Bobby Darin's legacy celebrated on Long Island and Broadway

Bobby Darin is having a moment. The singer, who died in 1973, is getting his spotlight turned on again as his 89th birthday, May 14, approaches. The Jazz Loft in Stony Brook is hosting a celebration of his music, "Bobby Darin: Splish Splashin’," May 15-17 and a Darin-themed musical, "Just in Time," recently opened on Broadway.

"Bobby Darin was almost like an old-school vaudeville throwback who was born to be on the stage," says Thomas Manuel, founder and president of The Jazz Loft. "Similar to Frank Sinatra, he was able to bridge generations and left an indelible imprint on music."

TEEN IDOL: 'IN EVERY WAY HE WAS AHEAD OF HIS TIME'

Born Walden Robert Cassotto in East Harlem, Darin grew up in the Bronx. He began his career as a teen idol with the early rock and roll hit he co-wrote, "Splish Splash" in 1958, which hit No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. He followed up that success with another song he self-penned, "Dream Lover," which hit No. 2 in 1959.

Switching gears, Darin became a crooner, scoring again this time with the classics "Beyond the Sea" and "Mack the Knife" from his Top 10 album, "That’s All," which stayed on the Billboard album chart for a year and scored him two Grammy Awards.

"By age 24, he was a superstar at the Copacabana, starring next to Sammy Davis Jr., Tony Bennett and Dean Martin and singing with Judy Garland," says David Evanier, author of "Roman Candle: The Life of Bobby Darin." "He had a restless spirit and wanted to do everything. In every way, he was ahead of his time."

Romantically, Darin dated pop singer-actress Connie Francis until her father chased after him with a gun because he strongly disapproved of their union. In 1960, he married actress Sandra Dee.  Together they co-starred in Darin's first major film, "Come September," in 1961. (Watch the trailer here.) The couple had a son, Dodd, the same year.

LIVING ON BORROWED TIME

Despite his success, Darin struggled with his health. From age 7 to 12, he had rheumatic fever four times, which left him with a weakened heart. It was predicted that he wasn’t going to make it to age 16.

"Bobby lived his entire life on borrowed time. When he finally hit 30, it was a miracle," says Gary Walden, 69, his half-brother, who will be on hand at The Jazz Loft. "He may have been taking oxygen off the stage and not feeling well, but when he got on the stage he delivered."

As a kid, Darin would bring Walden up on stage to sing or do the hand claps on "Dream Lover." They even performed "Jingle Bells" together on the "American Bandstand" Christmas show in 1961.

"Bobby was very gracious to his public," Walden says. "His grandmother, who was an actress and a singer from vaudeville, taught him that people have the choice who they want to see. They pay good money to see you; therefore, you must honor them with a great performance."

FAMILY SHOCKER: 'BOBBY WAS COMPLETELY ALTERED BY THE NEWS'

However, Darin was raised to believe that his grandmother Vivian "Polly" Fern Walden was his mother while his actual mother, Vanina Juliette "Nina" Cassotto, posed as his sister.

"My mother, Nina, told Bobby the truth back in 1968 because he was completely gung-ho to leave his career and go into politics. She warned him that if he goes into politics, his background is going to be made known. Any type of discrepancy might come out," says Walden. "Bobby was completely altered by the news. It was mind-boggling to him. I was 12 at the time. This was not something that was discussed or made public. I could not believe how she kept that secret. Bobby had spent a fortune trying to figure out who his father was. When he asked my mom, she said, ‘That will die with me.’ She had fallen in love with this guy in college. They had a relationship and she became pregnant, but my mother didn’t want to get married."

FOLK SINGER TURNS SWINGER AGAIN

Darin tested the waters of folk in 1966 with his cover of the Tim Hardin classic, "If I Were a Carpenter," which made it into the top 10. However, by 1968, he formed his own record label, Direction, releasing two albums of all original folk music, "Bobby Darin Born Walden Robert Cassotto" and "Commitment." Unfortunately, this pivot wasn’t met with great success. 

"The public was used to seeing him in a tuxedo, singing as a polished performer. When he came out in jeans and a denim jacket, people were wondering, ‘Where is the Bobby Darin who is swingin', snappin' his fingers and acting cool?’ ” says Walden. "Bobby had made a persona of who he was and people can only see so many different parts of you. He just wanted to keep going, but his body couldn’t do it anymore."

At the end of his career, Darin made an effort to return to his old swingin’ persona. In fact, NBC gave him his own program, "The Bobby Darin Show," which ran from January to April 1973. (Watch a clip here featuring Nancy Sinatra, Phyllis Diller and Seals and Croft.)

"It’s amazing how much energy it took to be Bobby Darin," Walden says. "To this day, I can’t watch his television series because if you look at him, his lips are purple. You wonder, how is this man standing? You can tell that he was gravely ill."

EARLY DEATH

Darin’s heart condition continued to impact his health. After failing to take antibiotics to protect his heart before a dental visit, Darin developed sepsis, which weakened his body and damaged a heart valve. He had a six-hour open-heart surgery in December 1973 but died in the recovery room. He was 37.

"Being so talented and robbed so early leaves people with the question of, ‘What if?’ ” says Manuel. "It fuels the myth and keeps his spirit alive. You can’t help but wonder what he would have done next."

JAZZ LOFT HONORS DARIN

The Jazz Loft has put together a museum exhibit that opens on May 15. The collection includes original manuscripts to songs he performed, a gold "Splish Splash" record, music contracts, original letters Darin wrote to his family on hotel stationery while he was on the road as well as photographs that span from his youth and all throughout his career. There will also be a listening station, curated by audio engineer John Piro, featuring different interviews. Evanier will deliver a talk about Darin while selling and signing copies of his book.

On May 16, singer Charlie Romo will sing Darin songs backed by The Jazz Loft Septet. Romo, who made it to Hollywood Week on "American Idol" this year, identifies with Darin as he is a 29-year-old crooner from Brooklyn.

"Bobby was an Italian American from New York who came from humble beginnings. Nobody ever handed this guy anything. He had to fight his way out of the Bronx to make it to the big time," says Romo. "I’m going to dust off the cobwebs and do my own modern youthful interpretations of his songs. However, I use his original arrangements. This show is a little like a theatrical concert that showcases how special Bobby Darin was as a person."

Pete Caldera, a singer from Manhattan, performs with The Jazz Loft Big Band on May 17. He grew up listening to Darin as a teenager.

"I’ve been an old soul from a very young age. I was tuning out whatever was being played in high school and listened to the crooners," says Caldera, 59. "Bobby Darin had the stage presence to go with the musicality. There’s a magic behind any Darin performance that grabs you and transports you."

LI FANS SPEAK OUT

Lee Friedman, who grew up in Bellmore and formerly lived in Glen Cove, saw Darin in concert during 1972 twice — once in Central Park at the Schaefer Music Festival and also at the Copacabana.

"Bobby did an hour and the crowd wouldn’t let him off the stage at Central Park. He then came out and did another hour," recalls Friedman, 75. "At the Copa, he did a 90-minute show and everybody was fully engaged. His stage personality was ingratiating and he mesmerized the audience. There wasn’t an empty seat in the house."

Despite being 40, Rachael Durso, of Massapequa, became aware of Darin’s music due to her steady diet of WCBS/101.1 FM.

"I always found him more special than Frank Sinatra. His voice was different and had incredible charisma," says Durso. "Bobby wanted to be bigger than Sinatra. I feel like he might have been, if he lived longer."

Robert Damato, of Floral Park, has been singing Darin songs since he was 5. At age 71, Damato, who professionally goes by "Bobby D," presents his "Bobby Sings Bobby" show throughout Long Island where he croons the tunes of Bobby Darin, Bobby Rydell, Bobby Vinton, Bobby Hatfield and more.

"To me, Bobby Darin is the greatest nightclub entertainer of all time," Damato declares. "He had a range that was unbelievable. I think if Bobby was alive today, he would still be out there performing in his senior years just like Frankie Valli, Tom Jones and Engelbert Humperdinck."

By David J. Criblez

david.criblez@newsday.comDavidJCriblez

David J. Criblez is a reporter for Newsday's exploreLI, covering entertainment-related events from local music to stand-up comedy to festivals.