Fabiano Anthony Forte — better known as Fabian — is 78 years old today.
A singer and actor, Fabian rose to national prominence after performing several times on American Bandstand. He became a teen idol of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Eleven of his songs reached the Billboard Hot 100 listing.
The son of Josephine and Dominic Forte, Fabian’s father was a Philadelphia policeman. He is the oldest of three brothers.
Fabian was discovered in 1957 by Bob Marcucci and Peter DeAngelis, owners of Chancellor Records. At the time, record producers were looking to the South Philadelphia neighborhoods in search of teenage talents with good looks. Frankie Avalon, also of South Philadelphia, suggested Fabian as a possibility.
With songwriters Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman writing for him, Fabian released a series of hit singles on Chancellor Records, including "I'm a Man," "Hound Dog Man," (US #9), "Turn Me Loose" (US #9) and his biggest hit, "Tiger," which reached #3 on the U.S. charts.
In 1959, Fabian told a judge he was earning $250,000 a year. During the payola scandal of the 1960s, Fabian testified before Congress that his recordings had been doctored electronically to "significantly improve his voice." His career in music basically ended when he was 18 after he bought out of his contract with Marcucci after signing a seven-year deal with 20th Century Fox.
"I felt controlled. I felt like a puppet," he said in 1974. "It was frightening, like a three-year nightmare."
He spent the next thirteen years concentrating on acting. Fabian was contracted to 20th Century-Fox beginning with Don Siegel's Hound-Dog Man, based on Fred Gipson's novel.
The Psychotronic Encyclopedia of Film featured a photo of Fabian's screen test where he appeared in the same outfit that Elvis Presley wore in Love Me Tender. The movie was not a success, but Fox found they could use Fabian in supporting roles such as Five Weeks in a Balloon, High Time, North to Alaska and The Longest Day.
When Fox temporarily shut down following cost over-runs on Cleopatra, Fabian was one of the first actors whose options were exercised after the studio re-opened. He was considered to play the lead in Beach Party (1963), but was unable to do it because of his contract.
Most of Fabian's early films were comedies and cast him as a restless teenager with a penchant for singing. However, he received critical acclaim for his performance as a psychotic killer in “A Lion Walks Among Us” for the TV show, Bus Stop.
This episode was highly controversial due to its violent content, with many affiliates refusing to run the program. It was mentioned in the U.S. Senate.
Fabian hosted and headlined in the hit show, The Original Stars of Bandstand at The Dick Clark Theater in Branson, Missouri. The show starred Fabian and Bobby Vee and featured The Chiffons, Brian Hyland, Chris Montez and rare footage of the performers and Dick Clark.
Today, Fabian lives on 20 acres in Southwestern Pennsylvania in a home which his wife designed. In 2013, he was still performing about 25 shows a year.
“It gets me out of the house and I’ve never been happier. [At home] I ride my ATV and tractor and cut the grass. Where I grew up, there wasn't any grass."