Hey, Let's Twist! | |
---|---|
Directed by | Greg Garrison |
Screenplay by | Hal Hackady |
Produced by | Martha Vera Romm |
Starring | Joey Dee Jo Ann Campbell Teddy Randazzo Kay Armen Zohra Lampert Dino Di Luca |
Cinematography | George Jacobson |
Edited by | Arline Garson Sidney Katz |
Music by | Henry Glover |
Production company | Harry Romm Productions |
Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 79 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $300,000 [1] |
Box office | $1 million (US/Canada) [2] |
Hey, Let's Twist! is a 1961 American musical film directed by Greg Garrison and written by Hal Hackady. The film stars Joey Dee, Jo Ann Campbell, Teddy Randazzo, Kay Armen, Zohra Lampert and Dino Di Luca. The film was released on December 31, 1961, by Paramount Pictures. [3] [4]
The same team later made Two Tickets to Paris (1962).
The rise, fall, and resurgence of the Peppermint Lounge club is chronicled. The children of the owner almost ruin the club by updating the place but realize their error.
The film shot for two weeks at Pathe Studios in New York. Filming started November 1961. It was made independently and distributed through Paramount. There were a number of "twist" movies shot around the same time, others including Don't Knock the Twist . [1]
The film performed well at the box office. A sequel to be set in Paris was announced, Viva La Twist. [5] This eventually became Two Tickets to Paris .
Splendor in the Grass is a 1961 American period drama film produced and directed by Elia Kazan, from a screenplay written by William Inge. It stars Natalie Wood and Warren Beatty as two high school sweethearts, navigating feelings of sexual repression, love, and heartbreak. Pat Hingle, Audrey Christie, Barbara Loden, Zohra Lampert, and Joanna Roos are featured in supporting roles.
The twist is a dance that was inspired by rock and roll music. From 1959 to the early sixties it became a worldwide dance craze, enjoying immense popularity while drawing controversies from critics who felt it was too provocative. It inspired dances such as the Jerk, the Pony, the Watusi, the Mashed Potato, the Monkey, and the Funky Chicken, but none was as popular.
Jo Ann Campbell is an American singer who was one of the pioneers of rockabilly.
Zohra Lampert is a retired American actress, who has had roles on stage, film and television. She performed under her then-married name of Zohra Alton early in her career.
"Peppermint Twist" is a song written by Joey Dee and Henry Glover, recorded and released by Joey Dee and the Starliters in 1961. Capitalizing on the Twist dance craze and the nightclub in which Dee performed, the song hit No.1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in early 1962. The original recording of the song was considered too long for release on a 45 rpm single, so it was split into two parts. It was this first part, "Peppermint Twist ", with a length of 2:03, which became the No.1 hit; the mostly instrumental second half of the recording is rarely heard today.
The Peppermint Lounge was a popular discotheque located at 128 West 45th Street in New York City that was open from 1958 to 1965, although a new one was opened in 1980. It was the launchpad for the global Twist craze in the early 1960s. Many claim The Peppermint Lounge was also where go-go dancing originated, although this claim is subject to dispute.
Joey Dee and the Starliters is an American popular music group. The group is best known for their million-selling recording "Peppermint Twist" (1961). The group's most notable lineup is considered to be Joey Dee, David Brigati, Larry Vernieri (vocals), Carlton Lattimore (organ), Sam Taylor (guitar) and Willie Davis (drums). Jimi Hendrix and Joe Pesci played guitar with the group at different times in the 1960s.
William Butler Jr. was an American soul jazz guitarist.
David Brigati is an American singer. He is sometimes known as "the fifth Rascal".
"You’re Driving Me Crazy" is an American popular song composed by Walter Donaldson in 1930 and recorded the same year by Lee Morse, Rudy Vallée & His Connecticut Yankees and Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadians.
Alessandro Carmelo "Teddy" Randazzo was an American pop songwriter, singer, arranger and producer, who composed hit songs such as "Goin' Out of My Head", "It's Gonna Take a Miracle", "Pretty Blue Eyes", and "Hurt So Bad" in the 1960s.
The Royal Teens were an American rock and roll band that formed in New Jersey in 1956 and originally consisted of Bob Gaudio on piano, Tom Austin on drums, Billy Dalton on guitar, and Billy Crandall on saxophone. The group is best known for its single "Short Shorts", which was a number 3 hit in the United States in 1958. The follow-up single, 1959's "Believe Me", hit number 26. They never recorded an album, and broke up in 1965.
Joey and the Twisters was an American twist group, formed from remnants of the original Royal Teens around 1961. The group was led by Teens vocalist Joey Villa, along with several other members from the local Manhattan doo-wop scene. The band played regularly at the Peppermint Lounge in Manhattan, alongside Joey Dee and the Starliters and other acts.
"Fannie Mae" is a 1959 song, written and performed by the American blues and R&B singer, Buster Brown.
The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard is a 2009 American comedy film directed by Neal Brennan, produced by Adam McKay, Will Ferrell, Kevin Messick and Chris Henchy, written by Andy Stock and Rick Stempson and starring Jeremy Piven, Ving Rhames, James Brolin, David Koechner, Kathryn Hahn, Ed Helms, Jordana Spiro and Craig Robinson. Originally titled The Goods: The Don Ready Story, the film was theatrically released on August 14, 2009 in the United States by Paramount Pictures and was released on DVD as a rental only with no special features November 17 and for sale December 15. The film received mostly negative reviews from critics and grossed $15.3 million against a $10 million budget.
Henry Bernard Glover was an American songwriter, arranger, record producer and trumpet player. In the music industry of the time, Glover was one of the most successful and influential black executives. He gained eminence in the late 1940s, primarily working for the independent King label. His duties included operating as a producer, arranger, songwriter, engineer, trumpet player, talent scout, A&R man, studio constructor, while later in his career he became the owner of his own label. Glover worked with country, blues, R&B, pop, rock, and jazz musicians, and he helped King Records to become one of the largest independent labels of its time. Thanks to the efforts of family, friends and fans, Glover's hometown of Hot Springs, Arkansas celebrated the 100th anniversary of his birth in 2021 by inducting him into the downtown "Walk of Fame," the Mayor's "Proclamation," "Key to the City," and named a parklet "Henry Glover Way," along Black Broadway after him. In 2018, Glover was recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the King Records 75th Anniversary. In 2013, he was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame.
Armenuhi Manoogian ; November 2, 1915 – October 3, 2011), better known by her stage name Kay Armen, was an American-Armenian singer popular during the 1940s and 1950s. Her career in show business spanned almost six decades; she worked on stage and in radio, television, and film. She wrote multiple songs, performed in nightclubs and recorded many records.
Dino Di Luca, also billed as Dino Diluca, was a leading Italian actor of both stage, screen and television. He was active in both Italy and the United States of America from the 1930s through the 1960s.
Two Tickets to Paris is a 1962 film directed by Greg Garrison and starring Joey Dee and the Starliters.