Sing Boy Sing

Having previously seen the original TV play called "The Singin' Idol" which also starred Tommy Sands, I was stoked to watch this theatrical movie version also starring Sands. In the TV version, he was Ewell Walker, here the first name is changed to Virgil. His character, like Sands himself, was raised in Louisiana which is where I currently live. In fact, I smiled when Baton Rouge-my current hometown-was mentioned twice, first by him, then by Jerry Paris playing one of his managers! Virgil is a hot Rock star, not unlike Elvis Presley at the time which is interesting since Sands was also managed by Col. Tom Parker who reportedly got him on the original TV play. Anyway, the movie follows the TV play most of the time though there were some added scenes at the beginning, a slight change at the end, and an added character named C.K. played by Nick Adams. Oh, and I also loved Edmond O'Brien playing Sands' other manager with the name of Sharkey! In summary, I loved the drama, enjoyed the songs Sands sang, and was pleased with the final cut I saw on YouTube. So on that note, Sing Boy Sing is very much worth checking out. P.S. Tommy Sands was originally a native of Chicago, Ill, like yours truly. The person who played his preacher grandfather was John McIntire who was the father of Tim McIntire who I just watched play Alan Freed in American Hot Wax. Leading lady Lili Gentle would marry 20th Century-Fox executive Richard D. Zanuck after making this for the studio. And it's interesting Jerry Paris was in this movie since he'd later be the resident director of that '50s-set TV show, "Happy Days".