Bobby Rydell, a 1960s-era music and film star, has died. He was 79.
Rydell’s official Facebook page confirmed the news on Tuesday, writing in a statement that he died that same day from “non COVID-19-related pneumonia complications” at a hospital outside of his birthplace of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Born in 1942, Rydell first rose to fame in 1950 on Paul Whiteman’s TV Teen Club, according to the statement.
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In 1959, he landed on the Billboard Hot 100 Hits chart for the first time, with his first single “Kissin’ Time.”
The statement listed many of Rydell’s career accomplishments, including the sale of over 25 million albums and release of 34 top 100 hits. It called him one of the “top five artists of his era.”
At the age of 19, in 1961, Rydell became the youngest singer to perform at New York City’s famed Copacabana nightclub. That performance was immortalized by actor Von Lewis in 2018’s Oscar winner for Best Picture, Green Book.
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In 1963, Rydell appeared in the hit musical film Bye Bye Birdie, playing love interest Hugo Peabody to lead actress Ann-Margret‘s Kim MacAfee.
The teen idol would go on to appear in many other films and TV shows, including Dick Clark’s American Bandstand.
His name even served as inspiration for the name of the high school in the classic ’70s musical Grease.
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Rydell released an autobiography in 2016, titled Teen Idol On The Rocks: A Tale of Second Chances. In it, he wrote about his journey with alcohol and depression following the death of his first wife, Camille Quattrone Ridarelli, in 2003.
He also touched upon his recovery after receiving a double organ transplant in 2012, as seen in Tuesday’s Facebook statement.
Rydell is survived by his second wife Linda J. Hoffman, son Robert Ridarelli, daughter Jennifer Ridarelli Dulin and five grandchildren.
