As Dick Clark settled in to his new role as host of Bandstand in the summer of 1956, he proceeded with caution. Given his comparatively tame lifestyle, there was little chance he'd succumb to the same temptations that had brought Bob Horn's career to such an unseemly end. But what about the show? It was immensely popular, but could some tweaking make it better?
One thing was certain: The music was changing and teenagers were changing, too. The show, on the other hand, was on pretty solid footing. A Top Ten list, a rate-a-record segment, popular guests dropping by, well-dressed and well-behaved teenagers. Clark kept all those things in place as well as another less well-known Bandstand feature, the annual yearbook.
The first Bandstand yearbook during Clark's tenure came out in 1957. It was chock full of pictures from the program and the largest words on the cover were "Bandstand" and "1957." WFIL-TV was prominent on the cover, which featured a simple illustration of a trumpet, but no person's name appeared.
The show went national as American Bandstand the next year and, although the content of the yearbook was very similar to the 1957 edition, man, did the cover ever change. Gone was the WFIL reference (it was a national show now, after all) but so was any mention of the show's title. Instead, there was a full-color head shot of Dick Clark with his name streaming across the bottom in huge, multicolored capital letters, dwarfing any type seen a year earlier.
The price of the yearbook remained $1, a real bargain for American Bandstand fans.
Inside they learned:
“The autograph table is one of the most popular studio features.”
“The Circle Dance created a lot of excitement as it developed from jitterbugging ... Now the Stroll is even being taught in dancing classes throughout the nation.”
“A slowed-down version of the Bunny Hop is this new one, The Walk.”
They also learned that almost half a million votes were received in American Bandstand’s Annual Poll for 1957. The winners were:
Favorite female vocalist: Patti Page.
Favorite male vocalist: Elvis Presley.
Most promising new male vocalist: Rick Nelson.
Most promising new female vocalist: Janice Harper.
Best instrumental combo: Jerry Lee Lewis.
Best vocal group: Danny & the Juniors.
Best record: All Shook Up, Elvis.
Dick Clark's annual yearbooks were monster hits, selling in the hundreds of thousands and can still be found today on eBay and other auction sites.
Author Larry Lehmer's book about Dick Clark and American Bandstand -- Bandstandland: How Dancing Teenagers Took Over America and Dick Clark Took Over Rock & Roll --is available from Sunbury Press. Go here to learn the story behind the writing of Bandstandland or here to listen to the Pennsylvania Cable Network's interview with author Larry Lehmer.
Larry Lehmer's book about the last tour of Buddy Holly, the Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens -- The Day the Music Died -- is available at Amazon.
