Teen Idols

St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture by Pat H. Broeske

As long as there are teenagers, there will be teen idols. From the vintage "Frankie" Sinatra to Elvis Presley, from the Beatles to David Cassidy, from the New Kids on the Block to 'N Sync, the names and faces may change with the decades, but the emotions that drive the phenomenon do not. Teen idols are a rite of passage for pre-teens and early teens. They are dream mates who fuel romantic daydreams, and provide a safe release for hormonally-charged emotions. After all, unlike flesh-and-blood boyfriends or girlfriends, the teen idols make no demands.

Collectively, teen idols have long been dismissed as lightweight and flashes-in-the-pan. But, in fact, many notable performers have passed through the teen idol ranks. Before becoming one of Hollywood's most prolific and acclaimed leading men, John Travolta was a popular pin-up, the result of his co-starring role in the 1975 TV series, Welcome Back, Kotter. The 1997 box office blockbuster, Titanic, derived much of its drawing power from the casting of teen idol, Leonardo DiCaprio. Pop-soul maestro Michael Jackson was a teen idol in the 1980s, as well as the previous decade, when he was one of the Jackson Five. The Beatles were huge teen idols in the 1960s, as was Elvis Presley in the 1950s. In the 1940s, females screamed for Sinatra.

Even those teen idols who did not successfully make a transition as their fans matured continue to be regarded with affection. To their fans, they represent a special time in their lives. To the credit of these teen idols, they also left imprints on popular culture. For example, many of the icons of the 1950s--the decade in which the modern teen idol is rooted--became fixtures on the record charts. From late 1957 through 1963, the young performers were responsible for at least thirteen number one hits. They included Tab Hunter's "Young Love" and Frankie Avalon's "Venus." Another twenty tunes by teen idols climbed to the top five.

Just as Presley had gone from recording studio to Hollywood, the idols made the leap to the big screen. Theirs were major names during the final years of the so-called Hollywood "star system." Sandra Dee, who became a teen favorite with her depiction of the surfing-obsessed Gidget, went on to become a top-ten box office draw for the years 1960, 1961, 1962, and 1963--an astonishing feat, considering the list also included Doris Day, Cary Grant, Elizabeth Taylor, and Frank Sinatra. Between 1959 and 1964, Fabian appeared in no less than ten films, ranging from comedies to teen genre flicks to a John Wayne action adventure. Tab Hunter clocked in seventeen films between 1950 and 1964.

Of course, teen idols did not originate in the 1950s. Back in the 1930s, singer-actor Rudy Vallee induced swoons from schoolgirls when he performed while clutching a megaphone. But it is Frank Sinatra who is credited as the official pioneer of the teen idol movement. At age 27, Sinatra had a skinny, vulnerable look. That look, combined with his lush romantic ballads, elicited mass hysterics and stampeding among teenage "bobby soxers" at his December 1942 performances at New York's Paramount Theater. When Sinatra later appeared at the Boston Armory, the seats were bolted down as a security measure.

In the 1950s, the emergence of American teenage culture prompted another kind of hero worship. Before he cinched his eternal stardom with his car crash death of 1955, James Dean had come to symbolize the teenager in pain, with his angst-ridden performance in Rebel Without a Cause. The early Elvis Presley had his own angst-ridden performances in song, including the bravado Heartbreak Hotel. But Dean and Presley also summoned up a sense of looming danger. In Presley's case, his sexy stage antics and the fact that he was a white singer who sounded "black" made him anathema to authority figures.

A much safer alternative was found in Charles Eugene Boone. Better known as Pat Boone, the young performer from Nashville, Tennessee, emerged as the flip side of the coin that bore the imprints of Dean and Presley. Considering the era's controversy over rock 'n' roll, it is significant that Boone rose to fame by singing cover versions of songs originally recorded by African-Americans. His easy-going delivery and boyish charm helped to defuse the volatility of rock 'n' roll. Furthermore, Boone did not emote sexual magnetism. It was Boone who set the stage for what transpired, following a Richter-scale shift in the world of rock 'n' roll.

Denoting that upheaval was the U.S. Army's 1958 decision to draft Elvis Presley. Other significant careers also came to a standstill. Chuck Berry faced a prison term for having transported a minor over a state line for sexual purposes. Jerry Lee Lewis was blackballed because of his marriage to his thirteen-year-old cousin. Plane and car crashes took the lives of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and Eddie Cochran.

With the music world in transition, promoters moved in to provide an antidote--a new commodity to entice the growing teenage spending power. The idea was to cater to teenage desires, but without the erratic undercurrent or explosive passion that had made Presley an infamous household name. So the new teenage idol was created. It was no coincidence that, along with the lure of their talent--some of it legitimate, some wholly manufactured--the teen idols were exceedingly clean cut and attractive. Or that the male teen idols appeared vulnerable as opposed to predatory. After all, strong masculine qualities can be off-putting to young females. Thus, over the years, many teen idols have had an androgynous look.

More than any of the others, Fabian and Frankie Avalon set the standards against which the 1950s teen idols were measured. Both young men had the engaging affability of the boy-next-door. And not coincidentally, both were managed by Philadelphia producer-promoter Bob Marcucci, who was teamed with Peter DeAngelis in Chancellor Records. The label was based in Philadelphia, a city that specialized in turning out teen idols.