I knew all their names. One day a group of, In this part of the story well see what Bob Horn did that ended his career and also caused the ABC network and its Philadelphia affiliate to ignore the 50, Most acquaintances describe Horn as arrogant and self-centered, although none of the dancers on his show saw him that way. Now I only dance at weddings, said Carole, 42. I was really nervous before walking down the aisleit was like I had stage fright, my adrenaline was so high. All the photos from Horns last two years show nothing but white kids in the studio. Elliot asked Sofia to marry him in Hawaii after a year of dating. I did, obviously, because theyre family, she notes, referring to Nicoles husband, the bands lead vocalist Joel Madden. It was filled with comedy. His demeanor was haughty. Off-camera his personality was abrasive, egotistical and aggressive. It was an innocent time, says one of them. The Beach Boys were already the kings of There were trysts of another Jacobs model and another WPEN announcer, and other girls had encounters with a publicist and a photographer, respected professionals who were in love with their wives and felt they were just having some harmless, job-related fun on the side. One television precursor was the Paul Whiteman TV Teen Club, on WFIL and the ABC television network starting in 1949, which also showed kids dancing. Allison differentiated himself from Bob Horn as a performer, saying he was not a disc-jockey but, instead, a man who discussed issues on the air. Kevin Stewart: Old School Shirt Makers New York, Alexandra Rouvet Duvernoy: Trumpisms Commentary by A.H. Scott, Dean Rosenzweig: Cats and QueensUfos and Other Things, Kitchie Ohh: Resolution Revolution - Tony Ward. Who were the first guests on American Bandstand? Carole Scaldeferri Spada, 70, 'Bandstand I knew sooner or later I would get to go on the show. For those of you that question or challenge this please try and recall a scene from the shows in Philadelphia where the girls were not wearing Catholic school uniform dresses and the boys were not wearing the white shirt and tie Catholic school boys uniform. But Horn also was the bad guy who allowed blacks to be systematically excluded when it looked as if their dancing might dominate the show. When I told Hooks the details about the fall of Bob Horn, he said it suddenly made him understand why Clark felt so strongly about drunkenness. American Bandstand (TV Series 19521989) - IMDb Horn ended his career working in Texas using a pseudonym. He asked a bunch of us to be on a committee to act as examples to other teenagers, and he gave birthday cakes and Christmas gifts to all of us on the committee. He says that he would have loved to see blacks in the studio, so I could learn their dance steps. Original Bandstand Members Back In Philadelphia To Boogie So, simultaneously, the DA was investigating Horn, Allison and Valino and people associated with them, and everything came to a head, so to speak, at the same time. In the otherwise frothy Grease (1978), that dynamic is reiterated. Beach Boys on American Bandstand. This historical marker recalls Dick Clarks American Bandstand, which was broadcast from West Philadelphia from 1957 to 1964. Some blacks complained that these cards were sent mainly to all-white parochial schools, but I cant find evidence of that. At the time, I didnt know it was racism to go somewhere and not get let in. Soon after the show went on the air, Horn met a 13-year-old girl at the station and they began a sexual relationship. Bob was color blind, Sheldon told me; On the first shows there were black couples dancing on the floor along with white couples. But Dorothy provided some shocking testimony, saying that she and Allison repeated their sexual acts on several other nights, and that he once asked her to drink some water and try to urinate on him. PINK FLOYD Prog-rock started making its way into American living rooms via Bandstand in 1967. Ill close with a personal reminiscence. By coincidence, on Saturday afternoon February 8, 1964, the day before the Beatles first appearance on Ed Sullivan, American Bandstand had its inaugural broadcast from Los Angeles, three thousand miles from its original home in Philadelphia. Who created the TV show American Bandstand? The show gave many new music artists their first exposure to national audiences, including Iggy Pop, Ike & Tina Turner, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, Stevie Wonder, Prince, Talking Heads , Simon & Garfunkel and Madonna. The Buddy Deane Show was taken off the air because home station WJZ-TV Philadelphias broadcasting sex scandal of 1956 was an early object lesson. DeFord Bailey (December 14, 1899 July 2, 1982) was an American country music and blues star from the 1920s until 1941. We blacks watched from across the street. You better believe Ill be there, Frees said of the Rock A Rama appearance. A big studio was on the ground floor, which WPEN used for the 950 Club in the afternoon and for Steve Allisons talk program at night, while the stations offices were on the second floor. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. Dick Clark Henry Gordon said in 1995 as he looked at an old photo of the kids at Bandstand: Anything that looks like a black face in this picture is probably a white face in the shadows. I always dreamed of her doing my makeup on my wedding day, Sofia says. 8 Surprising Facts About The Legendary Dance Show You were like a big star. Blanc had a love-hate relationship with show business, and even got personally involved in it. Before long there were black kids dancing as regulars and American Bandstand was one of the few television shows where I would get to see black people as artists. By coincidence, on Saturday afternoon February 8, 1964, the day before the Beatles first appearance on Ed Sullivan, American Bandstand had its inaugural broadcast from One man, convicted and fined fifty dollars, went on to a career as a philanthropist and supporter of political candidates up to the 21st century. April Stevens, whose rushed recording of Deep Purple with her brother, Nino Tempo, became a chart Bob got one of his friends to write a song for me, Since I Met Him at the Senior Dance, and Bob paid for me to take singing lessons. To avoid this, co-producers Horn and Tony Mammarella implemented two strategies. She was petite, less than 100 pounds, with a big bosom. When Horn got busted, the teenagers were shocked. But I had to take a double-take when they showed black people in the stands, she says. Vic Blanc became a judge, then resigned when he developed mental lapses which would today be labeled as Alzheimers disease. The makeup for the entire weekend is super-simple and clean, Sofia says. Dick Clark Hosted the show and introduced Billy Williams to sing ""I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself A Letter"" & The Chordettes to sing ""Just Between You and Me"" and for the 1st Time ""The Spotlight Dance"" for 2 dancing couples to a softer tune, ""Rate-A-Record"" where 2 Also in 1956 a 19-year-old model accused vocalist Joe Valino (a Sinatra sound-alike whose real name was Joe Paolino) of getting her pregnant then taking her to a doctor to have it taken care of. Allison coined a new name for himself: a controversialist. He was advertised as the man who owns midnight. Cardinal Spellman was once a guest on his program, and Philadelphia Mayor Dilworth appeared frequently. The marker stands opposite 4548 Market Street (not shown here), which once housed WFIL-TVand its Studio B, the original home of American Bandstand. He made national headlines when he shut down a Philadelphia movie theater that was showing Brigit Bardots , When Blancs campaign was launched, friends of Walter Annenberg hoped that the DA would find some dirt on WPENs popular night-time talk host, Steve Allison, because Allison often criticized Annenberg and the. They surprised me with balloons and all of my favorite breakfast foodswe were like giddy little girls getting excited for the day to come.. When Horns personal indiscretions led to his ouster from Bandstand in 1956, he was replaced by the more youthful, slimmer, squeaky clean Dick Clark. Blancs secret headquarters was at 1927 Chestnut Street while my fathers optical store was a block away at 1835 Chestnut. One day a group of American Bandstand dancers went to Harmony Park, a popular club in Anaheim, and got drunk. https://collaborativehistory.gse.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/Bandstand%20historical%20marker%20%281%20of%201%29.jpg. We would do dances like the slop, bop, slow drag and the grind, which originated in the black dance halls. The next day Bill Sylk owner of WPEN and the Sun Ray Drug chain called Walter Annenberg and said If you steal my talent Ill pull a million dollars of Sun Ray advertising out of the Inquirer. After that threat, WFIL withdrew its offer to us and that was the end of that.. But they werent there. In this, he was way ahead of his time and ahead of whats seen in the show Hairspray. She was 17 when I met her in 1956. In 1975 Proctor won the American Bandstand dance competition with partner Sharon Hill. ! Sofia recalls being stunned. The Buddy Deane Show Theres a new kid working in the record library, he told his listeners, and listen to the junk he picked for me. Then Menefee came into the record room and said he hoped I wasnt angry with him for making me the butt of his joke. Dick Clark, at podium at upper left, is surrounded by teen-age fans on his nationally televised dance show "American Bandstand" in Philadelphia in this June 30, 1958, file photo. Tyrone Proctor For my Ive always loved his timeless pieces, Sofia adds. The 24-year-old model and designer, who is also the youngest child of legendary singer Lionel Richie, became engaged to Elliot Grainge, a music executive and founder of 10K Projects, in April of 2022. Any place theres dancing, Ill still go, said Joe Fusco, who was 15 when he joined the show. In all, 27 men were arrested. Horn usually brought an entourage of men with him to the studio, and sometimes additional girls. Horn played mainstream singers like Doris Day and Frankie Laine. Jimmy Boyd. The district attorney phoned Klein as a personal courtesy, and to serve the public interest. Horn signed some of them to his own record label which he started with the help of a group of businessmen and musicians including Nat Segall, Artie Singer, Bernie Lowe and Harry Chipetz. He was going to cut a record with me singing on one side and my dance partner, Tom DeNoble, singing on the other side. And not only that, but we got to party with him all night., Rabbi Thomas Solomon officiated a traditional Jewish wedding that paid homage to the iconic surroundings of Hotel du Cap. Pop Conference 2023 - 'Let's Get it Together:' Gatherings, Club I brought a series of black girls with me so we could do the slow dances together.. He asked for, and received, whiskey, cash and women from record-promotion men. Although Horn wanted to run it solo, Clipp insisted on copying the 950 Club format with two hosts, and picked a partner for him the short, bespectacled Lee Stewart. Horn asked his dancers to recommend new songs. Public high schools were more integrated 72% white when Bandstand started, according to Philadelphia School District statistics, while blacks were 28% while Asians and Latinos were less than 1%. I knew when couples broke up. He was 30 when, Frank Spagnuola, a white Italian-American, was a, Bunny Gibson was a dancer on the show for two-and-a-half years in the mid-50s. Since he was a huge fan of jazz and so many jazz artists were black, there was no way Bob would allow the dance floor to be lily white.. Well, Blanc won his election, and that was the reason for all this, wasnt it? We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. In all, 27 men were arrested. Any place theres dancing, Ill still go, said Joe Fusco, who was 15 when he joined the Not nasty trouble. October 7, 1952 University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, Starting Local: WFIL-TV, Bob Horn, and Philadelphia's Bandstand, Going National: Dick Clark and ABC's American Bandstand, Whose Music, Whose Dances? These were the guys I met during my first job in radio, in the music library at WIP, and whom I saw accompanying Horn during his nighttime radio show when I later worked at WFIL. We stopped going and so did the black girls, for the most part.. When it came to the rehearsal-dinner look, the team worked to re-create a gown worn by Stella Tennant in the 1997 Chanel couture fall show. The DA announced his indictment of Horn and Allison at the same press conference, in October of 1956. Your email address will not be published. WebAmerican Bandstand (TV Series 19521989) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. For seven years kids had been coming to WPEN at 1522 Walnut Street and riding the elevator to spend a couple of hours at their club, which was a small studio without windows. For additional access to Steve Cohens writings on art, theater, music, books and travel, click here:https://tonywardstudio.com/blog/gehry/, To access Mr. Cohens web site, click here:http://theculturalcritic.com, Your email address will not be published. American Bandstand: West Philadelphia's Seven-Year Wonder Well, Blanc won his election, and that was the reason for all this, wasnt it? Editors Note: This is a repost with permission granted by the author, Steve Cohen. Elliot was such a big Good Charlotte fan when he was a kid, and Joel and Elliot have become like brothers. This system permitted the show to legally turn away anyone without the pass while at the same time maintain the lily white studio audience since the passes were only distributed at the all-white West Catholic High School For Boys and the all-white West Catholic High School For Girls. The sex-with-minors angle was too shocking for public consumption, and the station didnt dare to reveal it.
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