Tony Orlando Early life and career Where was Tony Orlando born? He spent his earliest years in Hell's Kitchen, New York. Where did he live later? In his teenage years, the family moved to Union City, New Jersey and later Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey. Who was his father? the son of a Greek father Who was his mother? Puerto Rican mother. Where did he attend school? I don't know. Who were his influences? I don't know. What did he do in his early career? Orlando's musical career started with The Five Gents, a doo-wop group he formed in 1959 at age 15,
Did he release any albums with The Five Gents?
Did Tony Orlando release any albums with The Five Gents?
Tony Orlando was born Michael Anthony Orlando Cassavitis on April 3, 1944, the son of a Greek father and a Puerto Rican mother. He spent his earliest years in Hell's Kitchen, New York. In his teenage years, the family moved to Union City, New Jersey and later Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey.  Orlando's musical career started with The Five Gents, a doo-wop group he formed in 1959 at age 15, with whom he recorded demo tapes. He got the attention of music publisher and producer Don Kirshner, who hired him to songwrite in an office across from New York's Brill Building, along with Carole King, Neil Sedaka, Toni Wine, Barry Mann, Bobby Darin, Connie Francis, and Tom and Jerry, who didn't make it in the office until they changed their name to Simon and Garfunkel. Kirshner also hired Orlando to record songwriter demos as a solo artist, and his first success came at the age of 16 when he charted in the US and UK with the hits "Bless You" and "Halfway To Paradise." He also appeared at the Brooklyn Paramount Theater with DJ Murray the K. Orlando also had four records that "Bubbled Under" the Hot 100: "Chills" in 1962, "Shirley" and "I'll Be There" in 1963, and "I Was A Boy (When You Needed A Man)" as by Billy Shields in April 1969. Gerry Goffin and Jack Keller wrote a doo-wop version of Stephen Foster's song "Beautiful Dreamer" for Orlando. Released as a single in 1962, the song was picked up by the Beatles who included it in their set lists on the Beatles Winter 1963 Helen Shapiro Tour; a recorded version was released on their 2013 album On Air - Live at the BBC Volume 2.  New Colony Six recorded an Orlando composition, "I'm Just Waitin' (Anticipatin' For Her To Show Up)", which charted locally in Chicago and "Bubbled Under" the Hot 100 in July 1967. That year, Clive Davis hired Orlando as general manager of Columbia Records publishing subsidiary April-Blackwood Music. By the late 1960s, Orlando had worked his way up to vice president of a larger publishing company, CBS Music, where he signed, co-wrote with and produced Barry Manilow (under the name "Featherbed") and worked with James Taylor, the Grateful Dead, Laura Nyro and other artists. In the summer of 1969 he recorded with the studio group Wind and had a #28 hit that year with "Make Believe" on producer Bo Gentry's Life Records. Orlando was experiencing success, primarily as a music executive, and Davis pretended not to notice when Orlando accepted a $3,000 advance and sang lead vocals on a song called "Candida" as a favor for two producer friends. If the record failed, Orlando didn't want it to affect his reputation, so he used a pseudonym: Dawn. CANNOTANSWER
with whom he recorded demo tapes.
Michael Anthony Orlando Cassavitis (born April 3, 1944) is an American singer, songwriter, producer, music executive, radio personality and actor. He is best known for his work as part of Tony Orlando and Dawn as well as their 1970s recordings and television show. His career in the music industry has spanned over 60 years.

Orlando formed the doo-wop group The Five Gents in 1958 at the age of 14, with whom he recorded demos that got the attention of music publisher and producer Don Kirshner. At the age of 17, in 1961, Orlando released the song "Ding Dong" on the MILO record label. Kirshner hired him to write songs at 1650 Broadway, Manhattan as part New York's thriving Brill Building songwriting community, along with other songwriters Carole King, Neil Sedaka, Toni Wine, Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil, Bobby Darin, Connie Francis, and Tom and Jerry, who did not make it in the office until they later changed their name to Simon and Garfunkel. Orlando was also hired to sing on songwriter demos, and singles released with Orlando as a solo artist began to enter the charts in the US and the UK beginning in 1961 with "Halfway to Paradise" and "Bless You" when he was 16. Orlando continued as a solo artist and also became a producer himself, as well as a successful music executive in the late 1960s. He was hired by Clive Davis as the general manager of Columbia Records' publishing imprint, April-Blackwood Music in 1967, and by the late 1960s had been promoted to vice-president of Columbia/CBS Music.

In 1969, Orlando signed Barry Manilow to his first recording contract with Bell Records, co-writing with him and producing Manilow's earliest tracks. He also worked with other artists, such as The Yardbirds, James Taylor, Grateful Dead, Blood Sweat and Tears, and Laura Nyro. He recorded "Candida" as lead vocalist under the pseudonym "Dawn" in 1970, and when the song became an international number-one song, he began to use his name in the group becoming "Dawn featuring Tony Orlando" and then "Tony Orlando and Dawn". The group had 19 other top 40 tracks, including "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree", the top-selling hit of 1973 and one of the biggest selling singles of all time. The group also had a hit variety program, The Tony Orlando and Dawn Show on CBS from 1974 to 1976. They then broke up in 1978, after which he has performed as Tony Orlando.

In 1993 he opened the Tony Orlando Yellow Ribbon Music Theatre in Branson, Missouri. He ended his act there in 2013. He has since continued to perform many live shows as a headliner, mostly in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Early life and career
Michael Anthony Orlando Cassavitis was born on April 3, 1944, the son of a Greek father and a Puerto Rican mother. He spent his earliest years in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, New York. In his teenage years, the family moved to Union City, New Jersey, and later Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey.

Orlando's musical career started with The Five Gents, a doo-wop group he formed in 1959 at age 15, with whom he recorded demo tapes. He got the attention of music publisher and producer Don Kirshner, who hired him to write songs in an office across from New York's Brill Building, along with Carole King, Neil Sedaka, Toni Wine, Barry Mann, Bobby Darin, Connie Francis, and Tom and Jerry, who didn't make it in the office until they changed their name to Simon and Garfunkel.  Kirshner also hired Orlando to record songwriter demos as a solo artist, and his first success came at the age of 16 when he charted in the US and UK with the hits "Bless You" and "Halfway To Paradise."  He also appeared at the Brooklyn Paramount Theater with DJ Murray the K.  Orlando also had four records that "Bubbled Under" the Hot 100: "Chills" in 1962, "Shirley" and "I'll Be There" in 1963, and "I Was A Boy (When You Needed A Man)" as by Billy Shields in April 1969. Gerry Goffin and Jack Keller wrote a doo-wop version of Stephen Foster's song "Beautiful Dreamer" for Orlando. Released as a single in 1962, the song was picked up by the Beatles who included it in their set lists on the Beatles Winter 1963 Helen Shapiro Tour; a recorded version was released on their 2013 album On Air – Live at the BBC Volume 2.

New Colony Six recorded an Orlando composition, "I'm Just Waitin' (Anticipatin' For Her To Show Up)", which charted locally in Chicago and "Bubbled Under" the Hot 100 in July 1967. That year, Clive Davis hired Orlando as general manager of Columbia Records publishing subsidiary April-Blackwood Music. By the late 1960s, Orlando had worked his way up to vice president of a larger publishing company, CBS Music, where he signed, co-wrote with and produced Barry Manilow (under the name "Featherbed") and worked with James Taylor, the Grateful Dead, Laura Nyro and other artists. In the summer of 1969 he recorded with the studio group Wind and had a #28 hit that year with "Make Believe" on producer Bo Gentry's Life Records. Orlando was experiencing success, primarily as a music executive, and Davis pretended not to notice when Orlando accepted a $3,000 advance and sang lead vocals on a song called "Candida" as a favor for two producer friends. If the record failed, Orlando didn't want it to affect his reputation, so he used a pseudonym:  Dawn.

Tony Orlando and Dawn

Orlando recorded the record "Candida", with backup singers including Toni Wine (who wrote the song) and Linda November. Concerned about a possible conflict of interest with his April-Blackwood duties, Orlando sang under the condition that his name not be associated with the project, so it was released under the simple name of "Dawn", the middle name of the daughter of Bell records executive Steve Wax.

"Candida" became a worldwide hit in 1970, reaching number one in five countries, and the top ten in many others, including number three in the United States. Dawn, with Wine and November again singing backup, recorded another song, "Knock Three Times", which itself became a #1 hit. Orlando then wanted to go on tour, and asked two other session singers, Telma Hopkins and Joyce Vincent Wilson to join for the tour. Orlando then discovered that there were six touring groups using that name, so Dawn became "Dawn featuring Tony Orlando", which changed to Tony Orlando and Dawn in 1973.

The new group recorded more hits, including "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" (1973) and "He Don't Love You (Like I Love You)" (1975), a cover of the Jerry Butler hit, "He Will Break Your Heart". With a successful recording career, Orlando then set his sights on television. As described in The San Francisco Chronicle, "Tony Orlando and Dawn burst out of television sets during the Ford administration, a sunny antidote to the dark cynicism that followed Watergate. He represented simple, traditional values, a conservative return to pure entertainment. He drew a happy face in the "O" of his autograph. It was not terribly cool, but America loved him."  The Tony Orlando and Dawn Show on CBS became a hit, a summer replacement for the Sonny & Cher show, and ran for four seasons from 1974 to 1976. It welcomed the biggest names in show business each week as Orlando's guests, including his boyhood idols, Jackie Gleason and Jerry Lewis.

At the 1976 Republican National Convention in Kansas City, Missouri, Orlando danced to the tune of "Tie a Yellow Ribbon" with then First Lady Betty Ford. The media stated that it was to divert attention as Nancy Reagan entered the Kemper Arena convention hall. However, in Orlando's book Halfway to Paradise, he states that Mrs. Reagan was asked what her favorite song was, which happened to be "Tie a Yellow Ribbon", so it was chosen as her entrance song. Ronald Reagan unsuccessfully challenged Gerald Ford, for the presidential nomination that year but came back in 1980 to claim the presidency itself. Ray Barnhart, a Reagan co-manager from Texas, criticized Mrs. Ford for having "danced a jig" with Orlando. Barbara Staff, another Texas co-chairman, called Betty Ford's behavior "a low, cheap shot".

On October 12, 2015, with Telma Hopkins and Joyce Vincent Wilson present, Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters honored Orlando with their Art Gilmore Career Achievement Award at a celebrity luncheon.

Late 1970s struggles and solo work
Along with the fame, Orlando had personal battles in the 1970s. He was briefly addicted to cocaine, and battled both obesity and depression. In 1977, due to the death of his sister, and the suicide of Orlando's close friend, comedian Freddie Prinze, Orlando had a breakdown, and retired from singing. He was briefly institutionalized, but returned to television with an NBC comeback special. From then, he continued as a solo artist, charting with two singles - the dance hit "Don't Let Go" in 1978 and "Sweets For My Sweet" in 1979. In the 1980s, he was a dominant force in Las Vegas, headlining various hotels with sold-out audiences.

Orlando continued primarily as a solo singer, performing on tour and regularly in Las Vegas and Branson, Missouri. He hosted the New York City portions of the MDA Labor Day Telethon on WWOR-TV since the 1980s but quit in 2011 in response to Jerry Lewis' firing from the Muscular Dystrophy Association. He has won the Casino Entertainer of the Year Award, the Best All Around Entertainer - Las Vegas four times, and, prior to that, three times in Atlantic City, the Jukebox Artist of the Year Award from the Amusement and Music Owners Association of New York, The Ellis Island Medal of Honor, and has also been bestowed with The Bob Hope Award for excellence in entertainment from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society in honor of his efforts on behalf of United States veterans. His work on behalf of American veterans led to his being named Honorary Chairman at the 40th Anniversary at the NAM-POW's Homecoming Celebration at the Richard M. Nixon Presidential Library in 2014.

Orlando serves on the Board of Directors for the Eisenhower Foundation, as well as Honorary Chairman of Snowball Express, an organization that serves the children of fallen military heroes. He hosts the annual Congressional Medal of Honor dinner in Dallas, Texas. He has served as the Master of Ceremonies at the Secretary of Defense Freedom Awards at the Pentagon in Washington, DC.

In 2020, Orlando began hosting a Saturday night oldies program for WABC Radio as the New York City station partially restored its music format.

Acting career
Orlando's first TV appearance was in 1976 on the series Chico and the Man as "Tomas Garcia".
 
Orlando starred in the 1981 TV movie 300 Miles For Stephanie, playing a police officer who promises to walk over 300 miles to a sanctuary in order to obtain God's help to cure Stephanie, his gravely ill daughter. Others in the cast included Edward James Olmos, Pepe Serna and Julie Carmen.

In May 1981, Orlando appeared on Broadway in the title role of Barnum, replacing Jim Dale, who was on a three-week vacation.

During the 1984–85 season of The Cosby Show (its first season), Orlando played Tony Castillo, who runs a community center. He had a cameo appearance as himself in the 2002 film Waking Up In Reno, in which he sang a version of "Knock Three Times".

In 2003, Orlando had a recurring role in the children's animated series Oswald, in which he did the voice of "Sammy Starfish".

Orlando appeared in an episode of MADtv doing a sketch involving a court case, where the defense sings to persuade the jury about their side. He sang for the prosecution, thereby persuading the judge to give the defense jail for life. In another television program, Orlando was featured in "Larry the Cable Guy's Star Studded Christmas Extravaganza". He appeared in That's My Boy as Steve Spirou, a Happy Madison production starring Adam Sandler in 2012.

Personal life
Orlando was introduced by Jerry Lee Lewis to his future wife, Elaine, who had previously dated Buddy Holly. Tony and Elaine married in 1965, and had one child, Jon; they divorced in 1984. Five years later, Orlando was engaged to Francine Amormino, whom he married in 1991. The couple remained married as of 2014; they have one child.

On February 27, 2013, his mother, Ruth Schroeder of Hollister, Missouri, died in Branson, Missouri of a diabetic stroke.

In 2002, he wrote a memoir, Halfway to Paradise. Tony and Francine Orlando live in Branson, Missouri, with their daughter, Jenny Rose. Orlando's son Jon Orlando, from his first marriage, was a comedian from 1993 to 2002. Jon lives in Las Vegas and is currently the host of The Action Junkeez Podcast as well as Wise Kracks Podcast with the legendary sports bettor Bill Krackenberger. It was announced on September 7, 2021 that Jon was hired as the CEO of MaximNFT.

Orlando was interviewed on The 700 Club explaining that he was raised Catholic and was "brought up with the Lord as my Savior"; but after a self-destructive period following his professional success with Dawn, he became a born-again Christian in 1978.

Discography

Albums
 Bless You and 11 Other Great Hits (1961)
 Make Believe (1969) (with 'Wind')
 Before Dawn (1973)
 Tony Orlando (1978)
 I Got Rhythm (1979)
 Livin' for the Music (1980)
 Halfway to Paradise: The Complete Epic Masters 1961-1964 (2006)
 Bless You (2014)

Solo singles

See also 

 List of Puerto Ricans
 Tony Orlando and Dawn (TV series)

References

External links 

 
 
 
 Classicbands.com

1944 births
20th-century American male actors
20th-century American singers
21st-century American male actors
21st-century American singers
American male musical theatre actors
American male pop singers
American male television actors
American people of Greek descent
American people of Puerto Rican descent
Television personalities from New York City
Bell Records artists
Living people
Male actors from Missouri
Male actors from New Jersey
Male actors from New York City
People from Branson, Missouri
People from Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey
People from Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan
People from Union City, New Jersey
Singers from Missouri
Singers from New Jersey
Singers from New York City
Tony Orlando and Dawn members
20th-century American male singers
21st-century American male singers
The Gents Place is an ultra-premium and membership-based men's grooming and lifestyle club launched in Frisco, Texas, in 2008. The combination barbershop, spa and salon offers services including haircuts, coloring, shaves, hand and foot repairs and shoe shine services.

History
The Gents Place was founded by Benjamin Davis in 2008, with the opening of the first location in the Dallas suburb of Frisco, Texas. Davis also founded GentsDeals.com, a men's buying club, and digital marketing company Male Advertising Network. Davis has stated that the idea for The Gents Place came to him because he disliked getting his hair cut and wanted to improve upon the experience. To start, he focused on building, training and retaining a staff with high standards, and used a social media campaign to sign up over 5,000 clients. In 2011, Davis purchased an existing men's salon in Leawood, Kansas, turning it into a second Gents Place location. A third location was opened in the Preston Hollow neighborhood of Dallas in 2012. By that time, men's grooming was the fastest growing segment of the beauty industry. As of July 2019, there are eight Texas locations, one in Kansas, one in Bentonville, two in Chicago, and one in Las Vegas.

In March 2016, The Gents Place received an undisclosed investment from Elevated Brands, a holding company established by San Antonio-based massage therapy company Massage Heights, to help expand The Gents Place to a nationwide franchise brand. As of July 2019, The Gents Place has 13 locations.

In May 2016, Hall of Fame NFL running back Emmitt Smith became co-owner of The Gents Place, alongside the company's founder and president, Ben Davis. Smith has been a member and has worked with the company since it was founded. After observing its potential to meet the growing need for men's luxury grooming, he decided to make an investment in the company, to assist with franchise growth and brand awareness. That month, Davis announced a national franchise program, with plans to open 150 franchise locations in the next five years, in addition to several more corporate-owned stores. In September 2016, The Gents Place announced that they would be expanding to Houston, developing up to 10 clubs in the area.

Services and culture
The Gents Place provides hair services, hot towel shaves, waxing, shoe shines and hand and foot repairs, and features complimentary bars and cigar-smoking patios. Interior features include dark wood paneling, leather barber chairs, big lounge chairs and a red felt pool table in at least one of its locations. The atmosphere is comparable to a country club or high-end steakhouse. The company offers monthly and yearly memberships with various service packages. As of July 2016, The Gents Place has 2,300 members.

Accolades
The Gents Place was named #1 Barber on the WFAA Dallas A-List in 2009. Haute Living called it one of the top five barbershops in Dallas, and it has been featured in Men's Health as one of the Manliest Barbershops in America. In 2014, Esquire magazine said it offers one of the most luxurious shaves in America. In December 2015, The Gents Place was named one of three winners of the OnDeck Barbara Corcoran Seal of Approval contest. The company received a $10,000 cash prize, and Davis met with Shark Tank investor Barbara Corcoran in New York.

References

External links
 Official Website

Companies based in Dallas
Privately held companies based in Texas
American companies established in 2008
2008 establishments in Texas
Beauty salons
Barbers
Spas The Gents are an English mod revival band from Doncaster, South Yorkshire, active in the 1980s and reunited occasionally from 2010, significant and notable for their lower end UK chart history from 1985 to 1987.

Career
The group began as a cover band, playing songs originally recorded by The Who, The Kinks, The Jam, The Lambrettas and Madness, along with original material and other contemporary covers. They attracted attention after winning a competition hosted by EMI, the prize of which was studio time at Abbey Road Studios. The result was their debut single, the double-a-sided "The Faker"/"Le Pink Pantser" in 1981 although not recorded at Abbey Road as they decided to decline the one-single deal which was the prize in favour of recording it themselves back at home in the north. The single was not a commercial success and as the vinyl record was of a limited run copies have sold for up to £100.

The band developed a live following in the UK, playing up to five times a week in working men's clubs in the North and North-East of England. They were particularly appreciated at mod events, including the 100 Club on Oxford Street and also on the 1980s scooterist scene. They released a number of singles which appeared on independent charts in New Musical Express and Melody Maker, but their biggest commercial success, a cover of The Easybeats' "Friday On My Mind" was the only one to reach the top 100 in the UK singles chart.

The Gents were active from 1980 to February 1989, having released nine 7" singles (three with accompanying 12" versions), two vinyl albums and one cassette-only sampler album.  They have also appeared on several multi-artist compilation albums over the years.  In 1981 the band won a "Battle of the Bands" type competition called the EMI Tetley Supergroup competition, culminating in a final at the Compton Arms in Leeds and resulting in a prize of recording time at Abbey Road Studios in London and a one-single deal with EMI.  In the mid-1980s they became involved with the nationwide mod scene through Mark Johnson's The Phoenix Society of London and played at many mod events at this time, plus undertook a national tour known as the "New Direction National Tour", from May to June 1985 and named after their single release of that time.  The Gents also played at the Mod-Aid all-day Band Aid charity event at Walthamstow Town Hall on 15.12.85 and were featured on the double vinyl LP recording of that event. They later disavowed Mark Johnson. 

From 2010, Detour Records commenced a programme of reissuing the group's albums on the CD format as they had only ever been released on vinyl and cassette at the time of the band's recording career and this led to the band briefly reforming to play a selection of local concerts in South Yorkshire as a three-piece, without founding keyboard player Steve Kendell.

On 13 April 2018, the band played a sold-out concert billed as their final ever, at Birdwell Venue in Barnsley, to launch the final instalment of their CD release schedule, a singles' album in the form of a CD/DVD box set entitled The Rise and Fall of the Gents and also the release of a new 7" vinyl release entitled "The Unfinished Business EP", both released on Detour Records.  This concert also marked the return of the previously absent founding keyboard player Steve Kendell to the lineup.

Discography

7" Singles
 "The Faker b/w Pink Pantser" – 1981  POSH001
 "Schooldays b/w True Stories" – 1982   KOS6886
 "The Gent b/w Revenge/Over Me" – 1982  MEGA1.
 "Revenge b/w Girl" – 1983   POSH007.
 "Shout! b/w The Faker" – 1985   G-7.
 "New Direction b/w You are the Sun" – 1985.  GN8.
 "Stay with Me b/w In the Heat of the Sun" – 1985.  GN9.
 "Give it to Me b/w At the Dance Part 1" – 1986.  GN11.
 "Friday on my Mind b/w Have a Good Time" – 1986.  GN12.
 "The Unfinished Business EP" – 2018.  DR098.
 "The Faker b/w Pink Pantser" - 2020.  DR120PD (Picture disc reissue of debut single).

12" singles
 "Stay with Me b/w Tomorrow Never Comes (remix)/Don't Turn Away (remix)" – 1985.  GN9(T).
 "Give it to Me b/w At the Dance Part 1/At the Dance Part 2/The More You Get/The Gents' Drunken Party" – 1986.  GN11(T).
 "Friday on my Mind b/w Have a Good Time/Dogshit Blues" – 1986.  GN12(T).

LPs
 "This Way to the Gents – cassette-only sampler album" – 1981 
 "How it all Began" – 1985,   GG77. 
 "Waiting to be Seen" – 1987 PSM10

CDs
All are reissues of original albums and artwork, plus bonus material in order to eventually put all Gents' historical recorded and released material onto the digital format.
 "How it all Began" – (Detour) 2012
 "Waiting to be Seen" (Detour) 2013
 "This Way to the Gents" – (Detour) 2014
 "The Rise and Fall of the Gents" – (Detour) 2018

Compilations
 Rock-On : Compilation LP of finalists from the EMI/Joshua Tetley 1981 Supergroup Competition 1981.  Includes "The Faker".
 5-4-3-2-1 Go! The Countdown Compilation : Compilation LP of mid-1980s mod revival bands.  Includes "The Faker".
 Dedicated - the Mod Live Aid All-Dayer : Live album of mid-1980s mod revival bands live at Walthamstow Town Hall on 15.12.85.  Includes "Act Now" and "At the Dance Parts 1&2".
 Unicorn One - Beyond Tomorrow : 1987 compilation lp on Unicorn Records.  Includes "Denaby Dogshit Blues".
 Unicorn Two - Modern Times : 1987 compilation lp on Unicorn Records.  Includes "A Man One Day".
 Millions Like Us : The Story of the Mod Revival 1977–1989 (Cherry Red) 2014. Includes "The Faker".
 Eddie Piller Presents the Mod Revival : Compilation vinyl 2-LP and 4-CD of mod revival bands curated by DJ Eddie Piller.  Includes "The Faker" on the CD version of the album only.

Chart placings

References

British mod revival groups
English new wave musical groups
English rock music groups
People from Doncaster