Today, Concetta is married to another former committee member, John Sankonis. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. It was difficult with your peers, recalls Peanuts. This undated photo shows dancers on "The Buddy Deane Show." The 25th anniversary of the movie "Hairspray" provides an opportunity for members of the dance group of Baltimore's "The Buddy Deane Show" to get back . John Waters: I put the spotlight on [the integration controversy] . Buddy Deane, 78, the impresario of Baltimore's dance show from 1957-1964, died Wednesday of complications from a stroke near his home in Pine Bluff, Ark. His childhood nickname was Buddy. For the past 17 years, theve owned a travel agency, Francesca & Company Travel. Why not do The Deane Show on TV again? Several marriages resulted from liaisons between Committee Members. . If you leaned on one side, the next day youd just pick it out into shape. Neither Deane nor Waters believes Baltimore was ready for an integrated teen dance program in 1964. The Committee members became Baltimore celebrities they were recognized on the street and received fan mail and they got to meet some of the biggest stars in music. Buddy wanted it to end happily, but WJZ angered Deaners when it tried to blame the ratings. Can't find a movie or TV show? A special. The dancers were known as the Committee. Deane and Kozak were advised by a small group of committee members on final cuts. You could throw her down on the ground, and her hair would crack, recalls Gene. (It's featured in Waters' film. To be selected you had to bring a character reference letter from your pastor, priest, or rabbi, qualify in a dance audition, and show in an interview (the Spotlight) that you had personality. At first the Committee had a revolving membership with no one serving longer than three months. And when we sprayed it, we had to blot it so it didnt leave residue. So the rules were bent a little; the big ones, the ones with the fan mail, were allowed to stay. Ive never said they were racist. At school, we were just one of the other kids, but we used to get fan mail. raises funds for Alzheimer's Association, 2017 HD Heritage Softail for Sale in Bel Air, Democrat Ben Cardin Won't Seek Re-Election To Senate In 2024, Flour Recalled In MD For Salmonella Risk: What To Know, Latest Job Listings In The Essex-Middle River Area, Essex-Middle River Area: See 5 Nearby Properties On The Market. Linda Snyder (then Warehime): Buddy was the star . Plus they used us for commercials. Vicki Defeo: My favorite was James Brown. . The show was a teen dance and music show and ran from 1957 to until 1964 on WJZ-TV until the show was canceled.The show was a teen dance and music show and ran from 1957 to until 1964 on WJZ-TV until the show was canceled.The show was a teen dance and music show and ran from 1957 to until 1964 on WJZ-TV until the show was canceled. Suite 320. Also included is the perhaps the final voiceover by the late Jack Gale who recorded his contribution 10 days before departing for home on January 23rd. Each reunion (and a new one is in the works) ls bigger than the last. Arlene [Kozak, his production assistant], Ricki Lakes character goes down to audition. In [Hairspray], Ricki Lakes character goes down to audition and they all make fun of her. I had always studied dance, and I wanted to go on [the show]. The uncertain life of a high-schooler became more tolerable. . Mary Lou Barber: My hairstyle was the biggest. [1], As with many other local TV shows, little footage of the show is known to have survived. . Dance lessons are provided by certified "Hand dance" instructors , Phil & Diane", from 5:30 till 6:30 and then we dance until about 9pm. Besides, he never discovered that his youngest son had been on the show a dozen other times, further solidifying my stock among my peers. The Buddy Deane Show was a teen dance television show, created by Zvi Shoubin, hosted by Winston "Buddy" Deane (19242003), and aired on WJZ-TV (Channel 13), the then-ABC affiliate station in Baltimore from 1957 until 1964. My father had forbidden me to try out for the Buddy Deane Committee -- fearing, perhaps, that it would interfere with my becoming a national scholar at City College high school or prevent me from one day discovering the Internet -- so I had to sneak on the show, courtesy of girlfriends who sent away for tickets and took me as their guest. With the 1960s came a whole new set of stars, some with names that seemed like gimmicks, but werent: Concetta Comi, the popular sister team of Yetta and Gretta Kotik. . I lied! That she has an affluent life-style surprises no one on the Committee. Friends now joke that Baltimore was the cha-cha capital of the world. Although he never appeared on Deane's show, Waters attended high school with a "Buddy Deaner" and later gave Deane a cameo in the film, in which Deane played a TV reporter who tried to interview the governor who was besieged by integration protesters. He went steady with committee member Bobbie Lanham, a heartthrob to legions, and got lots of telegrams inviting him and Bobbie to lead dances. There were riots! Hi all. Pictures Just Added Taken Nov. 1983. Buddy Deane, center, with the Committee and teen dancers. They kept their figures, look nice, and are very kind people, says Marie in her lovely home on Falls Road before taking off for the University of Maryland, where she attends law school. . I hate to say this, but they wanted attractive young people. They would drive me nuts when theyd come in the door, and Id say Man, youre gone. I took off my steady ring and threw it down. What happened Buddy Dean? One of the first ponytail princesses was Peanuts (Sharon Goldman, debuting at 14 in 58, Forest Park, Chicken Hop), who went on the show because Deaners were folk heroes. She remembers Paul Anka singing Put Your Head on My Shoulder to her on camera as she did just that. Ironically, The Buddy Deane Show introduced black music and artists into the lives of white Baltimore teenagers, many of whom learned to dance from black friends and listened to black radio.
The Buddy Deane Show - Alchetron, The Free Social Encyclopedia If you couldnt do the Buddy Dean jitterbug, (always identifiable by the girls ever-so-subtle dip of her head each time she was twirled around), you were a social outcast.
It was a different time, and a different generation, thats all., We had no problem with it, added Gene Snyder, who sat with his wife, whose maiden name was Linda Warehime. . [But] people hated me, too. The Buddy Deane Show ended in early 1964, a victim of "insolvable" integration problems, Mr. Deane said in an article in The Sun at that time. The old Buddy Deane gang is still a hit, too, still getting recognized on the street, and still remembered with affection by a generation that spanned the Eisenhower and Kennedy years. They were more made fun of because they didnt fit in [and] because people would want to fight them. They are still referred to, good naturedly by some, as the Ken and Barbie of the show. Gene, a member of the first Committee, and I underline first, later became president of the Board. And the girl Deaners, God, hair-hoppers as we called them in Towson, the ones with the Etta Gowns, bouffant hairdos, and cha-cha heels. I used to get death threats on the show. We all considered it a privilege, even though they never paid our bus fare.. These were the first role models I knew. They were married in 1966 and have one daughter. I was totally star-struck and had as much fun that night as I did at the Cannes Film Festival.
You Can't Stop the Beat: The Secret History of Hairspray as Live TV Helen was my idol when I started watching the Buddy Deane show with my sister in 1958. Buddy Deane, whose popular Baltimore television dance show for teenagers became the basis for the John Waters movie "Hairspray," died here on July 16. My mother used to pick me up after school to make sure nobody hassled me., The adoring fans could also be a hassle. The punitive consequences weren't significant; I think he threw an ashtray at me. Hairspray movie was inspired by this show and was based off of the the events but unlike the movies, instead of the show being integrated, it was cancelled. I think Im honoring their great stardom. Perhaps the highest bouffants of all belonged to the Committee member who was my personal favorite: Pixie (who died several years later from a drug overdose). You have to ease into it. When the show ended, Deane moved back to Arkansas, bought half a dozen radio stations, and lived out his life there, except for brief runs back to Baltimore, where hed host reunions with hundreds in attendance. . The producers of Diner wanted to include Buddy Deane footage in their film, but most of the shows were live and any tapes of this local period piece have been erased. It was similar to Philadelphia's American Bandstand. And we were so sad. . The Madison line dance was born here, called by the supreme voice of Eddie Morrison. I think my father would definitely have not been agreeable to [integration] at that time. His dance party television show debuted in 1957 and was, for a time, the most popular local show in the United States. Id get hate mail. Now, were talking about integrating the show. (backrow) Joe Loverde, Vicki Defeo, Bil Bertazon, and Marie Fischer Cooke Shapiro. Please contact me. Mary Lou Barber: Arlene would throw a spotlight on you, and theyd throw questions at you: What do you like about yourself, what do you like about the show? So you always had to kind of be on., Frani Hahn: Honestly, I was on the show for, Id say about six months before my father even found out, and he found out quite by accident. . If you were a Buddy Deane Committee member, you were on TV six days a week for as many as three hours a dayenough media exposure to make Marshall McLuhans head spin. In mixed marriages (with non-Deaners), many of the outsiders resented their spouses pasts. We appreciate your interest. And if you dared to dance the obscene Bodie Green (the Dirty Boogie), you were immediately a goner. Members of the committee attended Reunion Dances and other events soliciting the support of . Actor: Hairspray. She was the one of the biggies who refused to be on the Board (they had power; a liked because of it).
The Messy Truth of The Real 'Hairspray' - The Washington Post Deane's show is the foundation of the John Waters film Hairspray and the popular adaptation of it that's now on Broadway. (Editors note: The show requested a character reference from a priest, minister or rabbi; references from teachers or principals were also accepted.) We all watched that and the Mickey Mouse Club. [At my audition], I was not quite 14. By what name was The Buddy Deane Show (1957) officially released in Canada in English?
Ladies and Gentleman . . . The Nicest Kids in Town! But something unforeseen happened: The home audience soon grew attached to some of these kids. With the show beginning at 2:30 in some years, cutting out of school early was common. You can help by adding some! Deane began his broadcasting career at KLXR in Little Rock, Arkansas. "Oooo, you sweated on me!" God forbid, in school, if you didnt smile, you were conceited. And the guys had to wear a coat and tie, so wed keep stuff in the car. Mary Lou laughs at the memory of doing a pimple medicine spot on camera. They had a contract we had to sign, because they were using our image for free. It aired for two and a half hours a day, six days a week. .