American actor James Darren with his wife Evy Norlund, circa 1960. James Darren died in his sleep at a Los Angeles hospital on Monday.
James Darren, a teen idol who helped ignite the 1960s surfing craze as a charismatic beach boy paired off with Sandra Dee in the hit film Gidget, died Monday at 88.American actor James Darren with his wife Evy Norlund, circa 1960. Darren died in his sleep at a Los Angeles hospital on Monday.
In his long career, Darren acted, sang and built up a successful behind-the-scenes career as a television director, helming episodes of such well-known series asBut to young movie fans of the late 1950s, he would be remembered best as Moondoggie, the dark-haired surfer boy in the smash 1959 release. Dee starred as the title character, a spunky Southern Californian who hits the beach and eventually falls in love with Moondoggie."I was in love with Sandra," Darren later recalled.
For Darren, his success with teen fans led to a recording contract, as it did with many young actors at the time; among them were Tab Hunter and Annette Funicello. Two of Darren's singles,Darren, left and actor Andy Robinson speak at the DS9 Tribute - Part 2 panel during the 17th annual official Star Trek convention at the Rio Hotel & Casino on Aug. 3, 2018 in Las Vegas.
"When it was shown, I got several offers to direct," he told the New York Daily News. "Soon I was getting so many offers to direct, I kind of gave up acting and singing."Darren was born James Ercolani in 1936 and grew up in South Philadelphia, not far from such fellow teen idols of the 1950s and '60s as Fabian and Frankie Avalon. Singing came easy to him, and at 14 he was appearing in local nightclubs.
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