(90) PERRY COMO - THE MAN IN THE CARDIGAN SWEATER

PERRY COMO OFFICIAL SITE  updated April 2014

VIDEO REPLACED  April 2014



Perry Como was a singer who recorded on the RCA Victor label starting in 1943 and one of the first television pioneers in the weekly variety show category that was very successful, starting in about 1948. In the 1950's company sponsored television shows (rather than just commercials) were huge, and Christine White and James Dean were just two of the actors in New York who worked in them.

Now, growing up in the Smokey Mountains we listened to a big stand up radio, and when it came to music, well those mountains were - and are - full of people who had musical talent. People taught each other or were self taught. Making music - going to square dances - singing gospel in church - was our way of making our own fun. We never did get a television set. And when we moved to Oregon, we still didn't have a television set. But when I got to New York in 1957, I knew who Perry Como was. By 1955 he had an hour long television show.

In a way, Perry was an inspiration to me as an upstart in the business, even though he was as far from Rockabilly and early Rock and Roll as you could get. He was a crooner, smooth like Bing Crosby, and when I got to New York I had to fashion myself as a performer. Before I got over my shyness and let myself loosen up and move, I wanted to perform natural like Perry, who simply sang, often wearing a cardigan sweater or a neat suit. I thought he was a master of his craft. His professionalism went beyond one's comprehension. Perry had annunciation that was perfect and his delivery was seamless.

Now when you see old videos of the late 1950's and early 1960's sometimes you see black and white and sometimes you see color. Color television was around by 1956 but the number of studios that had the equipment to film in color were few and the number of people who had a color television set to see broadcasts in color were fewer. In 1956 The Perry Como Show on NBC was filmed in color, and seeing a show in color - well, it seemed to be, as they say today, "cutting edge." By 1959, Perry had a Kraft sponsored Music Hall show.

I suspect that's the show here in this YouTube video that presents Perry singing the classic "White Christmas," in 1960, even though this is in black and white.

Perry's career spanned many years and it's said that he got so many Gold records that he stopped having them certified. It was too embarrassing. In 2002 he received the Grammy's Lifetime Achievement Award.