Country star Eddy Arnold dies
Was pioneer of 'the Nashville Sound'
May 08, 2008
His wife of 66 years, Sally, died in March, and in the same month, Arnold fell outside his home, injuring his hip. He would have turned 90 next week.
Joel Whitburn's "Top Country Songs, 1944-2005" ranks Arnold as country's all-time No. 1 singles artist; the book is dedicated to him. Arnold's mellow baritone made him the king of the chart beginning in 1945 with his first hit, "Each Minute Seems a Million Years." Counting double-sided singles, he hit the top 10 more than 90 times during the next 35 years, including 28 No. 1s. From 1947-68, Arnold's singles spent a total of 145 weeks at No. 1.
One of those, 1947's "I'll Hold You in My Heart (Till I Can Hold You in My Arms)," spent a record 21 weeks atop the chart, a mark that was tied twice in the 1950s. Less than a year later, Arnold's "Bouquet of Roses" had a 19-week run at No. 1 -- tied for sixth-longest in country history -- and spent 54 weeks on the Billboard chart, a record that still stands.
His other chart toppers include "Anytime," "Just a Little Lovin' (Will Go a Long, Long Way)," "Don't Rob Another Man's Castle," "There's Been a Change in Me," "I Wanna Play House With You" and "I Want to Go With You."
Most of his hits were done in association with famed guitarist Chet Atkins, the producer on most of the recording sessions.
His biggest pop single was "Make the World Go Away," which hit No. 6 in 1965.
Folksy yet sophisticated, Arnold became a pioneer of the "Nashville Sound," also called "countrypolitan," a mixture of country and pop styles.
"I sing a little country, I sing a little pop, and I sing a little folk -- and it all goes together," Arnold said in 1970.
He was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1966. The following year he was the first person to receive the entertainer of the year award from the Country Music Assn.
The late Dinah Shore once described his voice as like "warm butter and syrup being poured over wonderful buttermilk pancakes."
Reflecting on his career, Arnold said he never copied anyone.
"I really had an idea about how I wanted to sing from the very beginning," he said.
Arnold revitalized his career in the 1960s by adding strings, a controversial move for a country artist back then.
"I got to thinking, if I just took the same kind of songs I'd been singing and added violins to them, I'd have a new sound," he told the Associated Press in 2002. "They cussed me, but the disc jockeys grabbed it. ... The artists began to say, 'Aww, he's left us.' Then within a year, they were doing it."
Arnold was born May 15, 1918, on a farm near Henderson, Tenn., the son of a sharecropper. He sang on radio stations in Jackson, Tenn., Memphis and St. Louis before becoming nationally known.
Early in his career, his manager was Col. Tom Parker, who later managed Elvis Presley.
His image was always that of a modest, clean-cut country boy.
"You cannot satisfy all the people," he once said. "They have an image of me. Some people think I'm Billy Graham's half brother, but I'm not. I want people to get this hero thing off their mind and just let me be me."
Erik Pedersen contributed to this report.
Larry Hertzog, TV writer-producer, dies
Was part of Stephen J. Cannell team
April 30, 2008
Larry Hertzog, a veteran TV writer and producer who created "Nowhere Man" for then-fledgling UPN, died April 19 of cancer at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. He was 56.
Hertzog worked on shows including ABC's "Hart to Hart," then joined the Stephen J. Cannell team, where he wrote and produced several series, including "Hardcastle and McCormick" and "Stingray." With Cannell, the native New Yorker co-created the Dale Robertson starrer "J.J. Starbuck" in 1987.
After stints on "Walker, Texas Ranger" and "seaQuest 2032," Hertzog created "Nowhere Man" for UPN. The series starred Bruce Greenwood as a man whose identity is annulled.
Hertzog went on to produce NBC's "Profiler" for two seasons before joining USA's hit "Le Femme Nikita" as its showrunner for its last three seasons. He also wrote for Fox's "24."
Hertzog worked on shows including ABC's "Hart to Hart," then joined the Stephen J. Cannell team, where he wrote and produced several series, including "Hardcastle and McCormick" and "Stingray." With Cannell, the native New Yorker co-created the Dale Robertson starrer "J.J. Starbuck" in 1987.
After stints on "Walker, Texas Ranger" and "seaQuest 2032," Hertzog created "Nowhere Man" for UPN. The series starred Bruce Greenwood as a man whose identity is annulled.
Hertzog went on to produce NBC's "Profiler" for two seasons before joining USA's hit "Le Femme Nikita" as its showrunner for its last three seasons. He also wrote for Fox's "24."
Lawrence Welk tenor Joe Feeney dies at 76
Singer was featured on the hit show for 25 years
April 23, 2008
Joe Feeney, a Nebraska-born tenor who crooned "Danny Boy" and other standards for 25 years on "The Lawrence Welk Show," has died. He was 76.
Feeney died of emphysema on April 16 at a hospice in Carlsbad, Calif., son Tim Feeney said. The elder Feeney lived in San Marcos in San Diego County,
"He never smoked a day in his life" and the family believes he may have contracted the illness from decades of performing in smoky casinos and nightclubs, his son said.
From 1957 to 1982, Feeney was the featured tenor on the Welk show, which offered easy-listening "champagne music" and clean-cut, family oriented songs. The shows are still broadcast on public television stations.
Feeney also had a rich career away from the show. He sang for five presidents at the White House and for Pope Paul VI in 1975 at the Vatican, according to his Web site.
Feeney, however, was modest.
"We knew him as dad," Tim Feeney said in a telephone interview Tuesday from his home in San Diego. "He came home and never told us he sang for the president."
He performed at venues ranging from Carnegie Hall to Disneyland, in part to support a big family.
"When you have 10 kids, even in those days, things were expensive," said another son, Sean Feeney of La Costa.
His last performance was in Syracuse, N.Y., in December.
"He loved it," Tim Feeney said of the singing. "It was his life. And that's what led most of the family to sing and perform throughout the years."
Feeney was born to an Irish-American family in Grand Island, Neb., and as a child sang in the church choir. He continued singing through school. He entered and won several singing contests at the University of Nebraska, where he was starting quarterback.
A tape of his singing was sent to Welk in 1956, resulting in a guest spot on the Los Angeles-based show.
"From then on, he became a regular," Sean Feeney said.
When he wasn't singing, Feeney loved to fish and golf. He also kept a garden and at one time raised horses on a ranch in Simi Valley, Tim Feeney said.
In addition to his two sons, Feeney is survived by sons Joe Jr., of Escondido; George Patrick, of Las Vegas; Chris, of Los Angeles, and Matt, of San Diego; daughters Kathy Feeney of Glendale, Ariz. and Georgia Feeney of San Marcos, and nine grandchildren. Two other children died.
Feeney died of emphysema on April 16 at a hospice in Carlsbad, Calif., son Tim Feeney said. The elder Feeney lived in San Marcos in San Diego County,
"He never smoked a day in his life" and the family believes he may have contracted the illness from decades of performing in smoky casinos and nightclubs, his son said.
From 1957 to 1982, Feeney was the featured tenor on the Welk show, which offered easy-listening "champagne music" and clean-cut, family oriented songs. The shows are still broadcast on public television stations.
Feeney also had a rich career away from the show. He sang for five presidents at the White House and for Pope Paul VI in 1975 at the Vatican, according to his Web site.
Feeney, however, was modest.
"We knew him as dad," Tim Feeney said in a telephone interview Tuesday from his home in San Diego. "He came home and never told us he sang for the president."
He performed at venues ranging from Carnegie Hall to Disneyland, in part to support a big family.
"When you have 10 kids, even in those days, things were expensive," said another son, Sean Feeney of La Costa.
His last performance was in Syracuse, N.Y., in December.
"He loved it," Tim Feeney said of the singing. "It was his life. And that's what led most of the family to sing and perform throughout the years."
Feeney was born to an Irish-American family in Grand Island, Neb., and as a child sang in the church choir. He continued singing through school. He entered and won several singing contests at the University of Nebraska, where he was starting quarterback.
A tape of his singing was sent to Welk in 1956, resulting in a guest spot on the Los Angeles-based show.
"From then on, he became a regular," Sean Feeney said.
When he wasn't singing, Feeney loved to fish and golf. He also kept a garden and at one time raised horses on a ranch in Simi Valley, Tim Feeney said.
In addition to his two sons, Feeney is survived by sons Joe Jr., of Escondido; George Patrick, of Las Vegas; Chris, of Los Angeles, and Matt, of San Diego; daughters Kathy Feeney of Glendale, Ariz. and Georgia Feeney of San Marcos, and nine grandchildren. Two other children died.
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