This page will contain wikis about Bobby Darin, as they become available.Bobby DarinBobby Darin (May 14, 1936–December 20, 1973), born Walden Robert Cassotto, was one of the most popular rock and roll American teen idols of the late 1950s. However, he is widely respected for being a multi-talented, versatile performer. Darin was born to a poor, working-class family in the Bronx, New York, and his father died a few months before he was born at the height of the Great Depression. As a result, his mother had to accept social assistance to take care of her infant son. It was not until he was an adult that he learned his sister Nina, 19 years his senior, was in fact his mother. The identity of his true father was never publicly disclosed. Frail as an infant, perhaps from the poverty that resulted in a lack of proper diet and medical attention, at the age of 8 he was stricken with rheumatic fever. The illness left him with a seriously diseased heart, and he would live with the constant knowledge that his life might end at any moment. Driven by his poverty and illness, and with an innate talent for musical sounds, by the time he was a teenager he could play several musical instruments. An outstanding student, after graduating from the Bronx High School of Science, Darin attended college on a scholarship. Wanting a career in the New York theater, he left college to play small nightclubs around the city with a musical combo. As was common with ethnic minorities at the time, he changed his Italian name and, in 1956, his agent negotiated a contract for him with Decca Records where Bill Haley & His Comets had risen to fame. However, this was a time when rock and roll was still in its infancy and the number of capable record producers and arrangers in the field was extremely limited. Like other performers, Darin was at first pigeon-holed, recording the banal, meaningless songs popular with record executives at the time. He left Decca to sign with Atlantic Records, where he wrote and arranged music for himself and others. There, after three mediocre recordings, his career took off in 1958 when he released his unique rock song "Splish Splash" that became an instant hit, selling more than a million copies. This was followed by more hits recorded in the same successful style. In 1959, Bobby Darin recorded "Dream Lover", a complex ballad that would become a multi-million seller and one that is still remembered to this day. With financial success came the ability to demand more creative control and, despite the objections of most everyone around him, Darin's immense and diverse talent came to the fore with his next record "Mack the Knife", the classic standard from Kurt Weill's Threepenny Opera. Darin gave the tune a vamping jazz-pop interpretation. The song went to No. 1 on the charts, sold several million copies, and won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year at the Grammy Awards of 1960. For his innovation, Darin was voted the Grammy Award for Best New Artist. "Mack The Knife" has since been honored with a Grammy Hall of Fame Award. Driven by the inner urgency of a clock ticking away precious time, Darin turned his attention to motion pictures. He would write music for several films and act in them as well. In his first film, a romantic comedy designed to capitalize on his popularity with the teenage and young-adult audience, he co-starred with Sandra Dee, whom he married in 1960 and with whom he had one son. Asking to be taken seriously, he took on more meaningful movie roles, and in 1962 he won the Golden Globe Award for "Most Promising Male Newcomer", for his role in Pressure Point. In 1963 he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as a shell-shocked soldier in Capt. Newman M.D. At the Cannes Film Festival in France, where his records—in particular his version of the French hit song "La Mer" (in America in English: "Beyond the Sea")—brought him a wide following, he won the French Film Critics Award for Best Actor. In the mid-1960s, Darin headlined at the major casinos in Las Vegas, Nevada, and became politically active, working on the 1968 Presidential election campaign of Robert Kennedy. Profoundly affected by Kennedy's assassination, he made two protest albums of alternative rock music. At the beginning of the 1970s he continued to act and to record, including at Motown Records. In 1971 he underwent his first heart surgery in an attempt to correct some of the heart damage he had lived with since childhood. In 1972 he was well enough to star in his own television variety show, on NBC, which ran for two years, until his health problems finally overcame him. Darin also started Wayne Newton's career. A goodwill Ambassador for the American Heart Association, on December 20, 1973, Darin died during surgery to repair a faulty heart valve. In accordance with his wishes, his body was donated to the UCLA Medical Center for research purposes. In 1990, fellow 1950s rock and roll pioneer, Paul Anka, made the speech for Darin's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 1999 he was voted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He has a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1735 Vine Street. In 2000, actor Kevin Spacey, a lifelong fan of Darin, acquired the film rights to his story. Spacey directed, produced, and played as Bobby Darin. The film is titled after one of Darin's top hits, Beyond The Sea, and was released at the 2004 Toronto International Film Festival. Discography
Filmography
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He has a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1735 Vine Street. unchristian .. In 1999 he was voted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. (The constituency was renamed Warley East in 1974.) Smethwick remained the focus of much racial tension in England throughout Faulds' office, in particular following the Rivers of Blood Speech by Enoch Powell in 1968 which Faulds characterised as .. In 1990, fellow 1950s rock and roll pioneer, Paul Anka, made the speech for Darin's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Faulds defeated Griffiths in the UK general election, 1966 and was Labour MP for the constituency until his retirement in 1997. In accordance with his wishes, his body was donated to the UCLA Medical Center for research purposes. There were rumours that his supporters had covertly circulated the slogan If you want a nigger for a neighbour, vote Liberal or Labour. A goodwill Ambassador for the American Heart Association, on December 20, 1973, Darin died during surgery to repair a faulty heart valve. In the UK general election, 1964, the Labour Foreign Secretary, Patrick Gordon Walker, had been defeated in controversial circumstances in the Smethwick constituency by Conservative candidate Peter Griffiths. Smethwick had been a focus of immigration from the Commonwealth in the economic and industrial growth of the years following World War II and Griffiths ran a campaign critical of the government's policy. Darin also started Wayne Newton's career. It was during this visit that Robeson inspired Faulds to take up political activism. In 1972 he was well enough to star in his own television variety show, on NBC, which ran for two years, until his health problems finally overcame him. Robeson was still under severe censure and scrutiny in the USA owing to his socialist convictions and had only recently been allowed to travel abroad again following the confiscation of his passport during the McCarthyist episode. In 1971 he underwent his first heart surgery in an attempt to correct some of the heart damage he had lived with since childhood. In 1959, Faulds and his wife played host to Paul Robeson who had travelled to England to appear at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford upon Avon in Tony Richardson's production of Othello. At the beginning of the 1970s he continued to act and to record, including at Motown Records. After graduating from the University of Glasgow, he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1948 but first came to a wider public recognition playing Jet Morgan in Charles Chilton's radio drama Journey Into Space on the BBC Light Programme. Profoundly affected by Kennedy's assassination, he made two protest albums of alternative rock music. Born Isoko, Tanganyika (now Tanzania), to missionary parents, Faulds married Bunty Whitfield in 1945. In the mid-1960s, Darin headlined at the major casinos in Las Vegas, Nevada, and became politically active, working on the 1968 Presidential election campaign of Robert Kennedy. Andrew Matthew William Faulds (1 March 1923 - 31 May 2000) was a British actor and politician. Newman M.D. At the Cannes Film Festival in France, where his records—in particular his version of the French hit song "La Mer" (in America in English: "Beyond the Sea")—brought him a wide following, he won the French Film Critics Award for Best Actor. In 1963 he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as a shell-shocked soldier in Capt. Asking to be taken seriously, he took on more meaningful movie roles, and in 1962 he won the Golden Globe Award for "Most Promising Male Newcomer", for his role in Pressure Point. In his first film, a romantic comedy designed to capitalize on his popularity with the teenage and young-adult audience, he co-starred with Sandra Dee, whom he married in 1960 and with whom he had one son. He would write music for several films and act in them as well. Driven by the inner urgency of a clock ticking away precious time, Darin turned his attention to motion pictures. "Mack The Knife" has since been honored with a Grammy Hall of Fame Award. For his innovation, Darin was voted the Grammy Award for Best New Artist. 1 on the charts, sold several million copies, and won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year at the Grammy Awards of 1960. The song went to No. Darin gave the tune a vamping jazz-pop interpretation. With financial success came the ability to demand more creative control and, despite the objections of most everyone around him, Darin's immense and diverse talent came to the fore with his next record "Mack the Knife", the classic standard from Kurt Weill's Threepenny Opera. In 1959, Bobby Darin recorded "Dream Lover", a complex ballad that would become a multi-million seller and one that is still remembered to this day. This was followed by more hits recorded in the same successful style. There, after three mediocre recordings, his career took off in 1958 when he released his unique rock song "Splish Splash" that became an instant hit, selling more than a million copies. He left Decca to sign with Atlantic Records, where he wrote and arranged music for himself and others. Like other performers, Darin was at first pigeon-holed, recording the banal, meaningless songs popular with record executives at the time. However, this was a time when rock and roll was still in its infancy and the number of capable record producers and arrangers in the field was extremely limited. As was common with ethnic minorities at the time, he changed his Italian name and, in 1956, his agent negotiated a contract for him with Decca Records where Bill Haley & His Comets had risen to fame. Wanting a career in the New York theater, he left college to play small nightclubs around the city with a musical combo. An outstanding student, after graduating from the Bronx High School of Science, Darin attended college on a scholarship. Driven by his poverty and illness, and with an innate talent for musical sounds, by the time he was a teenager he could play several musical instruments. The illness left him with a seriously diseased heart, and he would live with the constant knowledge that his life might end at any moment. Frail as an infant, perhaps from the poverty that resulted in a lack of proper diet and medical attention, at the age of 8 he was stricken with rheumatic fever. The identity of his true father was never publicly disclosed. As a result, his mother had to accept social assistance to take care of her infant son. It was not until he was an adult that he learned his sister Nina, 19 years his senior, was in fact his mother. Darin was born to a poor, working-class family in the Bronx, New York, and his father died a few months before he was born at the height of the Great Depression. However, he is widely respected for being a multi-talented, versatile performer. Bobby Darin (May 14, 1936–December 20, 1973), born Walden Robert Cassotto, was one of the most popular rock and roll American teen idols of the late 1950s. The Happy Ending (1969). Gunfight In Abilene (1967). That Funny Feeling (1965). The Lively Set (1964). Newman M.D. (1963). Capt. If A Man Answers (1962). Pressure Point (1962). State Fair (1962). Come September (1960). "A Simple Song of Freedom" -- 1967. "Mame" -- 1966. "If I Were a Carpenter" -- 1966. "18 Yellow Roses" -- 1963. "You're the Reason I'm Living" -- 1963. "Things" -- 1962. "What'd I Say?" -- 1962. "You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby" -- 1961. "Won't You Come Home Bill Bailey?" -- 1960. "Beyond The Sea" (the French hit song "La Mer") -- 1960. "Mack the Knife" -- 1959. "Dream Lover" -- 1959. "Plain Jane" -- 1959. "Queen of the Hop" -- 1958. "Splish Splash" -- 1958. |