Gene Austin was one of the most popular singers of the 1920's. He was largely responsible for inventing the crooner style of singing which became in vogue after electric recording processes were invented in 1925; a style which would be adopted by Rudy Vallee and eventually by Bing Crosby. Here he is singing in a faster and jazzier style than was generally his trademark on his million-selling recordings. In 1956, a television biography of his life was aired and he enjoyed a comeback. He also managed to make a slight chart comeback in 1957, the year of this broadcast, with a light rock and roll type number, "Too Late".
Ironic how Austin made a little dig at Elvis being able to hit those notes when he got to be Austin's age when Elvis didn't live that long but is still known worldwide while Ausitin is virtually forgotten.
It wasn't a "dig" at Elvis. In 1954, Col. Tom Parker began orchestrating a television comeback for Gene Austin, who was quite wealthy but agreed to let Parker plan a comeback on network television. The deal was that if Parker succeeded, he and Austin would split 50-50 any money Austin made from then on. Parker concocted the fiction that Austin had sold 86,000,000 records in his prime, and the comeback was a ratings success. That convinced Elvis and his father to go with Parker on the same 50-50 basis that Parker had negotiated with Austin. By the time Austin appeared on the Sullivan show, Parker was Elvis's manager and had launched him on the Sullivan show with enormous success. Parker told Austin to be sure to mention Elvis during his medley, which he did.
I want some more muppet sketches including come together 1970 on the Ed Sullivan show for me please thanks From Callum Quinn PS I'm biggest fan of the muppets sesame street fraggle rock bear in the big blue house and so many more love you see ya
