ "Perry Como Is Contented, Relaxed". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. 9 October 1954. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=u1EgAAAAIBAJ&sjid=tcwEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1558,6757143&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
^ Sher, Jack (23 March 1947). "He Got Rich Quick". Milwaukee Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ymEaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=CiUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2402,4535909&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ Othman, Frederick C. (17 June 1944). "Canonsburg Barber Still In A-1 Shape". Pittsburgh Post Gazette. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=KM4MAAAAIBAJ&sjid=vmkDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5224,3456952&dq=como+shaves&hl=en. Retrieved 26 November 2010.
^ ^a ^b Thomas, Bob (21 January 1960). "Perry's Doing a Bit Better, These Days". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=i3cjAAAAIBAJ&sjid=9MkEAAAAIBAJ&pg=861,3272448&dq=perry+como+director&hl=en. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ Winchell, Walter (19 December 1948). "Edgar Bergen Took Out Insurance and Retired". Herald-Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=YF0sAAAAIBAJ&sjid=J8sEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4478,5645022&dq=walter+winchell+words+and+music&hl=en. Retrieved 26 November 2010.
^ LaGumina, Salvatore J.; Cavaioli, Frank J.; Primeggia, Salvatore et al., eds. (1999), The Italian American Experience: An Encyclopedia, Routledge, pp. 130–133, ISBN 0-8153-0713-6, http://books.google.com/books?id=u2SZ5avlZ24C&pg=PA138&dq=perry+como&lr=&as_drrb_is=q&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&as_brr=3&cd=89#v=onepage&q=perry%20como&f=false, retrieved 13 April 2010.
^ ^a ^b Lowry, Cynthia (21 February 1963). "Weary Perry Como Sets Limit of 6 Shows Next Year". Schenectady Gazette. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=FwgrAAAAIBAJ&sjid=OokFAAAAIBAJ&pg=760,2850263&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
^ "Perry Como Show-1948-1955". CTVA-Classic TV Archive. http://web.archive.org/web/20101224225533/http://ctva.biz/US/MusicVariety/PerryComoShow_1948-55.htm. Retrieved 18 August 2010.
^ ^a ^b Smith, Cecil (22 January 1970). "Perry Como's Relaxed As Ever". Toledo Blade. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6BIxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=uAEEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7059,633494&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 8 January 2011.
^ "Perry Como Will Salute Azalea Fete". Star-News. 24 March 1949. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=01VgAAAAIBAJ&sjid=p3ENAAAAIBAJ&pg=5914,6367171&dq=mitchell+ayres&hl=en. Retrieved 18 April 2011.
^ Rich, Frank (30 December 2001). "The Lives They Lived-50's-Perry Como B. 1912". New York Times. Archived from the original on 17 March 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5xGGC4EYl. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
^ "Chesterfield Supper Club". Internet Archives. 27 November 1949. http://www.archive.org/details/ChesterfieldSupperClub-27november1949. Retrieved 9 May 2010.
^ "The Perry Como Show (video)". Internet Archives. 1952. http://www.archive.org/details/Perry_Como_1952. Retrieved 9 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b Baft, Atra (1 April 1955). "Perry Como Signs With NBC For One-Hour Show Weekly". Reading Eagle. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SAwrAAAAIBAJ&sjid=VJoFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4481,387375&dq=perry+como+contract&hl=en. Retrieved 19 November 2010.
^ Ward, Henry (24 June 1954). "Old Voices Return to Network". The Pittsburgh Press. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=THgbAAAAIBAJ&sjid=HE4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=4857,2404314&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 19 November 2010.
^ O'Brian, Jack (30 June 1955). "Value of $350,000 Is Placed On Farewell Gift to Como". Reading Eagle. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=BwcrAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TpgFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3299,5716118&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 19 November 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Perry Como TV Lyrics-We Get Letters". http://web.archive.bibalex.org/web/20071225193341/http://www.cfhf.net/lyrics/perry.htm. Retrieved 25 May 2010.
^ "Dream Along With Me". Kokomo. http://www.kokomo.ca/early_years/dream_along_with_me.htm. Retrieved 17 August 2010.
^ "Sing to me, Mr. C.". Kokomo. http://www.kokomo.ca/pop_standards/sing_to_me.htm. Retrieved 17 August 2010.
^ Denisova, Maria. Pennsylvania Book-Biographies-Perry Como. http://pabook.libraries.psu.edu/palitmap/bios/Como__Perry.html. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ "Regis Philbin recalls Perry Como on TV". Entertainment Weekly. 18 October 1991. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,315904,00.html. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ Dornbrook, Don (25 January 1959). "Perry Como's Announcer Comes Down to Earth". Milwaukee Journal. Retrieved 7 May 2010
^ Oviatt, Ray (23 November 1958). "Frank Gallop: The Man Who Goes for 'Breaks'". Toledo Blade. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=xTkxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=5wAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7518,1302576&dq=frank+gallop&hl=en. Retrieved 17 August 2010.
^ Kleiner, Dick (21 November 1955). "Perry Como's Plan: Just Take It Easy". Sarasota Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PgUdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=w4oEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4330,3096686&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ "Perry Como Never Bothers To Worry". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. 13 October 1956. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=fjgeAAAAIBAJ&sjid=k8sEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1931,1891441&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 8 January 2011.
^ Wilson, Earl (27 May 1956). "Coffee Klatsch, Break for Como". The Milwaukee Sentinel. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=yGpQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=RxAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3600,3380106&dq=perry+como+klatsch&hl=en. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
^ Wilson, Earl (17 February 1956). "Talk is Again Boosting Perle Mesta". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=nCEhAAAAIBAJ&sjid=7mQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4973,4391205&dq=perry+como+mickey+glass&hl=en. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
^ Starr, Michael (6 August 2007). "Starr Report-Death of Mickey Glass". The New York Post. http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/tv/starr_report_mb1xB4d4k6q3WIYuoQGo2K. Retrieved 1 September 2011.
^ ^a ^b "Perry Como Shows-1956-1959". CTVA-Classic TV Archive. http://web.archive.org/web/20101224230423/http://ctva.biz/US/MusicVariety/PerryComoShow_1955-59.htm. Retrieved 18 August 2010.
^ ^a ^b Escott, Colin, ed. (2002), Roadkill on the three-chord highway: art and trash in American popular music, Routledge, pp. 224, ISBN 0-415-93782-5, http://books.google.com/books?id=bbT2X4Rof9MC&pg=PA41&dq=perry+como+television+1948&hl=en&ei=uS01TIn5JoWfnQe4goQ6&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CEkQ6AEwBzgK#v=onepage&q=perry%20como%20television%201948&f=false, retrieved 13 July 2010.
^ Mosby, Aline (15 December 1955). "Perry Como To Wield Razor On Kirk Douglas". Deseret News. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=iwcpAAAAIBAJ&sjid=dUkDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7160,3929519&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ Bell, Joseph N. (9 March 1958). "Perry Como's Formula For Success". The Palm Beach Post. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=dAcjAAAAIBAJ&sjid=i80FAAAAIBAJ&pg=2666,1834453&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ Reed, J. D. (28 May 2001). Mister Nice Guy. People. http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20134524,00.html. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ "Perry Como:"Money is important only to a point."(page 2)". Mr. Pop Culture. 23 January 1955. http://www.mrpopculture.com/files/January%2023,%201955.pdf. Retrieved 4 April 2010. (PDF)
^ Wilson, Earl (13 February 1954). "New York". St. Petersburg Times. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2kBSAAAAIBAJ&sjid=aHoDAAAAIBAJ&pg=1902,5621497&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 19 November 2010.
^ "Gleason's Ankle, Leg Are Broken". Youngstown Vindicator. 1 February 1954. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=wrg_AAAAIBAJ&sjid=PVcMAAAAIBAJ&pg=5940,3233&dq=jackie+gleason+leg&hl=en. Retrieved 19 November 2010.
^ 20 Year Olds' Ideal (pages 143-145). Life Magazine. 24 December 1956. http://books.google.com/books?id=00EEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA143&dq=perry+como&cd=3#v=onepage&q=perry%20como&f=false. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ Gilbert, Eugene (17 January 1958). "Baritone Barber Beats Out Presley". The Vancouver Sun. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jWNlAAAAIBAJ&sjid=6IkNAAAAIBAJ&pg=2442,2795692&hl=en. Retrieved 29 October 2011.
^ Gilbert, Eugene (17 January 1958). "Perry Como Teeners' Top Vocalist". Ottawa Citizen. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=GfMxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=LeMFAAAAIBAJ&pg=7164,3450450&hl=en. Retrieved 29 October 2011.
^ "RCA BK-10A". Coutant.org. http://www.coutant.org/bk10a/. Retrieved 9 July 2010.
^ Perry Como Signs $25 million deal. Time. 16 March 1959. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,937011,00.html. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
^ "Bennett, Brewer, Four Lads Star In Como Summer Show". The Montreal Gazette. 13 June 1959. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=fsAtAAAAIBAJ&sjid=t5wFAAAAIBAJ&pg=5859,2896149&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ "For Perry Como Record TV Contract". Kentucky New Era. 5 March 1959. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=-uUrAAAAIBAJ&sjid=O2cFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1098,4025936&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
^ "Perry Como". London: The Independent. 14 May 2001. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/perry-como-729113.html. Retrieved 23 September 2010.
^ Price, Bem (8 December 1962). "U. S. Families Reactivating Guantanamo". Times Daily. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7RosAAAAIBAJ&sjid=nMYEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2447,4478447&dq=perry+como+cuba&hl=en. Retrieved 23 September 2010.
^ Du Brow, Rick (11 December 1962). "Perry Como's Show At Guantanamo". Gadsden Times. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PXspAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Y9UEAAAAIBAJ&pg=480,1641829&dq=perry+como+cuba&hl=en. Retrieved 23 September 2010.
^ "Kraft Music Hall: The Perry Como Show 1959-1963". Classic TV Archive. http://web.archive.org/web/20101224224713/http://ctva.biz/US/MusicVariety/PerryComoShow_1959-63.htm. Retrieved 23 September 2010.
^ "Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall". Internet Movie Database. 17 December 1964. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1406080/. Retrieved 2 December 2010.
^ "Perry Como Films Show in Vatican". Reading Eagle. 7 November 2010. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=rllWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=XkMNAAAAIBAJ&pg=2992,4218324&dq=perry+como+vatican&hl=en. Retrieved 2 December 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Perry Como Greatest Christmas Songs liner notes". Kokomo. http://kokomo.ca/cd_review/Notes/christmas_songs_liner_notes.htm. Retrieved 2 December 2010.
^ "Doug Bell's Message Corner-Obituary: Perry Como". Kokomo. 9 June 2001. http://kokomo.ca/cd_review/_perito/dbc_archive_07.htm. Retrieved 2 December 2010.
^ "Christ Is Born". Kokomo. http://kokomo.ca/xmas/christ_is_born.htm. Retrieved 2 December 2010.
^ ^a ^b "Perry Como's Christmas Concert 1993". Kokomo. http://kokomo.ca/cd_review/press/christmas_concert_1993.htm. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ Dawson, Greg (17 December 1987). "No Perry Como? Say It Ain't So". Orlando Sentinel. http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1987-12-17/lifestyle/0170020230_1_perry-como-nightline-koppel. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ Atkisson, Phil (25 December 1991). "Perry Como Is A Treat For Holidays". Orlando Sentinel. http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1991-12-25/news/9112250473_1_perry-como-holiday-juanita. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ Hayes, John (15 December 1990). "Como's Hits Still Work". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=dW4xAAAAIBAJ&sjid=jG4DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6846,5075970&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ "Irish Christmas". Internet Movie Database. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0417802/. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b Funk, Harry (14 May 1999). "A celebration for Mr. C.". Observer-Reporter. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PjFdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=BlsNAAAAIBAJ&pg=1551,4484718&dq=perry+como+rca&hl=en. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
^ "Video Tour of Canonsburg-various town tributes to Perry Como are seen". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPfThvYoj4I.
^ Steinhauser, Si (21 November 1948). "Canonsburg Bride He "Saved" Will Be Perry Como's Guest". Pittsburgh Press. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=fWYcAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Jk4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=5393,2644286&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
^ Niederberger, Mary (24 December 1997). "Canonsburg mayor wants statue of Perry Como". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1129&dat=19971224&id=_IYNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=4m8DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6761,247218. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ ^a ^b Deni, Laura (20 October 2002). "Perry Como Statue Sings Out for Tourists". Broadway to Vegas. http://web.archive.bibalex.org/web/20030816144805/broadwaytovegas.com/October27,2002.html. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ "Welcome Back poster from Palena, Italy Perry Como celebration". Webshots. August 2002. Archived from the original on 27 May 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5z0ZRLRPt. Retrieved 1 September 2010.
^ "Photo of smaller version of Canonsburg Perry Como statue". Webshots. August 2002. Archived from the original on 27 May 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5z0Zcokex. Retrieved 1 September 2010.
^ "Perry Como Commemorative Plate". Fossili Veraci. http://www.fossiliveraci.org/the-english-side/127-erminio-di-carlo-and-the-palena-museum. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
^ Giangiordano, Paul (24 September 2009). "Town wall plaque, Palena, Italy, honoring Perry Como and his parents". Picasa. Archived from the original on 27 May 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5z0Z4gWb6. Retrieved 3 August 2010.
^ "A new McDonald's to tribute Como and Vinton". Canonsburg Friends. 6 September 2007. http://canonsburgfriends.blogspot.com/2007/09/new-mcdonalds-to-tribute-como-and.html. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ Ola, Crystal (17 February 2008). "Canonsburg council OKs day camp plan". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08048/857519-58.stm. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ "Canonsburg PA tourism video". Borough of Canonsburg Tourism. http://www.elocallink.tv/clients3/pa/canonsburg/tourplay.php?movie=canpa_tour&spon=tourism&type=wh&flver=10&brver=6.
^ "Photo of tree grate marked with Perry Como 'Catch A Falling Star' information". Flickr. 14 April 2008. http://www.flickr.com/photos/nessachan/2460212807/in/set-72157604736638618/. Retrieved 4 August 2010.
^ "Canonsburg, PA home page". Canonsburg Borough. http://www.canonsburgboro.com/. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
^ "Como, Boss Boost Hospital Fund". Pittsburgh Press. 20 July 1950. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=C10bAAAAIBAJ&sjid=WU0EAAAAIBAJ&pg=3442,5484203&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
^ "As big as he became, Como never forgot his roots". Observer-Reporter. 13 May 1999. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PTFdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=BlsNAAAAIBAJ&pg=2586,4253470&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 16 December 2010.
^ Daly, Sean (4 December 2002). "A Very Perry Christmas". Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2002/12/04/AR2005033108474.html. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
^ "Perry Como Defies Writer's Cramp to Keep Pledge to 658 Boys". Pittsburgh Press. 3 February 1952. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=fuUdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Lk4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=2649,840784&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
^ "Perry Como Dies at Florida Home". Perrycomo.net. http://www.perrycomo.net/archive%20pages/celebritynews.htm. Retrieved 7 April 2009.
^ Nolin, Robert (19 May 2001). "Mourners remember 'nice guy' Perry Como at singer's funeral". The Day. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=bv8gAAAAIBAJ&sjid=inQFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1584,3857850&dq=perry+como&hl=en. Retrieved 19 November 2010.
^ Perry Como at Find a Grave
^ Roselle B. Como at Find a Grave

External links [link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Perry Como

A Perry Como Discography & CD Companion
The Perry Como Home on the Internet
Perry Como at the Internet Movie Database
Perry Como Collection 1955–1994-University of Colorado at Boulder Archives created by Perry Como, Mickey Glass, and Nick Perito
Complete List of Perry Como Shows–1948–1955
Complete List of Perry Como Shows–1955–1959
Complete List of Perry Como-Kraft Music Hall Shows–1959–1963
On Tour with Perry Como 1990, 1991, 1992

Watch [link]

"Video of Chesterfield Supper Club". Internet Archive. 27 November 1949. http://www.archive.org/details/ChesterfieldSupperClub-27november1949.
"Video of 1952 Perry Como Show". Internet Archive. http://www.archive.org/details/Perry_Como_1952.
"Video of Perry Como Show". Internet Archive. 24 December 1952. http://www.archive.org/details/thePerryComoShow-24december1952.
"Video of Perry Como Show". Internet Archive. 16 September 1953. http://www.archive.org/details/thePerryComoShow-16september1953.
"Video of Perry Como Show". Internet Archive. 20 January 1954. http://www.archive.org/details/thePerryComoShow-20january1954.
"Video of 1954 Perry Como Show". Internet Archive. http://www.archive.org/details/perrycomoshow.

Listen [link]

"Beat the Band". Old Time Radio Catalog. 7 April 1940. http://www.otrcat.com/beat-the-band-p-1074.html.
"Audio Files-Songs from the Chesterfield Supper Club Radio Show". Internet Archive. http://www.archive.org/details/ChesterfieldSupperClub.

Perry Como

Albums

1950s	So Smooth (1955) We Get Letters (1956) Saturday Night with Mr. C (1958) When You Come to the End of the Day (1958) Como Swings (1959) Season's Greetings from Perry Como (1959)

1960s	For the Young at Heart (1960) Sing to Me Mr. C (1961) By Request (1962) The Best of Irving Berlin's Songs from Mr. President (1962) The Songs I Love (1963) The Scene Changes (1965) Lightly Latin (1966) Perry Como in Italy (1966) The Perry Como Christmas Album (1968) Look to Your Heart (1968) Seattle (1969)

1970s	Perry Como in Person at the International Hotel, Las Vegas (1970) It's Impossible (1970) I Think of You (1971) And I Love You So (1973) Perry (1974) Just Out of Reach (1975) 40 Greatest Hits (1975) The Best of British (UK and Canada) (1977) Where You're Concerned (US) (1978)

1980s	Perry Como (1980) Perry Como Live on Tour (1981) So It Goes / Goodbye for Now (1983) Today (1987)

1990s	Perry Como's Christmas Concert (1994)

2000s	On the Radio – The Perry Como Shows 1943 (2009)

2010s	At the Supper Club (2010) At the Supper Club Part II (2011) At the Supper Club Part III (2011)

Emmys

Best Male Singer (1955)
Best Male Singer (1956)
Best MC or Program Host-Male or Female (1956)
Best Male Personality - Continuing Performance (1957)
Best Performance by an Actor (Continuing Character) (1959)

Category

v t e Kennedy Center Honorees (1980s)

1980	Leonard Bernstein James Cagney Agnes de Mille Lynn Fontanne Leontyne Price

1981	Count Basie Cary Grant Helen Hayes Jerome Robbins Rudolf Serkin

1982	George Abbott Lillian Gish Benny Goodman Gene Kelly Eugene Ormandy

1983	Katherine Dunham Elia Kazan Frank Sinatra James Stewart Virgil Thomson

1984	Lena Horne Danny Kaye Gian Carlo Menotti Arthur Miller Isaac Stern

1985	Merce Cunningham Irene Dunne Bob Hope Alan Jay Lerner & Frederick Loewe Beverly Sills

1986	Lucille Ball Hume Cronyn & Jessica Tandy Yehudi Menuhin Antony Tudor Ray Charles

1987	Perry Como Bette Davis Sammy Davis, Jr. Nathan Milstein Alwin Nikolais

1988	Alvin Ailey George Burns Myrna Loy Alexander Schneider Roger L. Stevens

1989	Harry Belafonte Claudette Colbert Alexandra Danilova Mary Martin William Schuman

complete list 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s

v t e Ted Weems

Performers	Perry Como Red Ingle Art Jarrett Marilyn Maxwell Elmo Tanner Paul Winchell

Radio Shows	The Jack Benny Program Ted Weems and his Orchestra (Mutual) Fibber McGee & Molly Beat the Band

v t e The Chesterfield Supper Club

Cast	Perry Como Jo Stafford Peggy Lee The Fontane Sisters

Bands	Ted Steele (Perry Como: New York 1944) Lloyd Shaffer (Perry Como: New York 1945 – 1948) Mitchell Ayres (Perry Como: New York 1948 – 1950) Paul Weston (Jo Stafford: Los Angeles 1947 –) Dave Barbour (Peggy Lee: Los Angeles 1948 –)

Announcers	Martin Block Mel Allen Ben Grauer

Albums	At the Supper Club-Perry Como (2010) At the Supper Club Part II-Perry Como (2011) At the Supper Club Part III-Perry Como (2011) At the Supper Club-Jo Stafford (2010) At the Supper Club Part II-Jo Stafford (2011) At the Supper Club Part III-Jo Stafford (2011)

v t e Billboard Year-End number one singles (1946–1959)

1946: "Prisoner of Love" – Perry Como 1947: "Near You" – Francis Craig 1948: "Twelfth Street Rag" – Pee Wee Hunt 1949: "Riders in the Sky" – Vaughn Monroe Orchestra 1950: "Goodnight, Irene" – Gordon Jenkins and The Weavers 1951: "Too Young" – Nat King Cole 1952: "Blue Tango" – Leroy Anderson 1953: "The Song from Moulin Rouge" – Percy Faith 1954: "Little Things Mean a Lot" – Kitty Kallen 1955: "Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White" – Perez Prado 1956: "Heartbreak Hotel" – Elvis Presley 1957: "All Shook Up" – Elvis Presley 1958: "Nel Blu Dipinto di Blu (Volare)" – Domenico Modugno 1959: "The Battle of New Orleans" – Johnny Horton

Complete list (1946–1959) (1960–1979) (1980–1999) (2000–2019)

Persondata
Name	Como, Perry
Alternative names
Short description	American male singer
Date of birth	18 May 1912
Place of birth	Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Date of death	12 May 2001
Place of death	Palm Beach County, Florida, U.S

This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perry_Como

This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, which means that you can copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.

Playlist

Film Summary

Domino, Fats Filmography

Make changes yourself !

Make changes yourself !

Make changes yourself !

Make changes yourself !

Contents

Related pages:

Contents

Related pages:

Contents

Related pages: