American Bandstand Regulars Interview

[@suzannerobbins6293]

I am 76 now, and just told my hubby of 57 years I am watching Bandstand! Fun to go back! I loved dancing…my sweet hubby hated it…lol!

[@Jo-ix3qp]

I loved Bandstand in the 50's and early 60's..great music and fabulous dancers..What a innocent time it was..

[@margaretjsharples4279]

This is the way I danced on bandstand. I’m 85 now. It was so much fun. I danced all my years since then.

[@markwhitman9029]

Margaret were you one of the regulars? If so did younknow Pat Frank Arlene? Tell me some stories please

[@markwhitman9029]

I meant Frani giordano

[@thomastarlton1624]

Qq

[@alanhumphrey4198]

As long as I have a memory, I'll always recall the AB theme music!!😊😊

[@maryzamorano6325]

couldnt wait to get home to see american bandstand especially arlene, carmen, pat

[@doriemckay6935]

I love 💕 this. Watched from SF CA. 4PM west coast time. Began in the late 50s into high school in the early 60s. Thanks Arlene and Kenny for this memory ❤️🙂❤️🙂.

[@dianeurban6866]

Brought back so many wonderful memories. Watched American Bandstand everyday.

[@costadelyani4613]

when arlene says any parent nowadays would be happy to have thier child on a show like this i count myself lucky as i was on american bandstand as a regular 1976 through 1979

[@bernardomartinez692]

😅

[@markwhitman72]

Arlene and Kenny were teen stars so naturally the crowds went wild!! I was just seven and idolized them as well as Pat, Frani and Justine and Bob!! How modest of these two and humble in their downplay of how notorius they were!!

[@terridalessandro3412]

Arlene is still around and I have met her several times, she is a wonderful, beautiful, sweet woman. She said Kenny is the nicest guy that any mother would have wanted their daughter to go out with

[@ann275]

Oh, that was such a joy to watch. I was 12 yrs old and I remember thinking...I'm much too young to be on Bandstand....but then I found out that a lot of kids lied about their age...haha...This was one of my favorite shows ever! And Arlene & Kenny were my favorites! So fun to see them now..and hear their stories.

[@KSue322]

My mom and my sisters used to watch American Bandstand and dance in front of the TV after school every day!

[@michaelmcgarry7701]

My memories of Philadelphia Bandstand are wonderful...the Philly kids were the best dancers and the most stylish..

[@cherieallen9508]

What a fun video thanks to Arlene and Kenny for sharing such wonderful memories ❤😊God Bless you both.. Drove by the station once and saw the regulars going in but my dad wouldn't stop he worked for J.and J.there in Philly .I was around 9 or 10 at the time. Then we moved back to California a few yrs later..Los altos.,(yuck) then after my parents divorce mom took us 5 kids to the prettiest and fun place of all.Laguna Beach ⛱💙and here I be. Thanks mom.you picked a good one.👍please let us know of all the "regulars" that are not with us any longer and the ones still here..what they are doing etc. Thanks so much for this video..love it.💞

[@maureenwilson6031]

We all were dancing at home to American Bandstand on TV. We watch every dance move they made and did the exact same thing. It worked.

[@Suzi64grad]

I am 77, and I remember dancing to this music in gym class every Friday! Fun times!

[@shelaghjack117]

Loving these interviews. Or the dancers and their teen years

[@debbie9725]

wish times were more like that now

[@sewingintrifocals-alisonde7778]

Amen!

[@markwhitman9029]

I don't know why Arlene says she was homely. She was cute and very popular with the national audience

[@kathrynsmith8535]

Yes indeed all the girls in my high school kept up with Arlene and Kenny!!!!

[@mamakel823]

My mother, Shirlee Coulter used to be on AB from '52 to '56. She went to Frankford HS and would take the train 2 West Philly to the American Bandstand Studio after school

[@chrisfreeman4457]

How wonderful it would be to have films of Bandstand from that time.

[@luciac9123]

That's so cool!!

[@luciac9123]

Cool stories about Bobby Rydell! Especially going to the prom with him!

[@margiewallace2848]

Live hearing the regulars tell stories

[@gladyshernandez2389]

Great to have these stories from those that were there told so unassumingly and with appreciation!

[@gerry.shafer6101]

The start theme for the show is music from GLEN MILLER band from the 40s

[@joanhuber3894]

I went to an all girls Catholic high school. I often felt sorry for the girls who danced together. I thought those poor girls are like me.......no boyfriends! No matter, everyone seemed to be having a lot of fun dancing with whomever they wanted to. I also noticed the uniforms those girls wore, just like I did.....and how lovely Justine, Pat and Carol dressed.

[@claythomas7982]

There is nothing more beautiful than a girl, woman in a dress, a flowing dress.

[@jacime_angelady2779]

CLAY Thomas In my day we always wore dresses or skirt & blouse. Wore “can cans” underneath. Ahhh the good ole days. 😃

[@johe64]

Of course, I watched it every Saturday from about 1977 through about 1981 or 82. Loved it every Saturday.

[@linjp2773]

American Bandstand was televised from Philadelphia nationwide on Monday - Friday from 1957 - 1964.

[@juliebedard5629]

love watching these AB videos, sorry they don't make boys/men like that anymore and the dancing is outstanding, love it

[@klmegm197682]

Absolutely

[@ann275]

I know, I am so impressed with these East Coast kids back in the 50's..They seemed so much more poised than we were, and so natural. They had fun. And they could dance!

[@moemcgovern7345]

I Loved this Show, so much.

[@donnaviestenz7773]

Such a wonderful wholesome time. So very unlike the kids of today!!!

[@michaelquebec6653]

"So very unlike the kids of today?" That's a generalized statement. Yes, most of the "American Bandstand" kids were good kids. And there are good kids today as well, (I should know since I work with them.) And there were bad kids back then as well. Often, Philadelphia's violent street gangs would pick on the "American Bandstand" kids for the "fun" of it, and sometimes they would physically assault them, like what happened to Ken Rossi and Arlene Sullivan when they had to face off against a violent street gang after getting off of The El. The Green Street Counts of Philadelphia murdered 61-year-old Jacob Ewald in a 1953 bungled bar robbery (one of their own would later murder a father of five named Robert Kehoe the following year), a 41-year-old housewife, Martha White, was shot down when two rival gangs were having a running gun fight in the middle of Philadelphia's streets in 1957, and on April 25, 1958, just outside of the University of Pennsylvania, literally one mile away from where "American Bandstand" was being taped at WFIL, a South Korean foreign exchange student named In Ho Oh, was beaten to death by a youth gang led by 19 year old Alfonso Borum. Borum and his crew did not know the Korean student, but they had been ejected from a local rock and roll record hop, and in their frustration, came upon the South Korean as he was mailing a letter to his family. His Korean family were born-again Christians and actually wanted forgiveness for the boys but Mayor Jefferson Dilworth had had enough of the youth gang violence, especially after Governor Leader had actually paroled members of The Green Street Counts for serving less than 2 years for the murders that they committed. You had bad kids back then too, and that's not to say that "everyone" was bad, but you had them. For anyone else following this thread, remember, a teenager of the 1950's would have been either born during or raised during World War II in the 1940's. Juvenile delinquents were not goofy pranksters like what we saw in "Grease." They were marginalized inner city yourh whose home lives were disrupted because their fathers often had undiagnosed PTSD following the end of World War II the previous decade. Those are just uncomfortable facts.

[@nitaweitzel822]

​@@michaelquebec6653true tks

[@bpp325]

Thank you for this. Loved watching it. Brings back the good days. 😎👍

[@patriciar.perkins3170]

What a great clip! So nice to see the past...and the present! Thanks!

[@lakehousefor2]

I was in a parochial school and had to take a bus to get home. I would half walk/run to my house to watch American Bandstand. Never skipped class or school. My Mom, RIP, was uppermost on my mind. lol

[@ann275]

I literally had to run home after school...fast. We didn't get out of school until 3:30...

[@bernardomartinez692]

13:07

[@bernardomartinez692]

Those were good old days l was getting ready to go to Vietnam 6768

[@rebcol4926]

So crazy they were all teenagers and they looked like adults.

[@markwhitman9029]

AND they were stars almost like movie stars and not exaggerating

[@ladyanne8139]

I loved Arlene... still do.

[@kathrynsmith8535]

I never missed Bandstand. All of the girls in my group watched it every afternoon. We knew all the kids names and who was dating who. It was a teen soap opera!! After high school I didn’t watch it anymore bc I was busy going to school to be a hairdresser and dating! No time to think about the kids on bandstand now!

[@Marcel_Audubon]

happier times

[@ladyanne8139]

Wonderful video...

[@davidbeautifulperez2726]

I love this interview about American Bandstand*

[@italobambino43]

I never read about kids creating a blockade because Dick Clark took over the Bandstand. The story i always heard from my Father regarding Bob Horn being let go, was due to his personal involvement with a few of the underage girls. Then i read recently he was dropped because of a drunk driving arrest in 1956. Walter Annenberg owner of WFIL and the Philadelphia Inquirer, he had a deal with ABC to bring the Show National, Annenberg felt Dick Clark was more suited to host the show. Dick Clark was already a popular DJ on WFIL. Dick Clark was also known to host local School events and Sock Hops, so he was very well known throughout the City.

[@phoebefugate4757]

Love Kenny and Arlene

[@lenscaparro5209]

It definitely is a great video clip! Thanks.

[@3333ferret]

She was beautiful so dont say you were not Arlene❤

[@gerry.shafer6101]

This is Kool 🐧 Need to save and watch later !!

[@mrob75]

what a GREAT interview! I love all of these small little tid bits about Bandstand...Stuff a lot of us never knew....I like watching those little clips that you don't see anywhere and hearing stuff like "Jacquiline" by Bobby Helms and "Uh Uh Mmm" by Sonny James....Dick Clark really played some great tunes that are no longer heard. Thanks, Frank, for this WONDERFUL interview. (Mario)

[@donnaviestenz7773]

Remember them so well!!!!

[@alangray2568]

Thanks Frankie for posting it. Great interview.

[@socorritoflores2364]

Yo siempre veía American Bandstand y recuerdo a Frani, Arlene, Carol y me acuerdo de un chico creo que su nombre es Mike Balara que bailaba con todas ellas me gustaría ver si tienen algo sobre él. Me encanta poder volver a ver todos estos vídeos. Gracias

[@denisjl100]

that's a great description of the 50's, innocent. when i look back the loss of innocence came with the kennedy assassination, i think it was a slow decline from there on.

[@545linda]

Jerry Blavatt WHAT MEMORIES!!!!!!!!

[@catherinegalloway814]

My very favorite ended this clip....Frank Vacca!

[@taniadolphy5122]

What an opportunity those kids had to be on the show! I envied them. They had so much fun.

[@michaelmcgarry7701]

Loved Philly AB!

[@sergiopolo-yc2qe]

FROM SPAIN....IS It beauty USA?? ......i LOVE classicss 50s.....BUT its so hard can understanding english ......seems funny this old classicss on T .V i was born in 1978.......always are seein or watchin old American shows FROM past ...dont know understanding why BUT seems as so funny!! Greetings FROM SPAIN

[@linjp2773]

And greetings to you from America.

[@james-pierre7634]

Great interviews

[@a.b.sproductionsllc]

I walked by the place where American Bandstand was taped at back in the 50’s and early 1960’s while in Philly and the building is there but it’s some type of Wellness Center. I asked a woman who was about 60-ish that walked out of the building about the place and she was like it’s nothing to really see in there. 🤦🏾‍♂️ lol

[@beatle9239]

On one of videos that's kind of what one of the old dancers said. She said the studio where the show was was just a drab looking room.

[@markwhitman9029]

@@beatle9239 philly should have made it into a museum with pics and videos of all that went on there.how sad!!!

[@moemcgovern7345]

I was way too young to be on Bandstand; but I So enjoyed it.

[@tiffanttax]

good video..memories.

[@theultimatereductionist7592]

5:56 Wow! Before 5 digit zip codes existed!

[@sonalarora5565]

Great interview! Does anybody have any idea how to access more footage bandstand? It's absolutely golden

[@joanb8489]

Bobby Rydell! Weren't you lucky.

[@wendyconsoli2755]

Maybe I should write a book about watching Bandstand and someone who was a friend back then who went there once but never got on camera, much to her chagrin.

[@nancyjohnson5810]

I never in a million years would ever ask a guy on a date let alone ask them to prom! Guys are the initiator and girls the responders.

[@josephspanish9149]

DO ANY OF GUYS KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO PAT CARPINO?

[@steve3ri]

Thank you for the video.

[@wolfedavid3700]

clean cut and clean dancing........who is kendrick?:" i know what color he is by the name.......

[@MG-ud6ci]

Eddie Kendrick (The Temptations)

[@simonelima8585]

Por favor publique vídeo onde Ritchie Valens apareceu no programa

[@ABdancers]

Thank you for posting these wonderful American Bandstand dancer interviews. I've never seen this footage before. Was this from a DVD that you purchased? - Jeff

[@bonniebeck6131]

ABdancers sweet little sixteen

[@AC62-m5w]

Carol Gibson is beautiful.

[@JerseyGurl4Life]

Arlene, you were So NOT homely…Actually, you remind me of Annette Funicello

[@oliviagonzales8528]

Wait. What is the first song? Jack what? I want to download it for my phone.

[@Tomes23]

Olivia Gonzales Jacqueline?

[@claythomas7982]

As the show progresses, the dress standards start going down hill, unfortunately Mr. Clark passed and so did AB. I wonder what they would look like if they had continued their digression in dress standards.

[@oliviak3679]

does anybody know what happened to monte montes?

[@SKY-jv9ue]

Kid's stuff!

[@phoebefugate4757]

Love Kenny Rossi song she loves me she loves me not 🚭🚫

[@Ittybittythetwofacedkitty]

I heard most of them be gay

[@JerseyGurl4Life]

🤷🏾‍♀️

[@tonygonzales8914]

NB Koo

[@meditateonthis2697]

I could of showed them how to REALLY dance!

[@NancyGilbert-rj9du]

Barada mar66ttttt😢 onion ll😊0

[@boknows3841]

You have to remember that Walt Disney owned the station and the program and he was a racist. Walt did not like negro music and so he found people he did like and put them on radio and TV and forced it down your throat. Fabian could not sing. Annette and Frankie were not any better. My mom loved Bandstand and her family did not own a TV. The neighbors would allow her to sit on their porch and look in through their window. I was brought up listening to this music. I'm almost 60. I can tell you the words to any songs played after 1955. We had daily sock hops when I was little.

[@andyrudy8627]

American Banstand?🙄

[@johe64]

What was your reaction when the show shifted to LA?