PHILADELPHIA (Audacy) — Singer and actor Bobby Rydell, who rose to fame in the 1960s with his singles "Wild One" and "Wildwood Days" and his appearance in the movie "Bye Bye Birdie," has died at the age of 79.
Robert Luis Ridarelli was born in Philadelphia and eventually changed his name to Bobby Rydell in the 1950s, when he was starting his music career and playing throughout the Philly area.
Along with James Darren, Fabian and Frankie Avalon, Rydell was among a wave of wholesome teen idols who emerged after Elvis Presley and before the rise of the Beatles.
He signed with Cameo Records, and his first big hit, "We Got Love," came in 1959 and reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100. It spent 17 weeks on the charts. He followed that with "Wild One" in 1960, which spent 16 weeks on the charts and peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Both songs sold more than 1 million copies and earned gold status.
In 1963, Rydell released "Wildwood Days," which peaked at No. 17 on the charts and stayed there for nine weeks, highlighting summers at the Jersey Shore.
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Rydell then appeared in "Bye Bye Birdie" in the same year alongside Dick Van Dyke and Ann-Margret.
The Philadelphia native went on to have 34 different singles crack the Top 100 list throughout the 1960s, and he was named one of the top artists of the decade.
He didn’t want to move to Hollywood, however, and “Bye Bye Birdie” became his only significant movie role — though the high school in the hit ’70s musical “Grease” was named for him.
Rydell never strayed far from his Philadelphia roots, living in the area for most of his life. The block of 11th Street where he grew up was christened Bobby Rydell Boulevard by his hometown in 1995.
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“He will be remembered, not only as a finger of rock ‘n’ roll, but a constant performer who performed the same way as the show business legends of the past,” said DJ Jerry Blavat, who grew up in the same neighborhood as Rydell and stayed friends with him through the decades.
“When you performed, you came out in a tuxedo. You did a 90-minute show, you performed. He did comedy, he played drums. That was showbusiness. And he was fortunate as a young man, as a kid to have that,” he said.
Before he graced the covers of teen magazines and movie screens, Rydell made his bones as a youngster in Philadelphia clubs. He made his performance debut as a 7-year-old drummer, not a singer. His first drum kit was a gift from his father, Al Ridarelli, who inspired his son's choice of instrument by taking him to see Gene Krupa perform.
At age 9, he debuted on an amateur television show and became its regular drummer for three years.
Rydell got his big break in 1959 on “American Bandstand,” which originally was broadcast from Philadelphia. His first hit, “Kissing Time,” quickly followed, and the skinny 17-year-old with a pompadour haircut rocketed to stardom. Rydell and his fellow Philadelphia performers were ideal for “Bandstand” host Dick Clark, who sought to make rock ‘n’ roll palatable to young and old. He also made live appearances nationwide on a tour organized by Clark.
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Rydell had credited a 2012 kidney and liver transplant with extending his life.
He died on Tuesday of complications from pneumonia at a hospital in a suburb of his hometown of Philadelphia, according to a statement posted by his marketing and event coordinator Maria Novey.
Rydell's childhood sweetheart and first wife, Camille, died in 2003. He is survived by his second wife, Linda Hoffman, whom he married in 2009, along with son Robert Ridarelli, daughter Jennifer Dulin, and five grandchildren.