Fabian

Swinging teen idol Fabiano Anthony Forte, better known to his fans as Fabian, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1943, to a police officer. His father took ill and died when Fabian was young and the boy was forced to find work to help pay the family bills. With no experience but looks to die for, he was "discovered" one day by record promoters and artificially groomed for rock 'n' roll stardom. Given singing lessons and a complete visual makeover (including black pompadour and sexy V-neck sweaters), Fabian was marketed with a rebel image and snarling baritone unlike the other clean-cut heartthrobs of his heyday, Frankie Avalon and Bobby Rydell. After a couple of false starts, including one of his earliest singles entitled "Shivers", Fabian zoomed to stardom on the strength of Dick Clark's American American Bandstand (1952), later winning the Silver Award as "The Most Promising Male Vocalist of 1958". From 1959-1960, Fabian recorded a number of "Top 10" hits, including "Tiger",