Welcome Home, Elvis

In 1958, Elvis Presley was drafted into the U.S. Army and began two years of military service, starting with training at Fort Hood Texas and then deployment with the 3rd armored division in Germany.  After his two years of service were completed, Elvis returned to the United States in March of 1960.  Just two months later, he made a return to TV in a highly watched TV appearance on Frank Sinatra’s Timex TV special called It’s Nice To Go Traveling, better known as Welcome Home, Elvis.  The fee paid to Elvis for appearing was $125,000, which was a staggering amount at that time.

The show, recorded at the Fountainbleu hotel in Miami Beach, also featured guest stars Sammy Davis Jr., Joey Bishop, Peter Lawford and Nancy Sinatra.  So all of the Rat Pack was together for the special, with the exception of Dean Martin.  Peter and Sammy sang and danced during a duet of the song Shall We  Dance.  Joey was around for some comedy, and Nancy and her dad sang a duet of You Make Me Feel So Young with some special lyrics.  And Elvis got to showcase two of his most recent, post-military recordings, called Fame and Fortune and Stuck On You.  But the highlight of the program was a duet between Frank and Elvis in which Frank sang Elvis’ hit Love Me Tender and Elvis sang  Frank’s hit Witchcraft.

Frank  Sinatra might have been an unlikely host to welcome Elvis home due to Frank’s previously expressed opinions of Rock ‘n Roll, but the special was a big success, Elvis was a great guest, and the Frank and Elvis duet is highly regarded and often replayed during retrospectives.  And today, an Elvis tribute performer is often featured in combination with Rat Pack Impersonators.

John Wayne the singer!

Every week, The Dean Martin Variety Show welcomed many of America’s top show business celebrities as guests.  Among them was legendary movie star John Wayne, with whom Dean starred in two films, Rio Bravo and The Sons of Katie Elder.

On one episode of Dean’s show, Dean and Duke Wayne do a duet of Dean’s signature song Everybody Loves Somebody.  Actually, Wayne doesn’t sing, but instead does one of the best jobs of lip-synching ever seen.  Not only is the lip-synching flawless, but his expressions and body language are perfect as well.

And making it even more memorable is the fact that Wayne lip-synchs to the voice of Frank Sinatra, who actually recorded the song before it became a huge hit for Dean. 

You can see this enduring performance at YouTube’s Rat Pack Impersonators channel.

The Final Rat Pack Movie

It was the most musical of the Rat Pack films, with Frank, Dean and Sammy as gangsters in ’30′s era Chicago, with some comical rivalries, schemes and power struggles.  Fourth in the series of Rat Pack films, it continued the tradition of including a number in the title, a la Oceans Eleven, Sergeants Three, and Four For Texas. 

One of the film’s highlights is a musical number in which Frank introduces a song saluting Chicago, called My Kind Of Town.  He often closed his nightclub show with the song until later on when  he recorded New York, New York and it became a very popular closer for him. 

Joining Frank, Dean and Sammy in the film were Peter Falk, Barbara Rush and Edward G. Robinson, who makes a brief appearance.  Peter Lawford was also supposed to be in the movie, but his part was re-cast when he was exiled from the Rat Pack by Frank after Peter had to break the news that President Kennedy would not be staying at Frank’s home in Palm Springs on a California visit as planned.  That didn’t sit too well with Frank.  And not helping, were the elaborate plans Frank had made for the visit, which included remodeling his property to accomodate the President and his entourage.

Although Frank took it out on Peter, he apparently didn’t hold it against the star whose Palm Springs residence replaced his as the President’s destination, because it was that star, Bing Crosby, who replaced Lawford in Robin and the Seven Hoods. 

To see the cast performing one of the songs from the movie, visit the YouTube Rat Pack Impersonators site. 

A Rat Pack Book Recommendation

There have been several books written about the Rat Pack.  But possibly the best work out there is titled Rat Pack Confidential, by author Shawn Levy.  True to its name, it contains a lot of inside information and stories about the individuals, and the group as a whole.  There’s Frank’s history of ups and downs both emotionally and professionally. . .Dean’s lack of interest in politics and just about everything else in favor of sex and golf. . .Sammy’s struggles and his crucial but fragile relationship with Frank. . .Joey’s thin Rat Pack affiliation that existed primarily on the stage. . .and finally, Peter’s sordid and pathetic side which intensified after his questionable Rat Pack expulsion.

What makes Rat Pack Confidential a fascinating read is not only the depth of great content and detail, but the manner in which it’s written; a colorful, cool narrative that captures the style of the subjects, almost if as Frank had written it.

Shawn Levy

 The author, Shawn Levy, has been the film critic of the Oregonian in Portland Oregon since 1997.  Rat Pack Confidential was released in 1998, which is also the year Frank Sinatra died.  Not a Rat Pack era contemporary, Shawn Levy was actually born in 1961, possibly the peak year of the Rat Pack’s reign in Las Vegas.  Rat Pack Confidential is a must-read for Rat Pack fans as well as Rat Pack performers. 

Other books by Shawn Levy include King Of Comedy:  The Life And Art Of Jerry Lewis, and more recently Paul Newman:  A Life.

The Moulin Rouge of pre-Rat Pack Las Vegas

Showgirls of the Moulin Rouge Casino in Las Vegas

Back in the 50′s, great performers like Sammy Davis Jr., Nat King Cole and Louis Armstrong were not allowed to stay at the Las Vegas hotels where they performed because almost all the casinos on the Strip were segregated.  One exception was the Moulin Rouge, which became the first integrated hotel casino in Las Vegas when it opened in May of 1955.  It was located in West Las Vegas, where the black population was forced to live.

It soon became a popular late night hangout for many white performers including George Burns, Jack Benny, and Frank Sinatra, who would drop in after their shows to relax, gamble and perform.  After a while, the Moulin Rouge became so popular, they had to add a 2:30 AM show for the late night crowd.

The Moulin Rouge was launched by white investors but was later owned by the first African American woman to hold a Nevada gaming license.  And as a model of integration, it was instrumental in advancing the Civil Rights movement in Las Vegas.  Many of the people associated with the Moulin Rouge were activists and supporters of civil rights.  In fact, when a crucial meeting was held to arrange the desegregation of all Strip casinos, it took place at the Moulin Rouge.   Unfortunately, the Moulin Rouge had a short lifespan, closing its doors less than a year after it opened.  Nevertheless, it remains a significant, although little-known part of Las Vegas history.

Now, as the  Rat Pack is remembered through Rat Pack Tributes, it’s hard for today’s performers and Rat Pack Impersonators alike to imagine a time of segregation in Las Vegas, and elsewhere for that matter, but it existed.

A Rat Pack Christmas

In 2002, Capitol Records released a collection of 21 Christmas songs from Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr.  It was called Christmas With The Rat Pack, and the cover featured Ocean’s 11 style artwork.  The album included Frank’s popular Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas and I’ll Be Home For Christmas.  And from Dean, there’s Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow, and Baby, It’s Cold Outside, among others.

Between them, Frank and Dean had recorded many holiday tunes from which to choose.  Sammy, however, didn’t  have a large Christmas catalog.  Still, he’s featured on the album singing The Christmas Song, Jingle Bells, and a song called Christmastime All Over The World, which was previously unreleased.

After the initial release of Christmas With The Rat Pack, Capitol Records reportedly received complaints from conservative religious groups about the cover, even though it’s pretty innocent.  In response to the criticism, the cover was changed to a more generic image, as seen below.

Each December, at today’s tributes to the Rat Pack, Christmas songs are usually incorporated into the show.  And they usually include favorites from Christmas With The Rat Pack, performed in the styles of Frank, Dean and Sammy, by Rat Pack Impersonators.

A Rat Pack Member’s Comic Book

Before Dean Martin was a Rat Pack star, he and his partner Jerry Lewis had the most successful comedy team of all time.  Martin and Lewis started out breaking attendance records at nightclubs, where people would be lined up around the block to get in, and they went on to be a huge success on TV and in the movies.

Dean and Jerry’s popularity even inspired a comic book, issued from 1952 all the way till 1958.  Many are for sale today as collectibles, with the one below available on eBay for $175, which is not a bad return on an original price of 10 cents.

From the Rat Pack Impersonators  Blog and Rat Pack Impersonators Website.

Marilyn Monroe and the Rat Pack Impersonators

The biggest female star associated with the Rat Pack would have to have been Marilyn Monroe.  And as a result, there is often a characterization of Marilyn along with Frank, Dean and Sammy in today’s Rat Pack Shows.  The performer portraying Marilyn will usually sing Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend and My Heart Belongs To Daddy, plus I Wanna Be Loved By You.  And there is often another song and interaction with one or more of the guys.    

The leading Marilyn Monroe Impersonator around today is Susan Griffiths, who starred in a TV movie called Marilyn & Me and was featured in Pulp Fiction. 

Susan Griffiths

 

She has also appeared on the TV shows Nip/Tuck and Curb Your Enthusiasm and has been seen during Elton John’s Las Vegas concerts where her image is projected on a large screen behind Elton while he performs the song Candles In the Wind. 

 

Susan, who is based in Southern California, is constantly in demand for her amazing look, sound and manner that re-creates Marilyn so convincingly, as seen here in a page from TV Guide.   Susan can be found on the Web at SusanGriffiths.com

Rat Pack Aerobics

Many people use upbeat music at a continuous beat to guide their aerobic exercise, whether in a class or alone at home.  Having music you like enhances the experience.  So it’s good to have a lot of choices available, and now there are, because one company is turning out a variety of music packages for working out.  Among their selections is Rat Pack Aerobics, which features the songs of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr., the songs performed throughout their Rat Pack years, and these days re-created by Rat Pack Impersonators.  

The Rat Pack Aerobics workout is 74 minutes long, and maintains a constant 140 beat per minute pace, with songs like Come Fly With Me, Fly Me To The Moon, Volare, That Old Black Magic, and sixteen more.

Other collections include the hits of the Bee Gees, Elvis, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Madonna, Fleetwood Mac, Disco, Country and many more, all produced for aerobic and cardio exercise programs, with over 100 titles in all.  For the complete selection, visit AerobicsMusic.com.

A new chapter for Michael Jackson Impersonators

In addition to impersonators of Elvis, Marilyn Monroe, and The Rat Pack, many tribute shows over the years have featured a Michael Jackson impersonator.  There are many, and many are quite good.  One who comes to mind calls himself E’Casanova, and he has created a remarkable lookalike of Michael.  In fact, it’s so good, he even doubled for Michael, at Michael’s request. 

E’Casanova doesn’t just make himself look like Michael.  He also sings and dances and re-creates much of Michael’s stage presence and does a pretty accurate job of it.  He will no doubt continue to be sought after for his tribute act, and now, with the sudden death of Michael, the demand for his show will probably even increase.   To read more about him, go to E’Casanova’s MySpace page.