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James Darren
James William Ercolani (June 8, 1936 – September 2, 2024), known by his stage name James Darren, was an American television and film actor, television director, and singer. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, he had notable starring and supporting roles in films including the youth and beach-culture film Gidget (1959) and its sequels. He also appeared in The Gene Krupa Story (1959), All the Young Men (1960), The Guns of Navarone (1961), and Diamond Head (1962). As a teen pop singer, he sang hit singles including "Goodbye Cruel World" in 1961. He later became more active in television, starring as Dr. Anthony Newman in the science fiction series The Time Tunnel (1966–1967). He had the regular role of Officer James Corrigan in the police drama T. J. Hooker (1982–1986) and performed as Vic Fontaine, a recurring role in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1998–1999).
James William Ercolani was born in Philadelphia, on June 8, 1936. He was of Italian descent and grew up in South Philadelphia near where Fabian and Frankie Avalon lived. In an interview with the News Press of Fort Myers, Florida he said that the area where he lived was "a real neighborhood. It made you feel that you could be successful, too." He mentioned that Al Martino and Eddie Fisher were from the neighborhood.
Darren wanted to be an actor and studied in New York City with Stella Adler for a number of years. He also occasionally sang although he later said "I wasn't really a singer. I was a kid in Philly whose dad would take him to bars and nightclubs and I would get up and sing two songs."
Darren was discovered by talent agent and casting director Joyce Selznick after he got some photographs taken by Maurice Seymour to show potential agents:
His secretary, a woman by the name of Yvonne Bouvier, asked me if I was interested in getting into film. I said yeah, I was. She said I know someone you should meet. She set up a meeting between me and Joyce Selznick, who worked for Screen Gems. I went down to 1650 Broadway, the Brill Building. On my way to a meeting with Joyce, we just happened to get on the elevator at the same time. She kept staring at me. I never met her. She never met me. We got off at the same floor and walked to the same office. That was our meeting. Joyce brought me over to Columbia Pictures about a week later and got me a contract there.
Columbia signed Darren to a long-term contract in July 1956. A few weeks later he was filming his first film, Rumble on the Docks (1956), a low-budget "B" movie produced by Sam Katzman, where Darren played the lead. Darren's appearance was well received and he got a lot of fan mail–second at the studio only to Kim Novak. He guest starred on an episode of TV's The Web ("Kill and Run") and then Columbia gave him a support role in an "A" picture,[citation needed] the comedy Operation Mad Ball (1957), starring Jack Lemmon and Ernie Kovacs.
He had support roles in two films directed by Phil Karlson: The Brothers Rico (1957), a film noir, playing the brother of Richard Conte; and Gunman's Walk (1958), a Western with Van Heflin and Tab Hunter. In between he was second billed in another movie for Katzman, The Tijuana Story (1957), although his role was relatively small.[additional citation(s) needed]
Darren was third billed in the surf film, Gidget (1959), starring Sandra Dee and Cliff Robertson, playing Moondoggie, essentially the film's leading man. He also sang the title track. "They were thinking about having someone do the vocal and I would lip sync", he recalled. "I told them I could do it. So we went into one of the sound stages and I sang 'Gidget'. They said, 'He sings fine,' then I did all the other songs."
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James Darren
James William Ercolani (June 8, 1936 – September 2, 2024), known by his stage name James Darren, was an American television and film actor, television director, and singer. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, he had notable starring and supporting roles in films including the youth and beach-culture film Gidget (1959) and its sequels. He also appeared in The Gene Krupa Story (1959), All the Young Men (1960), The Guns of Navarone (1961), and Diamond Head (1962). As a teen pop singer, he sang hit singles including "Goodbye Cruel World" in 1961. He later became more active in television, starring as Dr. Anthony Newman in the science fiction series The Time Tunnel (1966–1967). He had the regular role of Officer James Corrigan in the police drama T. J. Hooker (1982–1986) and performed as Vic Fontaine, a recurring role in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1998–1999).
James William Ercolani was born in Philadelphia, on June 8, 1936. He was of Italian descent and grew up in South Philadelphia near where Fabian and Frankie Avalon lived. In an interview with the News Press of Fort Myers, Florida he said that the area where he lived was "a real neighborhood. It made you feel that you could be successful, too." He mentioned that Al Martino and Eddie Fisher were from the neighborhood.
Darren wanted to be an actor and studied in New York City with Stella Adler for a number of years. He also occasionally sang although he later said "I wasn't really a singer. I was a kid in Philly whose dad would take him to bars and nightclubs and I would get up and sing two songs."
Darren was discovered by talent agent and casting director Joyce Selznick after he got some photographs taken by Maurice Seymour to show potential agents:
His secretary, a woman by the name of Yvonne Bouvier, asked me if I was interested in getting into film. I said yeah, I was. She said I know someone you should meet. She set up a meeting between me and Joyce Selznick, who worked for Screen Gems. I went down to 1650 Broadway, the Brill Building. On my way to a meeting with Joyce, we just happened to get on the elevator at the same time. She kept staring at me. I never met her. She never met me. We got off at the same floor and walked to the same office. That was our meeting. Joyce brought me over to Columbia Pictures about a week later and got me a contract there.
Columbia signed Darren to a long-term contract in July 1956. A few weeks later he was filming his first film, Rumble on the Docks (1956), a low-budget "B" movie produced by Sam Katzman, where Darren played the lead. Darren's appearance was well received and he got a lot of fan mail–second at the studio only to Kim Novak. He guest starred on an episode of TV's The Web ("Kill and Run") and then Columbia gave him a support role in an "A" picture,[citation needed] the comedy Operation Mad Ball (1957), starring Jack Lemmon and Ernie Kovacs.
He had support roles in two films directed by Phil Karlson: The Brothers Rico (1957), a film noir, playing the brother of Richard Conte; and Gunman's Walk (1958), a Western with Van Heflin and Tab Hunter. In between he was second billed in another movie for Katzman, The Tijuana Story (1957), although his role was relatively small.[additional citation(s) needed]
Darren was third billed in the surf film, Gidget (1959), starring Sandra Dee and Cliff Robertson, playing Moondoggie, essentially the film's leading man. He also sang the title track. "They were thinking about having someone do the vocal and I would lip sync", he recalled. "I told them I could do it. So we went into one of the sound stages and I sang 'Gidget'. They said, 'He sings fine,' then I did all the other songs."