6/19/64 – Senator Edward Kennedy is seriously injured in a
private plane crash in Southampton, Massachusetts.Kennedy will sustain a broken back and be
hospitalized for six months.He will
later have to wear a back brace and neck collar.Also on board were Senator Birch Bayh (also
injured) and pilot Edward Zimny, who was killed in the crash.
Also on 6/19, Martha and the Vandellas record their Motown
classic “Dancing In The Street”
Also on 6/19, The Senate approves The Civil Rights Act
Also on 6/19, the final episode of the original “Twilight
Zone” series airs on CBS.(For the
record, it was “The Bewitchin’ Pool” episode.)
Donny performed “Joseph and the Amazing
Technicolor Dreamcoat” here at The Chicago Theater for six years … over 2000
performances (and I was there front and center for a good five or six of those …
without question, one of the best shows I’ve ever seen!) …
So when he returned to The Chicago Theater
last Friday Night, June 14th (an emotional experience for him as well, I'm sure!) to perform his new Las Vegas Revue, a show he performs
regularly during his residency at Harrah’s, the lines around the theater were
insane!He sold the place out … and life-long fans came to show their love for Donny.
I can tell you that he is still in
fine voice … and the consummate performer.He is, by every definition, a show biz entertainer.(Let’s face it, he’s been doing it for all of
his life, since the age of five when his brothers brought him out to sing on
The Andy Williams Show.)
Donny makes a good point, early on in his
show …
How do you encapsulate seven decades of
performing into a two hour show?
What do you leave in?What can you take out?Obviously, you can’t cover it all … yet somehow
he still did … and in some pretty clever and unique ways, too.
For starters, he performed his career “Rapography,”
covering the highlights from his very first television appearance on thru his
recently released 65th album.
What an amazing career this man has had!
Starting as the then newest and youngest member of The Osmonds Brothers ... who also simultaneously launched a solo career that produced five Top Ten Hits the first two years ... immortalized forever in cartoons (!) ... a new family franchise with sister Marie (which included a variety show and a talk show, not to mention a very successful Vegas act of their own) ... a '90's comeback with "Soldier of Love" and "Sacred Emotion," "Joseph," "Mulan," The Masked Singer (!), winning "Dancing With The Stars," hosting "The $10,000 Pyramid" ... my God, what HASN'T this guy done??? (And the fact of the matter is, he has shone brilliantly in each of these roles ... and beyond.) You just don't realize how many times ... and in how many ways ... Donny Osmond has been a part of our lives for the past 62 years ... the Rapography drives that point home, encapsulating all of it in just under eight minutes! Brilliant.
To further promote the fact that he has now released 65 albums, he next pulled up an
iTunes/Spotify-looking device on the big screen behind him, showing every song
from every album, and asked the audience to call out favorites that they’d like
him to perform.
Donny then proceeded to sing along with
his original recordings … and in nearly perfect voice, too, replicating the
various stages of his career.
There were some exceptionally emotional
moments along the way …
Donny singing “Close Every Door” from “Joseph”
brought a tear to more than one eye … (yes, I'm talking about YOU, Frannie!) ...
As did singing along with a video of his brothers
on MY all-time favorite Osmonds song, “Love Me For A Reason” …
And once again while paying tribute to the man who launched
his career by singing a duet of “Moon River” with Andy Williams. (The very first concert Frannie ever saw was The Osmond Brothers in the early '70's ... so this was an especially meaningful concert for her.)
In between, there was a lot of fun,
too.Donny’s Vegas dancers and excellent
back-up band provided the right mood and pacing to put on a very entertaining
show.
At one point, Donny stopped and said, “You
know every performer, no matter how many great records they release over the course
of their career, always seem to be defined by one particular song … and,
unfortunately, this one is mine …” and then broke into “And they call it puppy
love” … another GREAT moment in the show.
Donny’s got it down … and the audience
loved him, awarding him with one of the longest standing ovations I’ve ever seen at the end
of the show.And well deserved, too.
Donnymania is alive and well in Chicago! (kk)
Donny returns to Harrah’s in Las Vegas in
August …
But in the meantime, he’s taking his show
out on the road …
And I can highly recommend it ..
June 18, 2024 (tonight) - Wheeling,
WV - The Capitol Theatre
June 19, 2024 - Shipshewana,
IN - Blue Gate Performing Arts Center
June 21, 2024 - Toledo,
OH - Stranahan Theater and Great Hall
June 22, 2024 - Columbus,
OH - Mershon Auditorium
June 23, 2024 - Louisville,
KY - The Louisville Palace
June 25, 2024 - Atlanta,
GA - Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre
June 26, 2024 - Cincinnati,
OH - The Andrew J Brady Music Center
June 28, 2024 - Baltimore,
MD - The Lyric
June 29, 2024 - Mashantucket,
CT - Premier Theater at Foxwoods Resort Casino
June 30, 2024 - Boston,
MA - Boch Center Wang Theatre
July 2, 2024 - Hershey,
PA - Hershey Theatre
July 3, 2024 - Albany, NY
- The Palace Theatre Albany
July 5, 2024 - Rama, ON -
Casino Rama Entertainment Centre
July 6, 2024 - Akron, OH
- Akron Civic Theatre
July 7, 2024 - Atlantic
City, NJ - Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena
July 9, 2024 - Charlotte,
NC - Ovens Auditorium
July 11, 2024 - Bethlehem,
PA - The Wind Creek Event Center
July 12, 2024 - New York,
NY - Beacon Theatre
July 13, 2024 - Niagara
Falls, NY - Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino Event Center
July 24, 2024 - Hollywood,
FL - Hard Rock Live at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood
July 25, 2024 - Tampa, FL
- Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Event Center
July 26, 2024 - Melbourne,
FL - Maxwell C. King Center for the Performing Arts
July 27, 2024 - Jacksonville,
FL - Florida Theatre
July 29, 2024 - Nashville,
TN - Ryman Auditorium
July 30, 2024 - Little
Rock, AR - Robinson Center
August 1, 2024 - San
Antonio, TX - Tobin Center for the Performing Arts
August 2, 2024 - Dallas,
TX - Music Hall at Fair Park
August 3, 2024 - Tulsa,
OK - Tulsa Theater
August 5, 2024 - Denver,
CO - Paramount Theatre
August 6, 2024 - Colorado
Springs, CO - Pikes Peak Center
August 8, 2024 - Boise,
ID - Idaho Central Arena
August 9, 2024 - Ridgefield,
WA - Ilani Casino
August 10, 2024 - Seattle,
WA - Paramount Theatre
August 11, 2024 - Airway
Heights, WA - BECU Live
August 13, 2024 - Idaho
Falls, ID - Hero Arena at the Mountain America Center
August 15, 2024 - Wheatland,
CA - Hard Rock Live Sacramento
August 16, 2024 - Modesto,
CA - Gallo Center for the Arts
August 17, 2024 - San
Jose, CA - San Jose Civic
And then it's back to Harrah's, where he continues to perform thru the middle of November. (We're actually kicking around the idea of flying out there to see him one more time.) Can you imagine if we can somehow coordinate a trip to head out to Vegas the weekend after Frannie's birthday and see Donny Osmond AND The Eagles at The Sphere during the same weekend?!?! Seriously, could life actually get any better than this???
6/17/64 – “Viva Las Vegas” starring Elvis Presley and
Ann-Margret opens nationally in theaters.
(In a move that makes absolutely no sense at all today, it had opened in New York City two months earlier.)
The chemistry between Elvis and Ann-Margret was undeniable ...
To this day, many consider "Viva Las Vegas" to be one of the best films he ever made. (I know the bar is set pretty low in this regard ... but this was a good one ... and is still fun to watch.)
Although the title track would go on to become one of Elvis' signature tunes, it wasn't that big of a hit when it was first released a few months earlier, only climbing to #29 in Billboard and #16 nationally overall. In fact, it's B-Side, Elvis' version of the Ray Charles classic "What'd I Say," performed better on the charts, climbing to #21 in Billboard and #13 in Cash Box.
Many considered Ann-Margret to be "the female Elvis" at the time ... she just oozed sexuality (in a sex kitten sort of way.) She was flat out electric ... and had certainly had come a long way from innocent Kim MacAfee in "Bye Bye Birdie," where she had starred alongside another teen idol, Bobby Rydell. In "Viva Las Vegas," she matched Elvis move for move throughout the film ... and even outperformed him in her spotlight scenes.
In a rare move, she and Elvis even got to sing a couple of duets together. (Ann-Margret had her own Top Ten Hit in 1961 with "I Just Don't Understand," a song even The Beatles took note of and performed during one of their BBC broadcasts.)
One of my favorites comes in this scene, shot poolside ...
Incredibly, Elvis bombed in Las Vegas when he first appeared there in 1957 ... the high-brow crowd just wasn't ready for his rock and roll antics ...
But he obviously came back in a VERY big way twelve years later where he played to packed, sold-out full houses every time he appeared. (The show was a little slicker then, too ... and Elvis had just come back in a very big way after his NBC "comeback" special aired. All of a sudden, he was having hits on the chart again, too!)
Also on 6/17, Jay and the Americans record “Come A Little
Bit Closer”
