2024-09-04 12:45:02
MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
Actor and singer James Darren was a teen heartthrob back in the 1960s. Tall, dark and handsome, he starred in three of the “Gidget” beach movies. Darren died on Monday in his sleep at a hospital in Los Angeles. He was 88 years old. NPR’s Elizabeth Blair has this appreciation.
ELIZABETH BLAIR, BYLINE: As the surfer Moondoggie, James Darren rescues a struggling Sandra Dee on his surfboard.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, “GIDGET”)
JAMES DARREN: (As Moondoggie) This is it. Now hold on for your life. We’re going to shoot the curl.
BLAIR: Darren grew up in South Philadelphia. He studied acting with the legendary Stella Adler in New York City. Playing a California surfer was a little bit of a stretch, says his son, Jim Moret.
JIM MORET: I’m sure he could probably come in on the board and not get hurt, but I would not call him a surfer.
BLAIR: Moret says, for years, his father shied away from his teen idol reputation, fearing it would typecast him.
MORET: He was just afraid that he would be a one-trick pony, and he really wasn’t.
BLAIR: The “Gidget” movies also helped launch Darren’s singing career.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “THERE’S NO SUCH THING”)
DARREN: (Singing) There’s no such thing as the next best thing to love. No substitute or facsimile thereof.
BLAIR: Born James Ercolani in 1936, Darren started singing when he was a kid. His dad would take him to bars and nightclubs, and he would get up and sing a couple of songs. He scored his first top-10 hit in 1961.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “GOODBYE CRUEL WORLD”)
DARREN: (Singing) Farewell to love. I’m off to join the circus. Got to find a way to hide my tears.
BLAIR: James Darren was versatile. He did some directing. He recorded albums and performed live. As an actor, he did just about everything – a World War II movie, a police drama, science fiction. In “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” he played Vic Fontaine, a hologram of a 1950s lounge singer. Moret says it was perfect for him.
MORET: He was really talented. He had that swagger. He had that Rat-Pack coolness. He was like Dick Clark, eternally young.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, “STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE”)
DARREN: (As Vic Fontaine) But like the man said, nothing lasts forever. So gang, this one’s from the heart. (Singing) Some day, when I’m awfully low…
(APPLAUSE)
BLAIR: James Darren is survived by his wife of 64 years, three sons and five grandchildren.
Elizabeth Blair, NPR News.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, “STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE”)
DARREN: (As Vic Fontaine, singing) Just thinking of you… Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
