Frankie Avalon

The first strategically marketed “teen idol” (after Elvis), Frankie Avalon got his start in the business playing trumpet, but his fate changed in 1958 following an impromptu singing audition for a local manager.

Within a year, Avalon was topping the charts with singles such as “Venus,” “Why,” “Cupid,” and “Dede Diana,” and driving millions of teenage girls to distraction.

Avalon’s good looks and penchant for sugary ballads kept him a star until 1962 when his popularity began to decline.