This week, Ira Sternberg spoke with Frankie Avalon.
Frankie Avalon will be performing at the South Point Casino September 28-30
In this 30-minute episode of Talk About Las Vegas, Avalon talks about his long and varied career in music, television, and motion pictures; his identification as a musician first and foremost; getting motivated as a young trumpet player by a red Thunderbird; being helped and mentored by Nat King Cole, who was responsible for the start of Avalon’s Las Vegas performances beginning in 1960; and his appeal to multiple generations throughout the world.
Avalon has a long string of Gold Record Million-Seller singles and albums. In 1959 alone, he had six solid hits that were in the top 40 and his music became one of the defining sounds of the “Pre-Beatles” Rock and Roll.
His 30 motion picture credits include starring roles in the highly successful “Beach Party” film series; his comedic performances in “Skidoo,” “Sail a Crooked Ship,” “I’ll Take Sweden,” “Ski Party” and “Sergeant Deadhead”; and his dramatic roles in “The Dark,” “The Alamo,” “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea,” “Guns of the Timberland” and “The Take.”