justask judy recently wrote about her meeting with Paul Anka. This brought up a memory of my own teenage years. I once met and had my photograph taken with Johnnie Ray. This was of course a few years before the Paul Anka era. I was madly in love with Johnnie Ray (made famous by his rendition of Nature Boy in the 50″s.) Johnnie Ray and the Four Lads came to Minneapolis to play at the Radio City Theatre. Somehow, my best friend Franny and I begged, cajoled, and finally persuaded our mothers to let us go downtown in the early morning hours to line up for the chance of sitting in the front row of the theater at the first performance.
Armed with candy bars, cold drinks in a thermos, and a blanket to sit on, we took the Grand Avenue streetcar into town. After a 20 minute ride we got off, walked the few blocks from Marquette to Nicollet Avenue where about five or six young people had already gathered. Within ten minutes, the line for the first performance was all the way to the corner. More and more fans arrived and I thought about Frank Sinatra and the Bobby Sockers. What a thrill. Here I was just like the generation before me getting ready to scream hysterically for the singing accomplishments of my idol. I felt very mature, sophisticated, and wordily.
Just before noon,, the publicity man for Johnnie Ray came out and asked if there was anyone from his fan club present. Everyone waved and said, ” Here, here”. So did I, which wasn’t true, but I was caught up in the moment. He walked down the line and chose a girl about twenty feet back from where I stood. Then he turned, headed back, pointed in my direction and said the magical words “Okay, you too.” The two of us followed him backstage. I don’t think my feet ever touched the ground. My heart was beating faster and faster. I could hardly believe I was going to meet my idol. We waited for what seemed like a long time, but according to Franny who held my place in line, it was only about ten minutes. A newspaper photographer and reporter arrived, Johnnie Ray and his entourage appeared from further inside the theatre. The other young fan and I were posed on either side of the singer, who in my opinion, was even better looking in person. A number of photos were taken and we were courteously thanked by Mr. Ray for our continuing support and for being loyal members of his fan club.
I don’t remember much about the concert except for screaming myself hoarse. I remember the Four Lads sang first. At that time they were not yet well known, but from their charisma and poise, I knew they would have their hour of fame. Then Johnnie Ray came on stage and sang. All I could think about was my brief encounter with this gentle, shy man. Thank God, no one asked me which fan club I belonged to because I would have had no idea of what to say. For all I know the other girl chosen may also have been a phony. We never really had an opportunity to talk to each other and I lost track of her in all the confusion back in line.
The next day, there was my photo in the entertainment section of the local paper. I was standing to the left of Ray, the other girl on his right. In the photo we are turned toward him and giving him very innocent 1950 style pecks on the cheek. Wish I still I had that newspaper clipping, but like so many good things, it is no longer around.
At some time in the early 80’s, I happened to be in Beverly Hills at the home of two young women who bred Doberman Pinschers. I had bought a puppy in Las Vegas. They owned its Champion father, Beethoven. As breeders they were interested in the qualities passed to this first litter, and I was more than anxious to find out if Maturango resembled his famous father. They looked at my little guy who was about 8 months old at the time. Pronounced him sound and then diplomatically told me, he didn’t resemble their prize stud. As I was leaving, probably a better word would be retreating, my hosts walked me and the Dobie to my car. We were saying our goodbyes when an old man, short and heavy set, crossed the street from a nearby apartment building He smiled at us and got into the car parked behind mine.
One of the women realized I was watching him closely and said, “Do you know who that is?” I thought the smile looked familiar, but I had no idea who this person could be so I answered “No”. Her eyes brightened and she said, “That’s Johnnie Ray. He lives across the street from us.”
Then sadly she went on to tell me that he was now totally deaf. I knew he had been partially deaf since 14. It seemed so sad to realize that he could no longer hear the music he sang so well. On the way home, I wished there had been an opportunity to tell him, I was once a fan. To tell him I had my photo taken with him back in Minneapolis thirty years earlier when I was a teen-ager and he was a vibrant, promising young entertainer. It just didn’t happen.
