Jerry Lee Lewis - Biography - IMDb Jerry Lee Lewis Biography Showing all 57 items Jump to: Overview (3) | Mini Bio (1) | Spouse (7) | Trade Mark (2) | Trivia (34) | Personal Quotes (10) Overview (3) 6' (1.83 m) Mini Bio (1) Jerry Lee Lewis was born on September 29, 1935 into a very religious family . His family, though not very wealthy, sold their house when he was a child to get their son a piano. He loved to play piano. He was sent to a religious school, but was soon thrown out shortly thereafter -- he did a boogie version of a song about Jesus, something the school could not accept. At 17, he married for the first time, but it only lasted seven months. He married a second time three weeks before he his divorce from his first wife was final. His second marriage lasted about four years and produced his first child. In November 1956 he moved in with a cousin, J. W. Brown, in Memphis. They started a band together, with Jerry as singer.

They sold a copy of their first song, "Crazy Arms", to the legendary Sam Phillips , president of Sun Records. Phillips had become famous because of his discovery of Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash . Phillips liked the song, and Jerry Lee Lewis began to establish his name in Memphis in late 1956. In January 1957, he recorded a new song, the self-penned "End of the Road." It was unusual in that singers did not write their own songs at that time. Jerry was fresh in other ways, too. He not only wrote some of his own songs, he played piano. Other rock singer of that era played guitar, such as Elvis Presley , Tommy Steele , Johnny Cash , Chuck Berry , etc. The piano wasn't considered a rock and roll instrument - Jerry Lee Lewis changed all that. Jerry got his big break in April 1957, when he went to New York and appeared on The Steve Allen Plymouth Show (1956) with the "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On". A couple of #1 hits would soon follow -- "Great Balls of Fire" (which became his signature song), "Breathless" and "High School Confidential".

Many people predicted that Jerry Lee would be bigger than the King of Rock-n-Roll - Elvis Presley . In late 1957 the audiences at one of his shows stormed the stage when he set a piano on fire. Chuck Berry was supposed to have ended the evening's show, but he refused to go on, wisely understanding that he could never top what Jerry just did. Elvis went into the army in the late winter of 1958, so Jerry Lee was now virtually alone at the top of the rock heap. All was not rosy, however. Problems did arise--very serious problems. In 1957, he married for a third time, secretly, to the 13-year-old daughter of his cousin and partner J. W. Brown, 'Myra Gale Brown (I)'. Her parents were deeply hurt when they found out, but after a discussion with Sam Phillips , they forgave Jerry. The marriage was unknown to the press and fans until Jerry's arrival in England for a tour in the spring of 1958. Fans again stormed the stage -- but this time to express their disgust. The marriage was front-page news around the world. His career was in shambles.

He had just signed a five-year contract with Sun Records, and he did continue to record songs until 1963. During the last years of the contract, however, he made very few rock songs. Most of his compositions were ballads, possibly due to his depression at the direction his career had taken. Jerry and Myra had one son, Steve Allen Lewis, who drowned at age three. The couple divorced in 1970, after 13 years of bad treatment in the press. However, Jerry's career was not completely finished. In 1968 he made his great comeback, as a country singer. During the next few years, he performed more and more rock 'n' roll. He married a fourth time in October 1971 but the marriage ended two years later, after producing one child. That same year, Jerry's son from his first marriage died in an auto accident. The combination of divorce, personal tragedies and his career stagnation contributed to his turning to the bottle, and for the next 15 years Jerry had a severe drinking problem. His drinking also contributed to a rash of health problems, and he almost died of a ruptured stomach in 1981.

People thought that The Killer was finished. But he wasn't. Jerry Lee Lewis puts on brilliant concerts even today, in his 70's, and with his wild life behind him. He divorced his sixth wife in the summer of 2005, after over 20 years of marriage. He is still a wild man - and he is still on fire! - IMDb Mini Biography By: Snorre Mathiesen Spouse (7) ( 15 September 1953 - 1957) (divorced) (2 children) Dorothy Barton Often played the piano with his foot on the keyboard Trivia (34) At her ten-year high school reunion, Janis Joplin introduced her younger sister to Lewis, who was a guest. Lewis commented to her that "you wouldn't be half-bad-looking if you weren't trying to look like your sister." Janis slugged Lewis for the comment. Lewis slugged her back, saying, "If you're gonna act like a man, I'm gonna treat you like one!". His eldest son, Jerry Lee Lewis Jr. (b. 1953), was killed in an auto accident in 1973.

His second son, Steven Allen Lewis (b. 1959), drowned, at age three, in 1962. Almost died from a ruptured stomach in 1981. Parents' names were Elmo Lewis and Mamie Ethel. His first cousin, once removed Myra Lewis was 13 years old when they married. Revitalized his career in the late 1960s as a country singer. He was voted the 24th Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Artist of all time by Rolling Stone. He received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grammy Awards in 2005. Hospitalized with pneumonia in 2001. Was on the critical list in a Memphis hospital in November 1985. He currently lives in Booneville, Mississippi, USA. [2005] Recorded with legendary Nashville session guitarist Hank Garland . Recorded his song "What'd I Say" with guitarist Hank Garland . Along with Elvis Presley , Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins , Lewis was a member of the celebrated "Million Dollar Quartet", so named because they were moneymakers for Sam Phillips ' Sun Records label.

Hated his ex-wife Myra Lewis ' biographical book about his life entitled "Great Balls of Fire". Hated the film based on his life, Great Balls of Fire! (1989). Was in the process of finalizing a divorce from his fourth wife, Jaren, when she drowned in a swimming pool in 1982. They had separated in 1974. By the time of the British Invasion (1964) in the United States, there was a keen interest in American rock stars in Great Britain. Jerry Lee appeared to have renewed his career on that side of the Atlantic. He appeared on the television show Ready, Steady, Go! (1963), and the fans were mesmerized by his performance. Siblings: Linda Gail Lewis (b. 1947), Frankie Jean Lewis (b. 1944) and Elmo Lewis Jr. Father, with Kerri McCarver, of a boy named Jerry Lee Lewis III (b. 1987). Father, with Myra, of a boy named Steven Allen Lewis (1959-1962) and a girl named Phoebe Allen Lewis (b. 1963).

Father, with Jane Mitchum, of two boys named Jerry Lee Lewis Jr. (1953-1973) and Ronnie Guy Lewis (b. 1956). Contrary to public assumption, Lewis said that he actually had the nickname "Killer" ever since childhood. As a boy, he had the habit of calling acquaintances and friends "Killer", and they would return the greeting. The nickname has stuck with him since. His 1964 album "Live at the Star Club, Hamburg" has been widely hailed as the hardest, pure rock 'n' roll ever recorded. He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Recording at 6631 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 and the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame in 2008.

The use of his middle name Lee, helped the record buying public as well as record distributors distinguish him from comedian Jerry Lewis , who in 1956, at the height of his career, had a Top 10 recording with "Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody", a song first made famous by Al Jolson . That same year, Jerry Lewis also has a bestselling album. Coincidentally, both Jerry and Jerry Lee have cited Al Jolson, seen playing the piano in The Jazz Singer (1927), as a major influence. By the time Jerry Lee made his made first appearance July 27, 1957 on The Steve Allen Plymouth Show (1956), he had already caught the public's attention, "in name only". One year earlier, in 1956, comedian Jerry Lewis embarked on what was initially a successful recording career. He had a #10 US Pop hit with the Al Jolson standard "Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody", in addition to a bestselling LP of standard tunes. Coincidentally, Jerry Lee has cited Al Jolson as one of his influences.

On September 27, 1957, he played New York City's legendary Apollo Theater. Lewis and his wife Kerrie announced their separation and intent to divorce. [April 2002] On October 15, 2004, he performed in Prague, the Czech Republic and refused a meeting with the Czech president. On October 18, he was on stage in Sofia, Bulgaria and refused to give an interview for the National Television. He currently goes by the name Jerry Lee Lewis to avoid counfusion with actor Jerry Lewis. Personal Quotes (10) [on his being a breech birth] "I was born feet first, and I've been jumpin' ever since." If I'm going to Hell, I'm going there to play on a piano! [on Ray Charles ] "What a great guy he was. Every time I saw him, I would say, 'Ray, this is Jerry Lee, how you doing?' And he would say, 'Well, you looking good, Jerry Lee.' He always said that. He was one of my best friends." [Explaining why W.C. Fields is his favorite comedian] "He's just got his way of doing things.

And if you don't like it, he'll kick your teeth out." [on his feelings towards ex-wife Myra Lewis ' biography about him entitled "Great Balls of Fire"] "I says to her, 'Myra, that damn book o' yours -- that weren't no "Great Balls of Fire" you wrote. You shoulda called it "Great Buncha Balls" instead, darlin', 'cos that's all it is." [on the film Great Balls of Fire! (1989)]: "I never acted like that in my life. That movie was bad news." [Referring to the film Great Balls of Fire! (1989)]: "It's all lies. Maybe not lies, but it's their story, not mine." [on "The Killer"]: People think I'm called 'The Killer' because of my wild lifestyle. I've had the nickname since I was a boy. I started calling other kids Killer. But the name stuck with me.

Even now, I'll ask someone, 'How's it going, Killer?' [How he got the nickname Killer]: I got the name when I was about 15 years old: I was leaving the schoolhouse, and Cecil Harrelson said, 'Well, I'll see you later, Killer' - and I said, 'OK, I'll meet you at the pool hall!' We both got suspended that day - two weeks apiece, and we didn't even know each other - we'd just met. I was fighting with a teacher, he was fighting with a teacher, and so we figured we'd call ourselves Killer. And that's how it got started. I never considered myself the greatest, but I'm the best. See also Jerry Lee Lewis | Sun Record Company Official Website Biography Jerry Lee Lewis (born September 29, 1935), also known by the nickname The Killer, is an American rock and roll and country music singer, songwriter, and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 and his pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame.

In 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked him #24 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In 2003, they listed his box set All Killer, No Filler: The Anthology #242 on their list of “500 greatest albums of all time”. Lewis was born to the poor family of Elmo and Mamie Lewis in Ferriday, Louisiana, and began playing piano in his youth with his two cousins, Mickey Gilley and Jimmy Swaggart. His parents mortgaged their farm to buy him a piano. Influenced by a piano-playing older cousin Carl McVoy, the radio, and the sounds from the black juke joint across the tracks, Haney’s Big House, Lewis developed his own style mixing rhythm and blues, boogie woogie, gospel, and country music, as well as ideas from established “country boogie” pianists like recording artists Moon Mullican and Merrill Moore. Soon he was playing professionally. His mother enrolled him in Southwestern Assemblies of God University in Waxahachie, Texas, secure in the knowledge that her son would now be exclusively singing his songs to the Lord.

But legend has it that Lewis daringly played a boogie woogie rendition of “My God Is Real” at a church assembly that sent him packing the same night. Pearry Green, then president of the student body, related how during a talent show Jerry played some “worldly” music. The next morning, the dean of the school called both Jerry and Pearry into his office to expel them both. Jerry then said that Pearry shouldn’t be expelled because “he didn’t know what I was going to do.” Years later Pearry asked Jerry “Are you still playing the devil’s music?” Jerry replied “Yes, I am. But you know it’s strange, the same music that they kicked me out of school for is the same kind of music they play in their churches today. The difference is, I know I am playing for the devil and they don’t.” Leaving religious music behind so far as performing, he paid dues at clubs in and around Ferriday and Natchez, Mississippi. He became a part of the burgeoning new rock and roll sound, cutting his first demo recording in 1954.

He made a trip to Nashville around 1955 where he played clubs and attempted to drum up interest, but was turned down by the Grand Ole Opry as he had been at the Louisiana Hayride country stage and radio show in Shreveport. Recording executives in Nashville suggested he switch to playing a guitar, Lewis, even then confrontational, once recalled suggesting to one Nashville producer, “You can take your guitar and ram it up your ass!”{mospagebreak} Two years later, at Sun Records studio in Memphis, Tennessee, producer and engineer Jack Clement discovered and recorded Lewis for the Sun label while owner Sam Phillips was away on a trip to Florida. He became a session musician playing piano for Sun artists like Billy Lee Riley and Carl Perkins. As his own career came on the upswing, hits such as “Great Balls of Fire” soon followed, and would become his biggest hit. Watching and listening to Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis Presley allegedly said that if he could play the piano like that, he’d quit singing. Lewis’ early billing was Jerry Lee Lewis and his Pumping Piano.

On December 4, 1956, Presley dropped in on Phillips to pay a social visit while Perkins was in the studio cutting new tracks with Lewis backing him on piano. The three started an impromptu jam session, and Phillips left the tapes running. He later telephoned Johnny Cash and brought him in to join the others. These recordings, almost half of which were gospel songs, survived, and have been released on CD under the title Million Dollar Quartet. Tracks also include Chuck Berry’s “Brown Eyed Handsome Man”, Pat Boone’s “Don’t Forbid Me” and Presley doing an impersonation of Jackie Wilson (who was then with Billy Ward and the Dominoes) singing “Don’t Be Cruel. In 1957, his piano and the pure rock and roll sound of “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” (which in 2005 was selected for permanent preservation in the National Recording Registry at the Library of Congress) propelled him to international fame. Lewis, though not the first pianist in that style, was a pioneer of Piano rock, not only through his sound but also through his dynamic performance.

He would often kick the piano bench out of the way to play standing, rake his hands up and down the keyboard for dramatic accent, and even sit down on the instrument. His frenetic performance style can be seen in films such as High School Confidential (he sang the title song from the back of a flatbed truck), and Jamboree. He has been called “rock & roll’s first great wild man and also rock & roll’s first great eclectic.” These performance techniques have been adopted by later Piano rock artists, notably admirers Elton John, Billy Joel, and Ben Folds. He married Jane Mitcham, his second wife, 23 days before his divorce from his first wife was final. Lewis’ turbulent personal life was hidden from the public until a 1958 British tour, when reporters learned about the twenty-three year old star’s third wife Myra Gale Brown. She was thirteen years old, and Lewis’s first cousin once removed. The publicity caused an uproar and the tour was cancelled after only three concerts. The scandal followed Lewis home to America, and as a result he almost vanished from the music scene. Lewis felt betrayed by numerous people who had been his supporters. Dick Clark dropped him from his shows.

Lewis even felt that Sam Phillips had sold him out when the Sun Record patriarch released “The Return of Jerry Lee,” which mocked Lewis’ marital and music problems. Only Alan Freed stayed true to Jerry Lee Lewis, playing his records until Freed was removed from the air because of supposed payola problems. Even though Jerry Lee Lewis was still under contract with Sun Records, he stopped recording. He had gone from $10,000 a night concerts to $100 a night spots in beer joints and small clubs. He had few friends at the time whom he felt he could trust. It was only through Kay Martin, the president of Lewis’ fan club, T. L. Meade, (aka Franz Douskey) a sometime Memphis musician and friend of Sam Phillips, and Gary Sklar, that Lewis went back to record at Sun Records. By this time, Phillips had built a new state-of-the-art studio at 639 Madison Avenue in Memphis, thus abandoning the old Union Avenue studio where Phillips had recorded B. B. King, Howlin’ Wolf, Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Lewis, Johnny Cash, and others.

It was at the new Madison Avenue studio that Lewis recorded his only hit during this period, which was a cover of Ray Charles’ “What’d I Say” in 1961. Another recording of Lewis playing an instrumental boogie arrangement of the Glenn Miller Orchestra favorite “In the Mood,” was issued by Sun under the pseudonym of “The Hawk,” but disc jockeys quickly figured out the distinctive piano style, and this gambit failed. Lewis’s Sun recording contract ended in 1963 and he joined Smash Records, where he made a number of rock recordings that did not further his career.

Film History of the 1950s Film History of the 1950s 1970s | 1980s | 1990s | 2000s | 2010s The Dawning of the 50s: The 50s decade was known for many things: post-war affluence and increased choice of leisure time activities, conformity, the Korean War, middle-class values, the rise of modern jazz, the rise of 'fast food' restaurants and drive-ins (Jack in the Box - founded in 1951; McDonalds - first franchised in 1955 in Des Plaines, IL; and A&W Root Beer Company - formed in 1950, although it had already established over 450 drive-ins throughout the country), a baby boom, the all-electric home as the ideal, white racist terrorism in the South, the advent of television and TV dinners, abstract art, the first credit card (Diners Club, in 1951), the rise of drive-in theaters to a peak number in the late 50s with over 4,000 outdoor screens (where

 young teenaged couples could find privacy in their hot-rods), and a youth reaction to middle-aged cinema.

Older viewers were prone to stay at home and watch television (about 10.5 million US homes had a TV set in 1950). In the period following WWII when most of the films were idealized with conventional portrayals of men and women, young people wanted new and exciting symbols of rebellion. Hollywood responded to audience demands - the late 1940s and 1950s saw the rise of the anti-hero - with stars like newcomers James Dean, Paul Newman (who debuted in the costume epic The Silver Chalice (1954)) and Marlon Brando, replacing more proper actors like Tyrone Power, Van Johnson, and Robert Taylor. [In later decades, this new generation of method actors would be followed by Robert DeNiro, Jack Nicholson, and Al Pacino.] Sexy anti-heroines included Ava Gardner, Kim Novak, and Marilyn Monroe - an exciting, vibrant, sexy star. One of the decade's best comedies was Harvey (1950), with James Stewart as a lovable, eccentric drunk named Elwood P. Dowd whose best friend was an imaginary, six-foot-tall rabbit.

Another of the most popular films in the late 50s was Leo McCarey's romantic drama An Affair to Remember (1957), the story of an ill-fated romance between Deborah Kerr and Cary Grant due to an automobile accident, delaying a rendezvous at the top of the Empire State Building in New York City. It was a remake of the director's own tearjerker film Love Affair (1939) with Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer. The same story would inspire the making of Nora Ephron's Sleepless in Seattle (1993) with leads Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan (who had first appeared together in Joe Versus the Volcano (1990)), and Love Affair (1994) with real-life couple Warren Beatty and Annette Bening. The New Teenage, Youth-Oriented Market: The 50s decade also ushered in the age of Rock and Roll and a new younger market of teenagers.

This youth-oriented group was opposed to the older generation's choice of nostalgic films, such as director Anthony Mann's and Universal's popular musical biopic The Glenn Miller Story (1954), starring James Stewart as the big band leader, duplicated in Universal's follow-up musical biography The Benny Goodman Story (1956) with Steve Allen (his film debut in a serious dramatic role) as the talented clarinet player. They preferred Rock Around the Clock (1956) that featured disc jockey Alan Freed and the group Bill Haley and His Comets (singing the title song) and many others (such as the Platters, and Freddy Bell and The Bell Boys) - it was the first film entirely dedicated to rock 'n' roll. It was quickly followed by two more similar films featuring Alan Freed (as Himself) -- Don't Knock the Rock (1956) and Rock, Rock, Rock (1956). Both films argued that rock-and-roll was a new, fun, and wholesome type of music.

However, the adult generation continued to regard the new youthful generation (and the rise of juvenile deliquency) with skepticism and fear, as illustrated in the film adaptation of Maxwell Anderson's stage play, The Bad Seed (1956). The thriller demonstrated that evil could reside in a young, cute serial killer (played by Patty McCormack). Bandstand first began as a local program for teens on WFIL-TV (now WPVI), Channel 6 in Philadelphia in early October, 1952. In mid-1956, the new host chosen for ABC-TV's American Bandstand was 26 year-old Dick Clark. By the time the show was first aired nationally, in mid-1957, it had became a mainstay for rock group performances. The rock and roll music of the 50s was on display, along with big-bosomed star Jayne Mansfield as a talentless, dumb blonde sexpot in writer/director Frank Tashlin's satirical comedy The Girl Can't Help It (1956). Marilyn Monroe's foil Tom Ewell starred in the film as the protagonist.

It was the first rock and roll film to be taken seriously, with 17 songs in its short 99 minutes framework. Great rock and roll performers included Ray Anthony, Fats Domino, The Platters, Little Richard and his Band (featured in the title song), Gene Vincent and His Bluecaps, Eddie Cochran (with his screen debut) and others. American youth wanted to hear their popular groups in their films that they chose to view, including Bill Haley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Fats Domino, Ritchie Valens, Eddie Cochran, Chuck Berry, Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, Gene Vincent, and The Platters. Sometimes, to appeal to the new juvenile market, actors were miscast, such as clean-cut crooner Pat Boone in April Love (1957), playing a juvenile delinquent who was sent to his uncle's Kentucky farm for rehabilitation. The title song, however, became a big hit for the singer/actor. By the last year of the decade, the youth market in all its forms was worth $10 billion a year.

Tragedy also struck in the last year of the decade, when pop idols 22 year old songwriter and singer Buddy Holly, 17 year old Latino singer Ritchie Valens, and 28 year old J.P. Richardson (aka radio DJ "The Big Bopper") were killed in a light plane crash on February 3, 1959 in an Iowa cornfield, while on a "Winter Dance Party" tour. [Both singers were later honored with biopics: The Buddy Holly Story (1978) and La Bamba (1987), and also by Don McLean's 1972 hit song American Pie.] Hollywood soon realized that the affluent teenage population could be exploited, now more rebellious than happy-go-lucky - as they had been previously portrayed in films (such as the Andy Hardy character played by Mickey Rooney). The influence of rock 'n' roll surfaced in Richard Brooks' box-office success, Blackboard Jungle (1955).

It was the first major Hollywood film to use R&R on its soundtrack - the music in the credits was provided by Bill Haley and His Comets - their musical hit "Rock Around the Clock." The film also starred Glenn Ford as a war veteran and clean-cut All-American novice teacher at inner city North Manual HS (New York), where the students, led by a disrespectful, sneering punk (Vic Morrow), test his tolerance. [One of the other persuasive youths was a young Sidney Poitier.] Another film, that came later in the decade, that also exploited the new teenage market's non-conformist attitudes, was Jack Arnold's exploitative juvenile delinquent film, High School Confidential (1958), featuring drugs in a high school dope ring, lots of 50's slang words and hep-talk, Russ Tamblyn as an undercover cop posing as a student, switchblade fights, drag races, Mamie Van Doren as Tamblyn's nympho aunt, and Jerry Lee Lewis singing the title song in its opening.

Two Early 50's Youth Films and Their Influential Actors: Two other youth-oriented actors and their films in the mid-50s would portray the potentially-scary, self-expressive, and rebellious new teenage population. 1. Marlon Brando: A Symbol of Adolescent, Anti-Authoritarian Rebellion A young Marlon Brando (1924-2004) was trained by Lee Strasberg's Actors' Studio in New York in raw and realistic 'method acting,' and influenced by Stella Adler. He starred in A Streetcar Named Desire on Broadway (opposite Jessica Tandy as Blanche) in 1947, and would later repeat his work on film in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) and receive an Oscar nomination. He also contributed a memorable role as a self-absorbed teen character. He played Johnny - an arrogant, rebellious, tough yet sensitive leader of a roving motorcycle-biking gang (wearing a T-shirt and leather jacket) that invaded and terrorized a small-town in Laslo Benedek's controversial The Wild One (1954) (banned in Britain until a decade and a half later).

The film was noted for one line of dialogue, typifying his attitude: "What are you rebelling against?" Brando's reply: "Whadda ya got?" A nasty Lee Marvin led a rival gang of bikers named The Beetles. [Brando's photo as biker Johnny later appeared on the front-sleeve of the famed mid-late 60s Beatles' album: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. (Brando's new style of acting would be forever emulated by future generations of actors, including Jack Nicholson, Sean Penn, and later Russell Crowe.)] 2. James Dean: The 'First American Teenager' The anguished, introspective teen James Dean (1932-1955) was the epitome of adolescent pain. Dean appeared in only three films before his untimely death in the fall of 1955. His first starring role was in Elia Kazan's adaptation of John Steinbeck's novel East of Eden (1955) as a Cain-like son named Cal vying for his father's (Raymond Massey) love against his brother Aron.

It was followed by Nicholas Ray's best-known melodramatic, color-drenched film about juvenile delinquency and alienation, Warner Bros.' Rebel Without a Cause (1955) . This was the film with Dean's most-remembered role as mixed-up, sensitive, and defiant teenager Jim Stark involved in various delinquent behaviors (drunkenness, a switchblade fight, and a deadly drag race called a Chicken Run), and his archetypal scream to his parents: "You're tearing me apart!" Dean also starred in his third (and final) feature, George Stevens' epic saga Giant (1956) set in Texas, and also starring Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor, and Dennis Hopper. (The 24 year-old actor was killed in a tragic car crash on September 30th 1955 while driving his Silver Porsche 550 Spyder -- affectionately nicknamed 'The Little Bastard', around the time that Giant was completed and about a month before Rebel opened. Dean was on his way to car races in Salinas on October 1st.

The crash occurred at the intersection of Routes 41 and 46 near Paso Robles at Cholame, and he died enroute to the hospital.) [Dean's two co-stars in the film also experienced untimely deaths: Sal Mineo (as Plato) was stabbed to death at age 37, and Natalie Wood (as Judy) drowned at age 43.] In his honor, James Dean was awarded two post-humous Best Actor nominations: for his role as rebellious Cal Trask in East of Eden (1955) and as oil-rich ranch-hand Jett Rink in Giant (1956). Elvis 'The Pelvis' Presley: The King of Rock 'N Roll Elvis' first record was That's All Right Mama, cut in July, 1954 in Memphis and released on the Sun Records label.

At the time of his first hit song Heartbreak Hotel, singer Elvis Presley made his first national TV appearance in January 1956 on CBS' Tommy (and Jimmy) Dorsey's Stage Show, although he is best remembered for his controversial, sexy, mid-1956 performance of Hound Dog on the Milton Berle Show, and for three rock 'n roll performances on the Ed Sullivan Show from September 1956 to January 1957 - his last show was censored by being filmed from the 'waist-up'. He was also featured as an actor in many money-making films after signing his first film deal in 1956. His screen debut was in Paramount's Civil War drama Love Me Tender (1956) (originally titled The Reno Brothers), with a #1 single hit song ballad.

Jailhouse Rock (1957) is generally acknowledged as his most famous and popular film, but he also appeared in Loving You (1957) (noted for his first screen kiss) and in director Michael Curtiz' King Creole (1958) as a New Orleans teen rebel (acclaimed as one of his best acting roles) before the decade ended. His induction into the Army in 1958 was a well-publicized event. After his Army stint, he also starred in G.I. Blues (1960), in Don Siegel's western Flaming Star (1960) (with only two songs) as a half-breed youth, in the southern melodrama Wild in the Country (1961), and in other formulaic 60's films (i.e., Blue Hawaii (1961), Kid Galahad (1962), and his biggest box-office hit Viva Las Vegas (1964)).

By the 70s, his film roles had deteriorated, and although he returned to stage performances and revived his singing career, he was physically on the decline until his death in August, 1977 of heart disease and drug abuse. Cheap Teen Movies: Young people attended outdoor drive-ins that showed exploitative, cheap fare created especially for them in a newly-established teen/drive-in genre.

Producer/director Roger Corman (the 'B-movie King'), known for feeding low-budget, short, sci-fi/horror quickies to drive-in theatres and other neighborhood venues in the late 50s, generated films such as: Not of This Earth (1957) [the alien invasion film was remade by Jim Wynorski as Not of This Earth (1988) with ex-porn star Traci Lords in her first post-adult film appearance, in the Beverly Garland role]; originally released as part of a double-bill with Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957) Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957) The Blob (1958) featuring Steve McQueen in his first starring role as a high-schooler in a film about a meteorite that oozed a disgusting, gooey substance that ate people A Bucket of Blood (1959) The Wasp Woman (1959) Other examples included the first rock & roll horror film - Gene Fowler's I Was A Teenage Werewolf (1957) (Michael Landon's first feature film), and Ed Wood's debut transvestite shock film Glen or Glenda (195

3).

The Threat of Television: Film attendance declined precipitously as free TV viewing (and the increase in popularity of foreign-language films) made inroads into the entertainment business. In 1951, NBC became America's first nationwide TV network, and in just a few years, 50% of US homes had at least one TV set. In March of 1953, the Academy Awards were televised for the first time by NBC - and the broadcast received the largest single audience in network TV's five-year history. By 1954, NBC's Tonight Show was becoming one of the most popular late-night TV shows. With a steep decline in weekly theatre attendance, studios were forced to find creative ways to make money from television - converted Hollywood studios were beginning to produce more hours of film for TV than for feature films. [In mid-decade, the average film budget was less than one million dollars.] And by mid-decade, the major studios began selling to television their film rights to their pre-1948 films for broadcast and viewing. The first feature film to be broadcast on US television (on November 3, 1956), during prime-time, was The Wizard of Oz (1939) .

TV stars became cross-over film stars - the first was Charlton Heston. In early 1950, Western cowboy star Gene Autry was the first film star to announce his appearance in a sponsored TV series. The feature-length, color version of Dragnet (1954), with popular detective TV star Jack Webb (serving as director, producer, and star) as dead-pan LAPD Sgt. Joe Friday, was the first film based on a TV show - the then-popular B/W TV show of the same name ran from 1951-1959. It was memorable for its "Dum, de Dum Dum" theme music (that first made an appearance in the Miklos Rozsa soundtrack for the film noir The Killers (1946) ), and the disclaimer: "Only the names have been changed to protect the innocent." In the 1955-56 season, the ABC TV show Warner Brothers Presents was the first television program produced by Warner Brothers Pictures, and marked the introduction of the major Hollywood studios into television production. It was a survival tactic for the studios to pioneer in television series production.

In the same year, Twentieth Century-Fox Hour played on CBS and MGM Parade on ABC. And later, in the mid- to late 50s, Warner Bros. studios produced more TV shows, such as: their first hit series Cheyenne (1955-1963 with Clint Walker), Maverick (1957-1962, first with James Garner) and 77 Sunset Strip (1958-1964). In 1956, the studios lifted the ban against film stars making TV appearances. Fast-talking, cigar-smoking, and quick-witted Groucho Marx (of the famed Marx Brothers) brought his popular radio show You Bet Your Life to television (NBC) as a game show in 1950, with a duck that would descend with $100 if one said the secret word. It lasted until 1961 - its theme music "Hooray for Captain Spaulding" was taken from the Marx Bros.' second film Animal Crackers (1930) .

Other TV shows became popular: the early sitcom I Love Lucy (on CBS, beginning in 1951); its stars Lucille Ball and husband Desi Arnaz had founded Desilu Productions in 1950 the family show The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (on ABC, from 1952-1966) The Donna Reed Show (on ABC, from 1958-1966) The Honeymooners (from 1951 and after) Lassie (on CBS, from 1954-1971) Gunsmoke (on CBS, from 1955-1975) with James Arness as Matt Dillon This is Your Life (on NBC, from 1952-1961) One positive side-effect of the growing influence of American television in the 50s was that it was becoming the proving ground for many aspiring directors.

Some of the directors who began in TV in this decade were to make some of Hollywood's best movies in the 60s: John Frankenheimer's The Manchurian Candidate (1962) Because of the emergence of television as a major entertainment medium, many studios converted their sound stages for use in television production. Because labor was cheaper abroad, many producers were taking their film production overseas. Delbert Mann's direction of Paddy Chayefsky's script (initially written as a TV play and produced for NBC Television Playhouse and aired in 1953 with Rod Steiger) for the black and white Marty (1955) about a romantically-insecure and lonely Bronx butcher (Best Actor-winning Ernest Borgnine) who found love with someone his friends called a 'dog'. It was a big winner on the film screen - it was the first American film chosen at the Cannes Film Festival as Best Picture since the award was instituted, and it won four major Academy Awards, including Best Picture from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Because television (a small black and white screen) had become affordable and a permanent fixture in most people's homes, the movies also fought back with gimmicks - color films, bigger screens, and 3-D. Bigger and more colorful films and screens, and big scale, profitable box-office epics, such as Cecil B. DeMille's Samson and Delilah (1949), the popular Biblical story starring long-haired and virile Victor Mature and the beautifully-bewitching Hedy Lamarr with exposed belly-button, and MGM's expensive romantic adventure King Solomon's Mines (1950), filmed on location in Africa, were designed to lure movie-goers back into the theatres. By the mid-50s, more than half of Hollywood's productions were made in color to take Americans away from their B/W TV sets.

Coincidentally, two of the biggest films at the start of the decade, director Henry King's Twelve O'Clock High (1949) about the stress experienced by American bombing units in England, and Delmer Daves' Broken Arrow (1950), an "adult-Western" of the blood-brother relationship between an Indian agent (James Stewart) and Apache chief Cochise (white actor Jeff Chandler), would both become episodic TV series in future years. Along with Samuel Fuller's Run of the Arrow (1957), Broken Arrow was notable for having a sympathetic depiction of the Native American culture and concerns - the first film to be shot from the Indians' point-of-view for many years. This revisionist effort would be followed years later by the politically-correct, award-winning Dances With Wolves (1990).

Film History of the 1950s Jerry Lee Lewis Readies Star-Studded New Album, 'Rock & Roll Time' - Rolling Stone Moby Explains Why Jerry Lee Lewis Is One of Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Artists In advance of the album, his first for Vanguard Records, Lewis is sharing the title track below — what he tells Rolling Stone is the "best one on there" — originally co-written and recorded by Kris Kristofferson in 1974. Lewis' version features an all-star lineup, including guitarists Doyle Bramhall II, Jon Brion and Kenny Lovelace and vocalists Vonda Shepard and Bernard Fowler. Overall, Lewis says the track is emblematic of all of the LP's 11 tracks. "This is a rock & roll record," he says. "That's just the way it came out." As with Lewis' last two records, 2006's Last Man Standing and 2010's Mean Old Man , Lewis teamed with a who's who of artists he inspired, including the Rolling Stones ' Keith Richards and Ron Wood, Neil Young , former Band guitarist Robbie Robertson, E Street Band guitarist Nils Lofgren, country singer Shelby Lynne and more.

The selection of songs draws from the catalogues of Chuck Berry ("Little Queenie," "Promised Land"), Bob Dylan ("Stepchild"), Lynyrd Skynyrd ("Mississippi Kid"), Jimmie Rodgers ("Blues Like Midnight") and even a track by one of his Million Dollar Quartet buddies, Johnny Cash ( "Folsom Prison Blues" ), one of two songs that finds him playing guitar. "My wife stepped in and asked me to do that one," he says. "Johnny Cash was just one of the finest people in the world. He's a great guy. I have lots of fond memories of Johnny." Jerry Lee Lewis' "Great Balls of Fire" and the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time In reverence to his past, the album cover sports a shot of Lewis in front of the old Sun Studios building, located in Memphis about eight minutes from the studio where the Killer recorded most of Rock & Roll Time. "It was all right," he says of visiting his old haunt. "It brought back a lot of memories: Pretty good memories, bad memories, semi memories." Lewis has been spending a lot of time remembering lately.

Over the past two years, he has been sitting for interviews with Bragg, who has written Jerry Lee Lewis: His Own Story as a third-person recount of the Killer's life. The book will cover the making of Lewis' biggest hits, as well as address the many controversies that have surrounded Lewis' life, from his numerous marriages to his feuds with other rockers. America Rocks and Rolls [ushistory.org] 53d. America Rocks and Rolls The prosperity of the '50s allowed teenagers to spend money on records by their favorite bands and singers. Rock and roll was everything the suburban 1950s were not. While parents of the decade were listening to Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, and big bands, their children were moving to a new beat. In fact, to the horror of the older generation, their children were twisting, thrusting, bumping, and grinding to the sounds of rock and roll. This generation of youth was much larger than any in recent memory, and the prosperity of the era gave them money to spend on records and phonographs. By the end of the decade, the phenomenon of rock and roll helped define the difference between youth and adulthood.

The Roots of Rock Alan Freed, the Cleveland disc jockey credited with coining the phrase "rock and roll," was the master of ceremonies at many of the first rock concerts, including his 1955 Easter Jubilee. The roots of rock and roll lay in African American blues and gospel. As the Great Migration brought many African Americans to the cities of the north, the sounds of rhythm and blues attracted suburban teens. Due to segregation and racist attitudes, however, none of the greatest artists of the genre could get much airplay. Disc jockey Alan Freed began a rhythm-and-blues show on a Cleveland radio station. Soon the audience grew and grew, and Freed coined the term "rock and roll." Early attempts by white artists to cover R&B songs resulted in weaker renditions that bled the heart and soul out of the originals. Record producers saw the market potential and began to search for a white artist who could capture the African American sound. Chuck Berry's songs about girls and cars hit a nerve with American teens and sent his star rising high in the early days of rock and roll. Sam Phillips, a Memphis record producer, found the answer in Elvis Presley.

With a deep Southern sound, pouty lips, and gyrating hips, Elvis took an old style and made it his own. From Memphis, the sound spread to other cities, and demand for Elvis records skyrocketed. Within two years, Elvis was the most popular name in the entertainment business. After the door to rock and roll acceptance was opened, African American performers such as Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, and Little Richard began to enjoy broad success, as well. White performers such as Buddy Holly and Jerry Lee Lewis also found artistic freedom and commercial success. Satan's Music Elvis Presley brought rock-and-roll music to the masses during the 1950s with hits such as "Love Me Tender" and "Heartbreak Hotel." Rock and roll sent shockwaves across America. A generation of young teenagers collectively rebelled against the music their parents loved. In general, the older generation loathed rock and roll. Appalled by the new styles of dance the movement evoked, churches proclaimed it Satan's music. Because rock and roll originated among the lower classes and a segregated ethnic group, many middle-class whites thought it was tasteless. Rock and roll records were banned from many radio stations and hundreds of schools. But the masses spoke louder.

When Elvis appeared on TV's The Ed Sullivan Show, the show's ratings soared. Rock and roll is the most brutal, ugly, degenerate, vicious form of expression — lewd, sly, in plain fact, dirty — a rancid-smelling aphrodisiac and the martial music of every side-burned delinquent on the face of the earth. – Frank Sinatra (1957) The commercial possibilities were limitless. As a generation of young adults finished military service, bought houses in suburbia, and longed for stability and conformity, their children seemed to take comfort for granted. They wanted to release the tensions that bubbled beneath the smooth surface of postwar America. Above all, they wanted to shake, rattle, and roll. The Roots: The Rock'n'Roll in the 50's Ian Gillan, Led Zeppelin, Little Richard, Motorhead, New York Dolls, Sex Pistols, Stray Cats, UFO Other Rock'n'Rollers: Elvis Presley for putting Rock 'n' Roll on the musical map to the Whole World.

The way he mixed country, blues and gospel(ending up as rockabilly, white rockers Rock 'n' Roll ) and for the attitude and sexual stage perfomances made him one of the most popular artists ever. The first song 'recorded' by Elvis was 'My Happiness' an acetate demo recorded in 1953 in what to become the Sun Studios. His first five singles, released on Sun Records, were blues songs and the first was : 'That's All Right' recorded July the 5th 1954 on the Sun label, followed by 'Good Rockin' Tonight', 'Milk Cow Blues Boogie', 'Baby, Let's Play House' and 'Mystery Train'. His breakthrough was with the singel 'Heartbreak Hotel' released January 27, 1956 on the RCA label. Carl Perkins, born 9 April 1932 and died 19 January 1998. Recorded 'Blue Suede Shoes' at Sun Records on 19 December 1955, the first and greatest Rockabilly song?

A short while after the recording Carl was in a traffic accident and it took nearly a year before he was recovered so he was unable to promote the record. It was a number 1 in the Country Chart and number 2 in both R&B and the Pop charts. His guitar play made impression on such artists as George Harrison and Dave Edmunds. Jerry Lee Lewis 'The 'Killer' was born September 29, 1935, his 'shouting' singing and piano-pounding style got him a place in the Rock History. His first record at Sun Records(November 14 1956) was 'Crazy Arms'(Ray Price). On December 4 1956, Lewis did a piano session together with Johnny Cash for Carl Perkins when Elvis Presley walked in. The following jam session('the Million Dollar Quartet') was recorded and the rest is history. In March 1, 1957 his second single is released on Sun Records, 'Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On'(Roy Hall) and on Sunday, July 28th, 1957 he performed the song at the Steve Allen Show(national television).

After that perfomance 'Whole Lot of Shakin' made it number one on all three charts : Pop, Country and Western and R&B. All went well, in early November, 1957 Sun Records releases 'Great Balls of Fire'(Otis Blackwell) but in December 12, 1957 Lewis marries his 13-year-old cousin Myra and on tour in England(May 1958) a scandal over his marriage ends the tour. Gene Vincent(Vincent Eugene Craddock), born February 11, 1935. on April 9 and died October 12, 1971. Gene and the Blue Caps(great guitar play by Cliff Gallup) recorded 'Be-Bop-A-Lula' and released it on June 2nd 1956 he also recorded 'Bluejean Bop' later in June, which became his third singel. He was in the same car crash that tragicly killed Eddie Cochran in April 1960 on tour in England.

Buddy Holly(Charles Hardin Holley) was born September 7, 1936 and he had only two years to prove that he was one of the greatest songwriter/perfomer in the Rock history. Together with his band the Crickets they recorded such hits as: 'That'll Be the Day' recorded at 25 of February 1957 and released in May 1957, 'Peggy Sue' with overdubbing vocals/guitar parts recorded 29 June 1957 and released 20 September 1957. Sadly he died in a plane crasch in February 1959 along with Ritchie Valens, the Big Bopper and others. Duane Eddy who along with Chuck Berry helped to put the electric guitar on the music map. His guitar play(low riffs) had a hugh influence on coming guitar players with his instrumental rock like: 'Rebel Rouser'(1958), 'Cannonball'(1958), 'Peter Gunn'(1959), 'Yep!'(1959) and 'Shazam'(1960).

Link Wray invents the "fuzz-tone" guitar sound on the instrumental 'Rumble!'(1958). He was one of the reasons that, for example, Pete Townshend start to play guitar. COPYRIGHT Â© 2011 ROCKPROG Stockholm Sweden E-MAIL: admin@rockprog.com WWW:

Question: Which American rock 'n' roll star is nicknamed 'The Killer'?
Answer: JERRY LEE LEWIS