Saturday, February 18, 2012
By John Benson
Even though, age-wise, 54 years separates Frankie Avalon from current pop phenomenon Justin Bieber, the legendary singer knows exactly what it’s like to be a teen idol on top of the world.
“I look at Bieber and the success of what he’s enjoying right now, and it was probably on the same level,” said Avalon, calling from Los Angeles. “Not only did we have millions of fans around the world, but we were exposed to television in its infancy. When I did television shows like ‘The Ed Sullivan Show,’ ‘The Perry Como Show’ or ‘The Dinah Shore Show,’ there were only three networks in existence at the time — which meant whoever had a television saw Frankie Avalon across this country.”
Avalon said his message to Bieber is simply to take his time in growing his celebrity. Pop-culture history has too many one-hit wonders or flash-in-the-pans, which the 71-year-old Philadelphia native avoided becoming by taking small steps while still spreading his wings from music to acting.
Avalon first became a national sensation with his 1958 debut single, “De De Dinah.” A year later his recording of “Venus” went No. 1 with a slew of hits following. The list includes songs such as “Bobbysocks to Stockings,” “Gingerbread,” “Just Ask Your Heart” and “A Boy Without A Girl.”
By the early ’60s, Avalon successfully made the leap into feature films with small roles alongside Alan Ladd (“Guns of Timberland”) and John Wayne (“The Alamo”). He also starred in the popular ’60s “Beach” movies — “Beach Party,” “Muscle Beach Party,” “Beach Blanket Bingo” and “Bikini Beach” — with co-star Annette Funicello. It wasn’t until a decade later Avalon appealed to yet another generation as the “Beauty School Dropout”-singing Teen Angel in “Grease.”
Today, Avalon is once again celebrating the past alongside Fabian and Bobby Rydell with The Golden Boys tour, which includes a show tonight at the Palace Theatre in Cleveland. The “American Bandstand” legends first went on the road in 1985 playing to sold-out audiences. Now Avalon is confident that even though this may be Bieber’s world, The Golden Boys Tour will still draw fans young and old.