For a brief time in 1973, Bandstand alternated its time slot with Soul Unlimited,[10] a show featuring soul music that was hosted by Buster Jones. But we were like a little family together, and we all had something in common, and we all stuck together, and that made it easier for us.. The couple first honeymooned on the Chattanooga Choo Choo, the famed railway that was immortalized by Glenn Miller and was the first to run South to North. I kissed a girl, and I liked it! Sullivan, now 74 and long out of the closet, reveals in a fascinating self-published book, Bandstand Diaries billed as The Book Youve Waited Over 50 Years to Read!. Words by Barry Manilow and Bruse Sussman, Were goin hoppin (Hop!) This site does not collect any information from you. Barbara Levick was a very popular young lady who was a Regular who danced on American Bandstand in the late 50s/very early 60s. I imitated all the dance steps, sometimes with the refrigerator door as a partner. Norman and I met in January 1959 while standing outside of the studio waiting to get inside. I went to Bandstand because I was gay and I was a misfit in my neighborhood. The reality behind the scenes ofAmerican Bandstandwas quite different than what viewers saw on national television. Although the Regulars didnt perform in the South, Sullivans memory of a personal visit to Fort Worth, Texas, stuck with her: My friend Barbara [a fellow Regular] and I were visiting Barbaras friend there. While the American series has aired sixteen seasons, its format was also replicated worldwide, from Norway (Dansefeber) to Australia (So You Think You Can Dance Australia). During the segment, two audience members each ranked two records on a scale of 35 to 98, after which their two opinions were averaged by Clark, who then asked the chosen members to justify their scores. With American Bandstand being originally located in Philadelphia, segregation easily affected the concentrated area. Artists would sing naturally to the studio audience over a background of their own disc, while viewers at home would hear only the original recording. Don and Bunny had two daughters: Angel and Maria and four grandchildren: Lea & Christopher Di Vello, Alexis Karanzalis & Nicole Weiss. They knew what was going on, but they never asked the question., Sullivan says there were at least four other popular girl dancers on Bandstand who she quickly learned were lesbians and we all started hanging out together. In September 1964, Bandstand began using a new logo based on the ABC circle logo, reading "ab" in the same typeface followed by a number representing the year the show aired. American Bandstand, abbreviated AB, is an American music-performance and dance television program that aired in various versions that aired regularly from 1952 to 1989,[1] and was hosted from 1956 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as the program's producer. In 1988, the National Park Service listed 4548 Market Street on the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Jax Spills the Tea on That "Shocking" Lip-Sync LaLaPaRuza, "In those lip-syncs, I fend for myself. So fearful of the kids real behavior, [Clark] imposed a strict dress code: jackets and ties for boys, and nothing tight for girls. I was trying to hit them over their heads with my pocketbook, but they just wouldnt give up. Her husband, Richard Spada, said Mrs. Spada was recovering from a minor stroke she had suffered earlier when she became ill on the way to church. Of Clarks behind-the-scenes behavior at Studio B, Ray Smith writes unsparingly: The irony about Clark is that he was not the goody-two-shoes he projected: he smoked, cursed, and for a while teetered on the edge of alcoholism. They wrote thousands of letters. "Two or three times during the show, Clark would introduce singers or groups who would lip-sync their latest hits." 2. American Bandstand Regulars -- Justine Carrelli, Joe Fusco, Myrna Horowitz - The 3rd Degree - 1989 Bandstands Best 3.54K subscribers Subscribe 343 127K views 10 years ago THE USE OF ANY. My mother thought I was nuts. Clark decided to pitch the show to ABC president Thomas W. Moore, and after some negotiations the show was picked up nationally, becoming American Bandstand on August 5, 1957. On the other hand, they had each other. On May 3, 2002, Dick Clark hosted a one-off special 50th anniversary edition on ABC. This version introduced lyrics written by Manilow and Bruce Sussman, referencing elements of the series. She was a senior.and luckily on the Honor Roll. There were represented American Bandstand Dancers from the beginnings in Philadelphia to the last days in Los Angeles.After this short there is the complete Sesame Street Park Parade with the Regulars dancing all along with them. Bandstand debuted in Philadelphia in 1950 and took on its familiar format two years later. Dick Clarks tight control on the sexual expression of his cast extended to a denial years after the show had ended. , True love I started going out to straight clubs.. My parents were always there for me. It was horrible.. from CBS in November 1957, they renamed the program as Who Do You Trust? . .When he spoke to us off-screen, it was usually from the podium; it gave him command over his domain, and as I have learned over the years, Clark liked and wanted to be in command.4, Smith recalls the closetingof American BandstandsLGBT youths. Nicholas Fiorentino, 67, a South Philly native now living in Cherry Hill, said it was clear even to Bandstand teenagers that Clark was going places. She wasnt immediately successful, but with the help of a new southwest Philly friend, she eventually got in. You want to know about the guy! Clark was a disc jockey at the student-run radio station at Syracuse University (1951), and he worked at radio and television stations in Syracuse and Utica . I was a preteen, which is to say, I was a teenage wannabe. The Top 40 hits that everyone heard were matched with fun routines performed by relatable teenagers. Reply. ", "Forty years after 'Bandstand' debut, Clark and dancers celebrate", "ORIGINAL DANCERS WILL GRANDSTAND AT 'BANDSTAND' REUNION", "American Bandstand, Season 30, Episode 38: Laura Brannigan (Final ABC show)", "Dick Clark's On a Roll: He Tunes In to TV Trends", "Dick Clark celebrates American Bandstand's 35th", "RETRO: Fairbanks, Alaska (October 24, 1987)", "Retro: Northern Wisconsin, Sat. REGULARS Gallery 2. ABC gave Bandstand color cameras and launched it on its network of 67 stations in August of 1957. The bare necessitiesThis kit packs $431 worth of premium skincare and haircare into a small packageand it's only $80 with the promo code. She also mentions a gay dancer who was pushed in the train tracks, and another who was dangled over an elevator shaft. "For all those who knew her throughout her life and for those who watched her dance on American Bandstand, Carole was full of love and full of God. The other reason was that American Bandstand was pre-empted on many occasions by televised college football games (which expanded greatly in number in the wake of a court-ordered deregulation in 1984) which were becoming huge ratings successes, as well as occasional special presentations (i.e. 2023 Viacom International Inc. All Rights Reserved. They accepted me. I still have my HI-FI sitting against a wall between my living room and dining room. Once when Sullivan and Rossi visited another show regular in North Philadelphia, "we were leaving her apartment and were headed to the El, and I heard car doors slamming, and I looked back, and all these guys were coming up the steps, and they started beating up on Kenny, she recalls. But he feared that if the shows secret ever came out, Middle America would change the channel. The Buddy Deane Show aired on WJZ-TV until January 4, 1964. I hope you've had a good half-hour. Dick Clark gave her a committee card, which all Regulars had to have to get into the building. "Bandstand's Backyard". Never, did I ever think that I would be with him, holding his hand when he passed away. But overall, their meet-ups remained a sanctuary. They were the squeaky-clean Kardashians of their era, and Bandstand could easily claim the title as the first reality show. ". One night at a party I met a girl who was one of the stars on American Bandstand I was blown away.. He kept his distance, she says. She and her husband, Richard Spada, lived in Philadelphia and Lansdowne before moving to Newtown Square. Very sadly, Bob passed away 2 . I never had a crush on her. For a time, she dated a neighborhood boy, Danny Rapp, lead singer of Danny & the Juniors, who had the hit song At the Hop., I was so afraid that I started trying to talk myself into being straight, Sullivan says. After school in the late 1950s, millions of American teenagers raced home to watch the gyrations of fellow teens on their parents tiny black-and-white televisions in the living room. But if you subscribe and leave a comment you want to see the parade, I will do it.Remember to SUBSCRIBE TO MY FEED AS I UPLOAD MORE FROM MY ARCHIVES! Thankfully we've come a long way since those sad days. American Bandstand aired five days a week in live national broadcast until 1963, when the show moved west to Los Angeles and began a 24-year run as a taped weekly program with Dick Clark as host . She was 13 but lied about her age. and scheduled the program at 3:30pm ETalmost in the middle of Bandstand. Not only was it extremely intelligent, but there was something moving about the mans story. "It is with much sadness that we have lost one of the most loving and beautiful souls - Carole Scaldeferri Spada has passed away," Bunny Gibson, who identified herself as a "Bandstand buddy," posted on Facebook. What they didnt know was that Arlene and several of the other female dancers, and most of the handsome teen boys, were gay. The American Bandstand Regulars tell us what Studio B means to them today and yesterday, with special guest appearance by the American Bandstand Fan Club pre. She tracked them down for the new coffee-table book, Bandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years, 1956-1963. Clark joined Bandstand in 1956 and moved with the show to Hollywood in 1964. Black music and black dances originating in Philadelphia neighborhoods contributed substantially to the success ofAmerican Bandstand; yetAmerican Bandstandsdancefloor and bleachers were racially segregated, and some of the shows most popular dances were adapted without attribution from black neighborhoods. There were occasional shows that were not hosted by Clark, in which case a substitute host (among them Rick Azar) was brought in.[6]. We were like sisters. We were like sisters. In fact, she was "the first female car racer at Cecil County Drag Strip," according. The shows were usually produced in either Stage 54 or Stage 55 at ABC Television Center. American Bandstand Fundraiser Pictures, To my knowledge, no VHS tape of American Bandstand is commercially available. I did get to know Annette Funicello [a Mouseketeer on the original Mickey Mouse Club], who came to the show. She tracked them down for the new coffee-table book, Bandstand Diaries: The Philadelphia Years, 1956-1963. On all the music they play On the Bandstand.! Sullivans co-author, Ray Smith, recently retired after 40 years as an Emmy-winning Today show producer. [1] John A. Jackson,American Bandstand: Dick Clark and the Making of a Rock n Roll Empire(New York: Oxford University Press, 1997), chaps. Stewart was the owner of a TV/Radio business in Philadelphia and even though he was an older gentleman, his advertising account was a large one for WFIL-TV, so he was put on the program to appease the account. WFIL reverted to the TK-10s two weeks later when ABC refused to carry the color signal and management realized that the show lost perspective without the extra cameras. I never had a crush on her. "[5] In one humorous segment broadcast for years on retrospective shows, comedians Cheech and Chong appeared as the record raters. [2] Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Paylola and Sponsorship Identification, Federal Communications Act, Amendments, 1960. I tried my best to fill your shoes and I hope I have lived up to what you were expecting of me. The parents of one kid on the show found out that he was gay . Larry Elgart, a bandleader who, with his brother, Les, recorded the theme song for the long-running television dance show "American Bandstand," and who later scored a surprise hit with "Hooked on Swing," a medley of swing classics set to a disco beat, died on Tuesday in Sarasota Fla.He was 95. He is a man of God and over the years has established both karate and prison ministeries. He was six weeks shy of his 47th birthday. I was truly blessed in my life with wonderful family, friends and fans. This first national broadcast of American Bandstand was filmed in the Starlight Ballroom in Wildwood, NJ. Click here to see some of your favorites back in action. ABC gave Clark a choice: divest his music-related interests or step down as host of the show. Clark chose to continue withBandstand.3. He remembered Clark as a man of few words who kept a professional distance between himself and the teen dancers. When he became a regular in 1959, Clark was only 30. Those "American Bandstand" days were the best for all of us teenagers who followed the program, the regulars, the dances, the performers, etc. While Bandstand fans across the country imagined a true romantic relationship between Sullivan, who secretly liked girls, and her on-screen companion, Rossi, who was straight, she says it was little more than made-for-TV puppy love. We were the first reality show, she adds. It featured teenagers dancing to Top 40 music introduced by Clark; at least one popular musical actover the decades, running the gamut from Jerry Lee Lewis to RunD.M.C.usually appeared in person to lip-sync one of their latest singles. Clark regularly asked teenagers their opinions of the songs being played, through the "Rate-a-Record" segment. One older brother survives Norman. Watch video clips of the American Bandstand dancers here. Television host Dick Clark presides over the set of his show American Bandstand in 1957. The one thing that really shocked me was that those boys who were 14 and 15 and 16 were sleeping with each other," Smith told the New York Post. James Morgan, who danced 17 times on Bandstand and stayed interested in it over the years, said Mrs. Spada had run a beauty parlor in the suburbs. I was trying to hit them over their heads with my pocketbook, but they just wouldnt give up. You eventually get cancelled.. But . When she heard the news of Clark's death Wednesday, Gibson immediately headed to Hollywood to be with other former Bandstand regulars at Clark's star on the Walk of Fame. In 1962, ABC trimmed the shows airtime from 90 to 60 minutes. The kids who showed up every day (Bandstand aired every weekday afternoon for the first six years) knew all the most popular steps. Give me some Thumbs UP!This is Bunny Gibson and the American Bandstand Regulars live at Sesame Park outside of Philadelphia on July 21,. SWIMSUITS of the regulars. Clark "was a good man, but he wasn't as friendly with us as people may think," Colanero said. This story has been shared 115,637 times. Forget that. My husband and I met on a blind date and six months later on April 12, 1964 we were married. Fiorentino, whose mother died when he was 12, said Clark became a role model. Rossi was straightbut Sullivan, many of her female co-stars, and most of the young male dancers were not. We went downtown, and I ran to the back of the bus the way I always did in Philly but Barbara and her friend kept telling me to come to the front. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 Ross Media Solutions, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Dick Clark later stated that he knew the prime-time edition would fail because its core audience teenagers and housewives was occupied with other interests in the evenings. When ABC picked up the game show Do You Trust Your Wife? The shy Sullivan pushed herself forward with the contact because she wanted to get on TV to impress her mother. Sadly we also lost: The increase in competition hurt Bandstand and the variety of options for music on TV decreased its relevance. Anna Russo, 2800 North 7th Street, Apt. But for the gay kids, the abuse at home was worse: When one dancer's parents learned he was gay, she told the Post, "they put a drinking cup in front of him and said, This is your cup, and youre the only one who will use this cup." Another was thrown out of the house. I had asked Norman to dance when it was a ladies choice. Or sign up for our monthly Nostalgia e-newsletter or other e-newsletters tailored for boomers! It got me out of my shell, but I learned I was a regular teenager who happened to dance on a show that unexpectedly became very popular. As WFIL grew financially and the account became less important, Stewart wasn't needed and was eventually dropped from the program. From 1963 to 1987 Bandstand was on only once a week, on Saturday. GALLERY 4. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved. I started going out to straight clubs.. No way I will get in his way! we were like a little family together, and we all had something in common, and we all stuck together, and that made it easier for us.. For now, Dick Clark on ABC, so long. Once the program went national upon its move to Los Angeles, new host Dick Clark decided that integration was the most responsible move. In their new self-published memoirs Bandstand Diaries, series regulars Arlene Sullivan, Ray Smith, and Sharon Sultan Cutler reveal that though fans loved to gossip and fantasize about the shows heterosexual pairings, many of their favorites were young gay men and women putting on a show for the cameras. But I didnt have any crushes on any of the straight girls. In August 1963, ABC reassignedAmerican Bandstandto Saturday afternoon. And while Smith knew he was gay, he was shocked to learn that most of the guys on Bandstand, so many of them, were gay, he told The Post. "My heart hurts," said Gibson, a regular from 1959 to 1961. Like the white homeowners associations' concerns about property values, WFIL's version of defensive localism built on a belief that integration would hurt the station's investment in Bandstand. Wagon Train Website, . AMERICAN BANDSTAND BLOG. We have lived in NJ ever since. At the time, being open about their sexuality would have meant the end for these young performers with stars in their eyes. View Our Classic TV Shows Directory Clark eventually assumed ownership of the program through his Dick Clark Productions company. Broadcast only on Saturdays after 1963, American Bandstand lost the homegrown vitality of the daily program in West Philadelphia. In March of 1970 we moved to New Jersey. The show was American Bandstand, and Dick Clarks clean-cut style meant the program had parents stamp of approval. From that dance on we became steady dance partners until I had to leave the show on my 18th birthday, which was in August of 1961., The Pony Contest Carole made the world a better place," Gibson wrote on a Facebook page called America's Original Bandstand Dancers. (7/21/2011) I just received this from Bunny Gibson and certainly thought it was appropriate to mention here: Anna Russo, formerly Anna Banani, went to American Bandstand 1963 until AB left Philly for Los Angeles, lost both of her legs to diabetes and is in need. We moved around the floor the way our parents did in the 40s. We ended up spending weekends together when she came to New York and D.C. to perform We went to lunch together and had fun, but Annette had to rest and perform, so we didnt have time for anything else., Sullivan never felt like a superstar, even when the Regulars averaged 100 to 150 fan letters a day. Don Travarelli, from South Philly, watched American Bandstand in 1961 and spotted Bunny Gibson dancing. Once a week, she goes to a hop thrown by another Bandstand original, 76-year-old Philadelphia radio and TV personality Jerry Blavat, who bills himself as The Geator with the Heater and The Boss with the Hot Sauce.. Making matters worse, on September 13, 1986, ABC reduced Bandstand from a full hour to 30 minutes;[13] at Clark's request, the 2,751st and final ABC installment[14] (with Laura Branigan[15] performing "Shattered Glass"[16][17]) aired on September 5, 1987. KENNY AND ARLENE. Carole Ann Scaldeferri Spada, 70, of Newtown Square, a regular dancer on American Bandstand from 1957 to 1961, has died. This kit packs $431 worth of premium skincare and haircare into a small packageand it's only $80 with the promo code. To the left youll find original pictures of some of the Regulars. In August 1963, ABC reassigned American Bandstand to Saturday afternoon. Oddly enough, I have never checked with the other Regulars to get their feedback. Browse celebrity nostalgia on our website. Dick Clark was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland, OH, in 1993 as a non-performer. Numerous black and white performers who appeared on American Bandstand during its seven-year heyday in West Philadelphia are also memorialized in this building. On December 27 Bunny Gibson, American Bandstand Regular from 1959-1962, married Duke Tirschel in Chattanooga , Tennessee. American Bandstand first aired 5 August 1957 in the 3-4:30 afternoon slot. A show where well-dressed teens gently bop around to the big hits while maintaining an appropriate distance apart hardly seems like it would be a hot bed of sexual experimentation, but American Bandstand apparently featured a crew of Philadelphia kids who had more than dancing in common. Clark was known for integrating his audiences as well as his performers unusual in the late 50s. They even invented a few the Stroll, the Circle and the Chalypso. She never saw much of Clark outside of the studio. I was so afraid that I started trying to talk myself into being straight. EARLY BANDSTAND VIDEOS. A Midlothian-based freelance writer, Martha Steger has received national awards for her journalism, essays, short fiction and poetry. The guy who had been in charge of the show before he took over was the subject of a scandal a DUI, I think so Clark wanted to be the clean-cut guy, and he was. [Clark] was a cool professional with an agenda from the beginning, an agenda for success that made him rich; he was a millionaire by the end of the 1950s. John Lithgow filmed a mockumentary episode before it was c 11-year-old reads aloud from 'pornographic' book he checked out from library at school board meeting, Influencer refuses to switch business class seats so family can sit together, Ousted Chicago mayor blames loss on racism, gender but not her tepid response to crime, Chaka Khan blasts Rolling Stone, Adele, Mariah Carey in podcast talk, Disgraceful Meghan, Harry provoked King Charles to evict them: royal expert, Kanye West and wife Bianca Censori look surprisingly happy on dinner date, Sunny Hostin Points Finger at China for COVID Crisis: Did Not Cooperate With the International Community, Prince Harry, Meghan Markle confirm they were asked to 'vacate' Frogmore Cottage. Open about their sexuality would have meant the program through his Dick Clark, wherever you are we. 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