Jeff Pophistory

Milli Vanilli’s Grammy Win

On February 22, 1990, Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus appeared on the Grammy Awards as Milli Vanilli. The duo performed their hit “Girl You Know It’s True” from their debut album of the same name, and then they accepted the award for Best New Artist. By the end of the year, though, the public discovered that the duo did not sing on their record and that they had been lip syncing the song.

Although the two had not come up with the idea about the lip syncing and were at least partially manipulated by others in the business, the scandal effectively ruined their successful careers. The two men, who were sued for their role in the misrepresentation, later tried releasing music with their real voices. But Morvan and Pilatus found no success with their new music, perhaps because the public was still mad at being duped.

The downfall was especially hard for Pilatus, who was found dead of an alcohol and drug overdose in April 1998. Morvan continues to make music.

And, in 2016, Morvan became a pitchman for KFC’s “#BeReal” campaign, which highlights his Milli Vanilli past (2016 Update). KFC’s 3-minute “documentary” on Morvan is both funny and touching. Check it out.

Although I remember when their songs were constantly on the radio, today I rarely hear “Girl You Know It’s True” or other Milli Vanilli’s hits like “Blame It On the Rain.” The whole mess still seems unfair to Morvan and Pilatus. People loved the music so much when they thought the singers danced like Morvan and Pilatus, but after the scandal broke, people would not embrace the real singers or the real dancers. Yet, the music was always the same. I am not sure whether we were mad at Morvan and Pilatus or we were mad at ourselves for being fooled, or both.

But at least for a time, both Milli Vanilli and the fans had a good time. It is just too bad that we got to move on but Morvan and Pilatus could not. So, for today, suspend your memory and just enjoy watching Morvan and Pilatus dancing on the Grammys and picking up the award, which they would have to give back by the end of the year.

For more about Milli Vanilli, check out this 2015 interview with Fab Morvan. For more on the voices behind Milli Vanilli, check out this short video on YouTube.

Will you admit you liked Milli Vanilli? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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Buy from Amazon

Happy 50th Birthday G.I. Joe

This month marks the fiftieth anniversary of the February 1964 debut of the Hasbro action figure G.I. Joe. The toy was the first to be called an “action figure” (never call it a “doll”). The creators at Hasbro included several military veterans, so their own experiences inspired the military-themed toy.

I can still remember when my G.I. Joes shifted from plastic molded hair to “real” hair and beards, or at least what seemed like real hair. I was lucky that my toy-playing days coincided with the full-sized 12-inch Joes. In the late 1970s, as criticism of the Vietnam War grew, Hasbro played down the military aspect of the toy, rebranding the Joes as an “Adventure Team.” The worst change came later, when in 1980, the new Joe was shrunk to the size of a Star Wars action figure, 3-3/4 inches. G.I. Joes later would get a boost in popularity with cartoons and movies.

Check out this short video about the history below and also see the story in Slate.

For fans of the cartoon, Robot Chicken did a funny parody of the G.I. Joe approach to fighting the enemy in this video, “G.I. No,” as the Joes take on the Taliban instead of their usual enemy Cobra. Check it out.

What are your memories of G.I. Joe? Leave your two cents in the comments.

Buy from Amazon

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New York Is Not “Invisible” When U2 Play on Fallon Debut

Last night, Jimmy Fallon hosted his first Tonight Show with guests Will Smith and U2. In a musical segment, Fallon introduced U2 from the Top of the Rock, the rooftop observation deck of Rockefeller Center. When they recorded the segment, the sun was setting, highlighting a beautiful view of New York City as the city returns as the location of The Tonight Show.

Bono and the band were at their bombastic best, having experience playing a rooftop in their “Where the Streets Have No Name” video way back in the 1980s. This time, there were no police. Check out U2 performing “Invisible,” followed by Fallon interviewing the band. [UPDATE: Unfortunately, the video is no longer available.]

The show was not a surprise for anyone who has followed Fallon on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. The Roots continued their great late night support, and Fallon showed off his variety show skills with a dance segment with Smith. A number of celebrities stopped by for a brief cameo to lend their support too. It was a good start to what looks like it might be a long run.

What did you think of Jimmy Fallon’s first Tonight Show? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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A Visit to Millard Fillmore’s Home

In honor of Presidents’ Day, CBS Sunday Morning made a visit to the home of Millard Fillmore, the Thirteenth President of the United States, in East Aurora, New York (near Buffalo). In this segment, Mo Rocca asks whether President Fillmore is underrated as a president. Note that even Fillmore’s biographer does not like the former president. Check it out.

Who is the most underrated president? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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John F. Kennedy Inauguration and Robert Frost

D-Day Flays Open the Soul

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Berry Gordy and the Legend of Motown

Glen Hansard the Busker

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How a Bull Moose, a Bear, and a Beetle Gave Elvis a Hit Song

On February 15 in 1903, the first Teddy bears appeared in a toy store window. The name for the bears was inspired by the man who was the president of the United States.

Morris Michtom, who owned a toy store, had written a letter to President Theodore Roosevelt asking permission to use the name “Teddy” for his bears. The president gave his approval. Other toy makers soon followed Michtom’s lead in naming stuffed bears, leading to the popular Teddy bear.

The Inspiration for the First Teddy Bear

The stories of the details about the event that inspired Michtom’s letter vary somewhat. But it is clear that Michtom got the idea from President Roosevelt’s encounter with a bear. While hunting in Mississippi in 1902, President Roosevelt, who would later found the Bull Moose Party, showed mercy to a bear.

Some stories today claim the bear was a cub tied to a tree, but it more likely was an old bear. Either way, the incident illustrated another side of Roosevelt. Political cartoonists portrayed the event by illustrating a cub, showing the tough Roosevelt as a softy at heart.

“(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear”

The most famous song about Teddy bears was released more than five decades later in 1957. That year, a rock icon showed his softer Teddy bear side.

Elvis Presley sang “(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear” in the movie Loving You (1957), his second film and his first in color. The song went to number one on the charts that year.

“Boll Weevil” And Its Connection to “(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear”

Kal Mann and Bernie Lowe wrote “(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear,” but part of the inspiration for the song came indirectly from an insect. Wikipedia and other sources report that the song’s roots go back to a traditional blues song, “Boll Weevil.”

In “Boll Weevil,” a boll weevil talks to a farmer, threatening the cotton crop while looking for a home. The song has been around since at least the 1920s, and it may have its origins in Roosevelt’s time.

One of the most famous early recordings of “The Boll Weevil” was by Lead Belly in the 1930s.

Can you hear “Teddy Bear” in Lead Belly’s song? If not, listen to singer-songwriter Brook Benton‘s version of “The Boll Weevil Song,” which became a hit in 1961.