Lana Wood was in the news once again regarding the mysterious death of her sister Natalie Wood over 20 years ago. Click here to read the latest in the controversy.
sixties
IT’S THE T.A.M.I. SHOW
WLIW21 is airing for the first time on TV the uncut 1964 rock and roll concert The T.A.M.I. Show, the second movie filmed in Electronovision from producer Bill Sargent. The movie was shot live at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in front of a crowd of 5,000 screaming teenagers. T.A.M.I. stood for Teen-Age Music International a foundation known for granting music scholarships. Popular singing duo Jan and Dean who topped the charts in 1963 with their huge hit “Surf City” were tapped to host and they sneak in a few songs including “The Little Old Lady from Pasadena” and “Sidewalk Surfin.”
The eclectic array of rock acts assembled to perform come from the music worlds of R&B, Motown, surf music, the British invasion, garage rock, and girl groups. The concert opens with Chuck Berry and Liverpool rockers Gerry and the Pacemakers. They take turns performing and the crowd goes wild when Berry sings “Sweet Little Sixteen” and the Pacemakers match him with their hit “How Do You Do It?” They are followed on stage by Lesley Gore who sings some of her most popular tunes including “You Don’t Own Me” and then the #1 girl group at the time, The Supremes. Close-ups of Diana Ross singing “Baby Love” and “Where Did Our Love Go” are truly something to behold. They are followed by the British band Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, garage band The Barbarians, the Beach Boys (who rock on “Surfin’ U.S.A.” and “I Get Around” amongst other songs), Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, and Marvin Gaye.
The fabulous James Brown & the Famous Flames is the second to last act to perform and they tear the house down with three songs including “Please Please Please.” The closing act is the incomparable Rolling Stones who had not yet hit big in the U.S. Even still they drive the audience into a near frenzy singing such songs as “Time Is on My Side” and “It’s All Right” closing the show on a high note.
GO-GO ON THE RADIO
During the sixties one of the most popular go-go girls on TV was Lada Edmund, Jr. who shimmied and gyrated on Hullabaloo. She went on to co-star in such films as For Those Who Think Young with James Darren and Pamela Tiffin and Out of It with Jon Voight. Click here to hear a recent internet radio interview with her.
Van Williams Speaks
Click here to read a wonderful interview by Michael Barnum with sixties actor Van Williams most famous for playing The Green Hornet on TV. To me, he was one of the most handsome young actors of the decade and it is mind-boggling why he never became a leading man in movies.
He comments on working with a number of starlets including Fantasy Femme Diane McBain (pictured below with Van and Troy Donahue from Surfside 6 TV series) and Drive-in Dream Girl Wende Wagner.
