Responses ‘Round and ‘Round
Now that you’ve had a chance to look around, how about sharing your thoughts? Well, this is the place to do it.
And if you’d like to see The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers series released as complete season sets on DVD or shown again on television, this is an especially good spot to make your voice heard.
If the chorus for this movement grows loud enough, perhaps our call will not only be heard, but answered, as well.
Note that all comments are screened before posting, so if you’d like your message to remain private, simply tell us that, and your remarks will not be publicly displayed.
And remember, when you leave a message — whether public or private — your email address always stays hidden.
To submit a comment, please click the button below:
The Golddiggers 
Hi. I remember so many of the women that you’re showing here, but I never knew any of their names before or much about them. You’ve done a fantastic job. Keep up the good work.
Are any of the old Golddiggers shows coming out on DVD again?
I just found this site. It’s amazingly!
WOW, I love it!!! Great work. I am overjoyed, now that is the way we all should be remembered… Excellent work… I cried!!! It is better than I could imagine… I think all the ladies will be extremely satisfied, and I love that Tanya was there, I know she appreciates everything in Heaven… Thank you for all the kind words and thank you for my CD space… God Bless All who created this site, and God Bless all the Talented dedicated girls from the show, peace and much love, Michelle DellaFave!!! It is so nice to be remembered… Thanks for the Memory…
By the way Ruth Buzzi is the greatest, I love her… so funny and so warm and friendly… I would love the opportunity to work with her again… Love Michelle Dinagaling
Thank you, Michelle, for your kind words. Coming from someone such as you, who contributed so richly and substantially to both The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers’ 1969 and 1970 summer series, your enthusiastic response is high praise indeed.
As word of this new site begins to circulate, we hope that many of those who worked alongside you, as well as others who performed during different periods on Dean’s show and on The Golddiggers series, will also stop by and say hello.
And we know that as some of the millions of Golddiggers and Dean Martin fans all over the world begin to learn of this site, they’ll no doubt also begin to drop in and express their reaction.
We also want to offer our congratulations to you, Michelle, on the rave reviews generated by your recent concert performance before the annual Vietnam Veterans of America, where you were reunited on stage with two of the other original Dingaling Sisters — Susie Lund and Wanda Bailey — for the first time since the last episode of the 1970-71 season of The Dean Martin Show.
Visitors to this site who’d like to know more about that event can refer to a very stirring account of it by the man who organized it, Wes Guidry, in a message he posted on his GoldsAndDings Website (see http://groups.yahoo.com/group/GoldsandDings/message/354).
As you’ll note in Wes’ message, footage from that performance will soon be available for viewing on YouTube, and when it is, we will post news of it in the Updates section of this site.
That concert may be a tough act to follow, Michelle, but we’re sure that you’ll be able to do it in the months and years ahead, and maybe that chance to work again with Ruth Buzzi will even come to fruition.
I love the site, it was very informative and I love the pictures. It was nice to read “Michelle DellaFave” loved the site as well, considering she was a huge part of the “Golddiggers” and “Ding-a-Ling Sisters”.
I hope you continue to add more pictures and inforation to your site, well done, and thank you for creating this Web site.
My heartfelt thanks and sincere appreciation for such a wonderful tribute to all the “Girls” (Goldiggers, Ding-A-Ling Sisters, and Dean’s Girls)! from The Dean Martin TV Show. Wow….it made smile, it made me cry, it made me laugh, and most of all it made me glad that I was priviledged enough to be a part of it all (as the last Ding’A’Ling Sister hired). I also learned a lot too! Great memories of a ‘special time’ in all of our lives…..
God Bless Dean, Lee, and Greg.
And here’s to seeing all the shows released in their entirety for everyone’s enjoyment! Let’s keep it rolling.
God Bless You All, Love, Lindsay
Thank you so very much, Lindsay, for your warm and moving sentiments.
As with those expressed earlier by your former Dingaling Sister-in-arms Michelle, they are extremely gratifying and really help to make this whole project worthwhile.
(If we keep going at this rate, we may have to open up a Kleenex section, just for all of us to daub away our tears of joy.)
But in all seriousness, Lindsay, we love and appreciate the support of the wonderful ladies like you who enlivened The Dean Martin Show and brightened our lives with the sort of exhilarating Broadway-style entertainment that’s largely absent from present-day television.
And so, too, are we grateful for the input of your fans, such as McpheePickler above, whose voice, we trust, will be joined by many others as this brand new endeavor gains attention.
With performers and fans both participating actively in the cause, it’s our hope that we will indeed be able to open up the possibility of eventually seeing the great works that we celebrate here find a home once again, either on DVD or on television.
This is an amazing site. A friend of mine told me about it. I’ve just started exploring it. It’s like I’ve died and gone to paradise. There is so much great information about Dino’s Golddiggers. I love all the pictures. We know that the King of Cool always was surrounded by beautiful ladies. You’ve done a great job here. Keep up the good work.
I just found this by accident, but boy what a happy accident!!!! It must be new because I’ve seen a few things on the net about The Golddiggers, etc., but not like this! The level of detail is simply amazing! I watched Dean Martin AND the weekly Goldiggers show growing up, and I cam’t remember them ever once announcing the names of any of the girls, so whoever did this must have really done their homework. Fantastic. I hope you’ll add even more to it. And yes, I’d like to see the whole shows and all of them again put out on DVD. I’d buy em, that’s for sure!
I was so overwhelmed when I visited this site, I am 17 and grew up hearing Dean because my dad was and is a huge fan and he used to tell me about the Dean Martin shows, he would describe them and I would laugh even though I couldn’t see them, thanks to a few friends I started to see the Dean Martin shows when I was about 12 or 13 and since then I have gone onto see more and more and these shows have given me and my family more enjoyment than I have ever known.
There were 245 shows, ok I am greedy, because I want to see and own every one of them, this is my biggest dream, I love Dean and I love the couch songs, the Welcome to My World medleys with Dean and the Golddiggers (how I would love to have a collection of these beautiful medleys where we saw and heard a serious Dean looking great with the beautiful Golddiggers surrounding him), Dean jumping on the piano singing those great songs, only changing the words (“In your easter bonnet with all the frills upon it, you`ll look a bit peculiar in the men`s room, my dear!”)
The jokes about Dean`s beautiful wife Jeannie, Musical Questions, the opening songs where Dean would get us all laughing, the great guest stars, the great duets…
Please to the powers that be…give us Dean and the Golddiggers and the memories.
Like that song “What the World needs now is Love”, well Dean is Love and What the World needs now is Dean !
Please do everything humanly possible to grant our wish.
Thank you 🙂
Great Big Hugs and Kisses
from Kylie (Deansgirl)
First I have to say what an amazing site this is !
The pictures, all the information and I want to say what a great letter to Lee Hale.
And at last we can put names to the delightful Golddiggers.
My family are all Dean Martin fans, I just adore the man and oh, do I remember The Golddiggers and those beautiful medleys they sang with Dean who sat there looking all relaxed in his casual clothes.
If only these shows were available on dvd, these shows would not only satisfy the vast array of Dean Martin fans out there but I think they would bring so much pleasure to a new generation who have been brought up on gore, sex and Big Brother and have never before seen real entertainment.
Thank you.
Cathy (Australia)
What a FANTASTIC site this is!!!! I especially enjoyed reading the exceptionally well-written open letter to Lee Hale which I feel expresses the views of EVERY Dean Martin fan so PERFECTLY. I cannot begin to express how many WONDERFUL memories came flooding back to me after viewing this site. I have been a DEVOTED fan of Dean Martin for the past 39+ years and it all began for me when I was a child walking on my way to the refrigerator to get a glass of milk. I passed by the TV and saw the MOST HANDSOME man I had ever seen singing the words “Everybody Loves Somebody” and sliding down this firepole. I was TOTALLY mesmerized…. Of course, this was way past my bedtime and my parents asked me to pass by the TV a little bit quicker since I wasn’t made of glass….LOL Ever since that one Thursday evening, I had done everything I could to sneak into the room where our spare B&W TV was to watch Dean’s Show (which by the way was no easy feat….LOL). I am very proud to say I NEVER missed a show 🙂 Dean was well worth any consequences I would suffer for being disobedient and now, years later, when I’ve confessed about defying my “bedtime curfew”, we all have a good laugh…..LOL Seeing Dean on TV each week along with the GOLDDIGGERS was such a special treat for my family and myself. I am the happy owner of ALL of the volumes of the BEST of the Dean Martin Variety Show DVD’s and they are WONDERFUL, but incomplete. There was so much GREAT material left out of these DVD’s. I know that I am not alone when I say that having the COMPLETE Dean Martin Shows would truly be a DREAM-COME-TRUE for ALL of us fans 🙂 I am so happy to have had the pleasure to witness the INFINITE CHARM and AMAZING TALENTS of Dean Martin and THE Golddiggers. One of my FAVORITE segments of the show was when Dean would sing his couch songs and the medleys he sang with the Golddiggers at the end of his later shows. Please know that the Dean Martin Show has brought numerous hours of pure enjoyment and entertainment into millions of homes. Sadly, shows of this caliber are non-existent today. It would be so nice knowing that future generations could be introduced to and enjoy such a GREAT talent by watching the Dean Martin Show. I know that watching these shows has DEFINITELY enriched my life and I am FOREVER grateful to the producers responsible for realizing Dean’s MANY talents and for giving him his own weekly show where he could just be himself and really let us get to know what a TRULY WONDERFUL person/entertainer he was. If the COMPLETE shows were to be released on DVD, I PROMISE that I will be one of the VERY FIRST in line to purchase them 🙂 Thank you kindly in advance for your VERY BEST efforts at making so many Dean Martin fans DREAM-COME-TRUE 🙂
With Sincere Thanks,
Susan D. Fong
Hi! Hey… I’ve heard a rumor! Could it be? Is it possible?? Are the old Dean Martin Shows coming to DVD? I certainly hope so! Please make this happen. I don’t understand why this wonderful show has not been released yet. All the other 60’s-70’s shows seem to be releasing every week, so why not Dean’s wonderful variety show? If this show became available, it would be a best seller!! Thanks for your help!
Randi
Hi Randi.
Thanks for stopping by.
Just to be clear: There are currently NO announced plans for DVD release of either Dean’s show or The Golddiggers series, and while we hate to have to quash any such rumors, we also want to be perfectly open and honest with everyone.
However, DO NOT GIVE UP HOPE! One of the main reasons that this site was created was to drum up support for the reissue of both The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers summer & syndicated series, and it’s the very support of fans like you, Randi, that may help to achieve that aim.
The primary obstacle in releasing Variety programs such as the ones surveyed on this site is the high cost and tremendous complexity involved in negotiating and paying for the various rights that must be obtained prior to the shows being made available to the marketplace. Performers, songwriters, publishers, etc. must all consent and then be compensated, and the numbers have to add up so that at the end of the day, the owners and distributors of the material can still turn a profit.
It IS possible, and if you read the open letter that we have written to Lee Hale, we have cited a few precedents where it has been done previously. But the will to pursue it must be there on the part of the individuals who own the rights to the material, and a key source of motivation to them would surely be to know that there is substantial grassroots interest in seeing these classics given a second life.
That’s why we’re enlisting support in this forum, Randi, and that’s why votes such as yours could indeed make the difference.
Hey This is a great site. I would feel honored to get Dean’s shows. Janice
HI THERE,
THERES NOTHING LIKE A TERRIFIC WEBSITE, & THIS SITE IS JUST GREAT!!!…. I LOVE THE DEAN MARTIN SHOW & DEFINITELY THOSE BEAUTIFUL GOLDDIGGERS. I THINK IF EVER THE DEAN MARTIN SHOW EVER WAS RELEASED IN ITS ENTIRETY, ALL US FANS HERE WOULD BE IN HEAVEN!!!……IF ANYONE WHO HAS PULL AND CAN MAKE THIS HAPPEN, US FAN’S WOULD BE SO GREATFUL!I THINK I CAN SPEAK FOR SOME OF US THAT WE REALLY MISS THE DEAN MARTIN SHOW & HOPE THIS MIRACLE CAN HAPPEN SOME DAY!
MY SINCERE BEST TO YOU,
DOM
Great site.
I’ve got the whole run of the “Best of” tapes but would kill for the complete Dean Martin show on dvd. Here’s hoping it happens within our lifetimes.
Oh, yes, I agree with everything in the letter to Lee Hale. To have all of the Dean Martin Variety Shows released on DVD would be a dream come true! I speak not only for myself but many for many friends as well.
Too, another factor to consider is the success of several reunion shows — like the Carol Burnett reunion in 2001 which drew close to 30 million viewers. There’s no time like the present.
Hi. I grew up watching The Golddiggers shows, and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE them! Seeing their pics on this site, they are every inch as beautiful as I remember them. And yes, your right, they were SPECIAL – each and every one of them. I even knew and remembered that girl Jackie’s name (I don’t know how I knew it, but I guess she must have made a strong impression on me!) Oh I know I’d sure go out and buy their shows if they put them on DVD or watch them if they showed them again on TV. Maybe Nick at Nite or TV Land, or even The Hallmark Channel would run them. To anybody who has anything to do with The Golddiggers shows: PLEASE put them out again. There’s just nothing else like them around today.
Greetings there,
Great site indeed as I’m still going through it all in these last few days since you got it up and running. Still reading though everyone’s comments too. Of course like everyone else here, I’m also hoping for the final release of the full season sets for both “The Dean Martin Show” and “The Golddiggers series”. In particular of course for the “Welcome To My World” medleys, as these in my opinion are the most historic and will continue to be as such for the world in the far future.
Hey I was just thinking, aside from our “Golds&Dings” yahoo group, perhaps we can even have this comments section eventually be made into like a discussion forum when many more people visit here, either just visiting or also asking for the full season DVD sets.
Peace in wisdom,
James Truthseeker
I, too, would like to see all of The Dean Martin Variety Shows released on DVD. Dean had so many more guests on his show that are not on the Guthy-Renker DVD’s. You have my support to get ALL of them released. I hope that happens.
Enjoyed the site and loved the show, New shows can never match Dino’s show. JOHN
Thank you, James Truthseeker, for your support. As you can tell, we here at the site are also huge fans of the “Welcome To My World” medleys, and judging by the responses that we’ve received, a lot of other folks love them, too. That’s undoubtedly why so many people were disappointed that the 29-volume Best of Dean Martin Variety DVDs didn’t contain even a single one of those sequences. But having full season sets of Dean’s series would obviously remedy the situation, and if it would take a while to bring that about, we’d hope that the owners of the shows would at least, in the interim, throw us all a bone by giving us a package of “Welcome To My World” medleys to tide us over until the larger set can be assembled.
As for discussions, there’s no reason why they can’t be had here, there and everywhere in between. So feel free to talk away!
HI,I HAVE BEEN A DEAN FAN FOR MANY YEARS NOW AND HAVE FOUND THIS WEBSITE VERY INFORMATIVE.IT WAS ESPECIALLY INTERESTING TO READ ABOUT MELISSA STAFFORD WHO I THINK STOOD OUT AMONG DEANS GIRLS.I LIVE IN THE UK SO WE WERE’NT AS FORTUNATE AS SOME IN GETTING TO SEE DEANS SHOW’S BUT I HAVE COLLECTED THE BEST OF SERIES ON DVD.I THINK DEAN’S VOICE IS WONDERFUL AND TO ACTUALLY SEE HIM SING IS THE ULTIMATE PLEASURE.I REALLY LOVE IT WHEN IN HIS SHOW’S HE MESSED UP BUT STILL KEPT GOING AND DID’NT LET IT BOTHER HIM ONE BIT A TRUE PROFESSIONAL! I ACUALLY LIKE IT WHEN HE MAKES MISTAKES BECAUSE HE’S SO ENTERTAINING WITH A WORD OR AN EXPRESSION OR A JOKE.I’M AFRAID ENTERTAINERS OF DEAN’S AND FRANK SINATRA’S CLASS AND STYLE ARE NO MORE THE MOLD WAS BROKEN WHEN THEY PASSED.I WOULD LOVE TO SEE THE DEAN MARTIN SHOW’S RELEASED TO HIS FANS IN THERE COMPLETE STATE UNCUT WHAT A WONDERFUL THING THAT WOULD BE,AND WHAT PLESSURE IT WOULD GIVE!!
Lisa, your observations, as well as those made by John Lehotsky a few paragraphs above yours — about there being nothing around today that’s comparable to the kind of entertainment that Dean Martin once brought us — really hit the nail on the head.
Performers such as Dean and the ladies who worked with him on his series — as well as those on the opposite side of the camera such as Greg Garrison and Lee Hale, who were responsible for the tiny details that made every aspect of the production click — were in a class by themselves, even in their day — although obviously, back then, there were at least others, such as Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, etc., born and bred of the same genre who delivered this form of musical fare in their own distinctive styles.
But it’s precisely because Dean — and, as you rightly point out, regulars on his show like Melissa Stafford — did it all with a unique blend of grace, ease and intriguing mirthfulness that we believe reissuing these programs would not only be greeted with renewed interest by those who watched them originally, but also embraced by younger audiences that have not only never seen them before, but indeed, have never seen anything like them at all.
It’s our contention that if The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers series were suddenly dropped into the primetime schedules of one of the broadcast or cable networks, and promoted with a clever marketing campaign, today’s jaded audiences would not only be stunned, they’d also be mesmerized by what they saw.
So it begs the question: Is there one of these young, hot shot programming executives out there with the moxie to give it a whirl?
It would be a dream come true to be able to watch all the shows, complete. I have so many wonderful memories of watching Dean’s show on the ABC here in Brisbane at 7.30 pm on Sunday night. Straight after the 7 pm News the NBC Peacock would come on and initially (only for a second) there was a black screen while Dean started to sing “Everybody….” and then he was on the TV and everyone watching him had this great big smile on their faces — because that’s what he made us all do. Smile and be happy. I’m smiling right now thinking about him. Please, please give us access to all the shows – not only in USA, but overseas as well. We all need our Dean fix.
I would love to be able to watch the shows! The work, time and effort in creating such a time capsule masterpiece is just a taste of what may be in the making of future Dean Martin episodes. Keep up the good work and keep the community informed of nostalgic television programs!
This is an amazing site. I especially appreciate the pictures of each of the girls and little write-ups. Can anyone help me with this: I seem to recall that the Ding-a-Ling Sisters were featured in a color spread in a magazine, but can’t find it anywhere on eBay. I seem to recall that it was an issue of “Saga” around 1973 and featured pics of Helen Funai, Michelle Dellafave, and maybe Jayne Kennedy. Anyone know the exact magazine and date?
Offhand, we here at the Super Site aren’t familiar with the Dingalings photo spread to which you’re referring, but it certainly sounds like something that would be of interest to us and all of the group’s fans, as well, so let’s hope that someone else, or maybe even one of the ladies themselves, will see your message, recall the issue and date, and write in to give us more details.
And if anyone manages to track down that pictorial, we’d be more than happy to post the photos from it here on the site, so thanks for bringing it to everyone’s attention.
What a great crusade to get Deans shows put out in their entirety.
Dean was the greatest and coolest man on the planet (and still is).
I am sure if the shows were released on dvd they would fly off the
shelves.
Bill Stapleton. England
Hello everyone! I hope I can get the Dingalings back performing again. We had such a fabulous time at the Vietnam Veterans Convention this year. We are ready to do it again, and I know Taffy and Lindsay are both ready to sing and dance again as well. Now I do know that myself Tara, Taffy, and Lynn, did a magazine layout for someone and it was shot in Las Vegas and then we did another magazine shot in Beverly Hills We were in bathing suits, then for TV guide we did a fabulous shoot for them. We all had beautiful bathing suits and cover ups as well. It included Helen Funai, Jayne Kennedy, Lindsay Bloom, and myself. I loved the pictures. I guess if we get in touch with TV guide the original pictures can be found.
We did a picture in Playboy, AH now watch that… we were all in our Golddigger costumes and we all had umbrellas we were advertising… It is a cute picture of us all. I can not think of any thing else at the moment but I do know that we were to do a spread in Vogue, but I am not sure why Greg did not want us to do that… well I will keep you posted, Much Love, As always, Peace, Michelle DellaFave
Wow! Does this ever bring back some good memories!
I’m so happy that someone sent me the link to this website. I’ll have to come back again to look at every picture and read all the biographies. Seeing the pictures here is sort of like meeting old friends or looking at a high scool yearbook – I recognize the face of everyone here. I guess I was a big fan if I can recognize all of the girls after so many years. I never missed an episode of Dean’s show or the Golddigger’s show.
I remember my best friends in high school and I would sit in the gymnasium and talk over lunch about how good the Golddiggers or the Ding-A-Ling Sisters looked the night before. You girls could have sung off-key and it wouldn’t have mattered to us. LOL!!! I especially remember the Ding-a-Lings singing “Tennessee Stud” one night and we talked about that until graduation!
On Saturday nights we watched the Golddigger’s show with Marty Feldman. I still remember the opening to that show and maybe someone can put up a video clip of that. It was sponsored by Chevrolet as I recall. Marty Feldman was hilarious with his comedy and The Golddiggers were just sweet and lovely like angels.
The Ding-a-Ling Sisters were to me a highly concentrated, high octane form of the Golddiggers! Michelle, your were and always will be my favorite Ding-a-Ling! I’m glad to know how much you enjoyed that part of our career. My best wishes go out to you and to all the women who were part of a series of terrific and fun television shows.
I hope that all of these shows will be available to us on DVD. The comedy was great. The singing was great. The girls were beautiful. And Dean was our hero. Every guy wanted to trade places with Dean!
Mike, you and the and rest of Michelle’s substantial (and still growing) fan base will doubtless be cheered to learn that we have just posted some new pictures of your favorite Dingaling Sister in the Updates section of our site — so by all means, have a look.
We also wanted to let you know that your rhapsodic reminiscences about The Golddiggers and Dingalings really struck a chord around these parts — especially, your description of the next-day lunchtime review of the previous evening’s Dingalings appearances in which you and your buddies used to engage. We can attest to the fact that similar post-Thursday night discussions were taking place in at least one other high school — only in this instance, the participants couldn’t even wait until midday — their roundtable convened at 8:45 AM sharp in first-period science class!
And surely, these were not isolated cases — making one wonder in just how many academic institutions across America the same scenario was playing out every Friday during the run of Dean’s series.
Not long ago, we mentioned this phenomenon in passing to 1972-73 Dingaling Sister Lindsay Bloom, and she expressed surprise that so many teenagers were watching The Dean Martin Show, since it was really pitched to an older age group. Well, somehow we suspect that even if she and the other lovely ladies celebrated herein had been regulars on The Farm Report, a whole lot more than just farmers would have been tuning in to that show, too.
Happily, home for this cast of beautiful and talented gals was a program that featured superbly arranged and performed musical selections and a winsome host who knew how to have a good time and made sure that everyone else in his company did, too.
In retrospect, given all of the influences that can corrupt adolescents, having been treated to the sight and sound of the women on Dean’s show each week certainly must rank as one of the most edifying (not to mention, exhilarating) pleasures that a youth could pursue — in a kinder, gentler era now long ago and far away in time, but still ever so close and real in our hearts.
Wow…..I just caught up with all the new posts today. I am delighted to hear that so many of our fans out there want the shows released ASAP!!!! It’s great to get all this feed back, especially from the younger fans as well.
I am still surprised by the comments of the men who were teenagers at the time our shows aired! I’m flattered by your detailed descriptions and love the fact that you’d probably not only buy all the shows, but call up your high school buddies just to reminisce again!!! Ha!Ha!
Yes, there was a swimsuit pictorial of us in TV Guide (Michelle, Jayne, Helen, and me) and I have an 11×14 color photo hanging on my wall of my solo shot. We were also on the cover of Jet Magazine with Red Fox. (72-73) Too bad we didn’t get to do more of those group shots for other magazines, but they always had to have Greg’s approval.
My thanks again for such a lovely and caring tribute to our work!
I am eagerly awaiting the day when the shows will be released in their entirety!
I spoke to Michelle recently and told her she has my support (100%) and that I’d love to sing and dance again with her and the other girls again (when the details can be worked out). So….let the dreams begin.
God Bless you all,
Lindsay
Lindsay, we’re delighted to see you stop by again.
As soon as Michelle mentioned that 1973 beachwear spread in TV Guide, we went right to work, tracked it down, and will put it up for all to see here on the Super Site in the near future.
The Jet magazine cover, while certainly intriguing, would most likely take a lot more digging to find, and we might need to put Mike Hammer on the case to locate it (with Velda in tow to save the day, of course). First, though, our own resident sleuths will give it a shot, and we’ll see what they can uncover.
We also want to thank you, Lindsay, as well as Michelle and everyone else rooting for re-release of The Dean Martin Show and Golddiggers series, for all of your unwavering support, which we know can really make a difference in achieving our collective goal.
And we’re very excited to hear that you’re amenable to performing once again with The Dingalings. It would be terrific to see you back in the lineup.
If there’s at least one favorable aspect to today’s cultural scene, it’s that the Internet and other modern advances are helping to give us the opportunity to ESCAPE contemporary culture by using communications and technology to rekindle the far more enjoyable entertainment of yore.
Fantastic site! What are the chances of someone (or another company) buying the rights to the master tapes of both series from Greg Garrison’s estate? With the recent boom in Dean Martin’s popularity, I would think there would be companies wishing to capitalize on this. Until this happens, I’m guessing there isn’t much that Lee Hale could really do, since Greg Garrison has passed away.
Also, please keep looking for Tara Leigh. She still mesmerizes me!
Thanks.
We’re glad that you enjoy the site, Craig. And you raise an intriguing point about the potential for both The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers series to be acquired, or at least marketed, by a third party.
Dean Martin is indeed today enjoying a resurgence in popularity not seen since the halcyon days of his career in the 1950s, ’60s and early ’70s — and that fact could hardly have escaped the notice of large media conglomerates always on the lookout to purchase and exploit properties with proven track records.
The one factor, however, that would likely give them pause is the same one that has for years stymied the reissue of not only Dean’s show and The Golddiggers series, but almost all variety skeins — namely, the high cost and laborious task of obtaining clearances for all of the music contained in those programs.
Were it not for that factor, it’s very likely that we would have already witnessed the release of complete season sets of Dean’s show, The Golddiggers’ shows and innumerable other vintage variety shows. Instead, what we’ve seen is just a handful of offerings in this vein, with most of the old 2-inch tape reels onto which this material was originally recorded simply gathering dust in vaults (and, by the way, deteriorating in the process).
If a large-scale purveyor of home video product were to acquire rights to The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers series, that entity would no doubt be able to marshal all of its financial resources in the cause of securing the necessary music clearances and drawing up a budget sufficient to launch a robust marketing effort behind the releases.
But remember that big doesn’t always equal better. If that large media conglomerate lacked a feel for The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers programs, it could bring all of its financial muscle to bear on the project and still fail to draw sufficient sales to justify the costs involved.
Moreover, the present owners of all of these wonderful programs — the estate of Greg Garrison — might be very reluctant to let an outside party handle this material. In his lifetime, Greg was very possessive of it, and hence, always chose to keep it within his domain.
And that’s why the involvement of someone like Lee Hale — at least in terms of overseeing any resuscitation of these shows — is so vital. He is the senior-most living executive to have worked on these series; he was a — and perhaps THE — major creative force behind them; and he knows them forward and backward.
Greg Garrison not only relied on Lee Hale for his crucial input during the life of The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers series — he also left it to Lee to screen and select all of the clips that were included in the Best of Dean Martin Variety DVDs released by Guthy-Renker.
Given his historical importance to these series, it’s virtually inconceivable that the executors of Greg Garrison’s estate wouldn’t turn to, and trust, Lee Hale for his sage advice on any future disposition of these shows. And if Lee could be persuaded that there was a viable path to reissuing the shows, he could wield tremendous influence in likewise convincing relevant others.
As we said in our Open Letter to him, we know that Lee Hale doesn’t own or control these properties; but it’s hard to imagine that his long association with them, and intimate knowledge of them, wouldn’t play a key role in any possible future public exhibition that they might enjoy.
Thanks for the detailed response. In that case, come on Lee, step up to the plate! 🙂
TARA LEIGH !!!!!
Where are you?
As a young girl, I was fascinated with you; your angelic face with twinkling eyes and fantastic hair!
Your voice was beautiful!
Did you briefly join the cast of general hospital under another name?
If so, why?
Karen
Karen, your thoughts and questions regarding Tara are shared by many others, who have also wondered about her current whereabouts and activities.
However, since she has in recent years chosen to maintain a nearly invisible public profile, we must assume that either she prefers to remain out of the limelight for the nonce, or else is deliberately staying out of sight in order to build suspense for an eventual surprise comeback.
Somehow, we suspect the former rather than the latter, and as a result, while we take joy in honoring her for her years with The Golddiggers and Dingaling Sisters, we also very much respect her apparent present-day desire for privacy.
What we CAN tell you is that you will find the answer to at least one of your questions in the piece on Tara located in the Dean’s List section of this Website.
Other recent details about Tara, though, will likely remain shrouded in mystery until and unless she chooses to make them known.
But regardless of whether or not she ever decides to come forward again, one can’t imagine that she would be anything but flattered by the continuing interest of those such as yourself, Karen. And if there would indeed be anything that might prompt her to reemerge publicly, perhaps it would be that very reservoir of appreciation that still exists for her — so please be assured that no compliment paid to her by you or anyone else is ever made in vain.
It is a shame that since the comeback of Dean Martin that his shows are not on dvd in their entirity. The show was wonderful and the Golddigers and Ding-a-Ling sister were fabulous. It is a shame we can’t see such great shows like that on tv today.
Hello.
I found a link to this site and then clicked on it, and I can’t believe my eyes!!! Wow, am I amazed!
I’ve been to other sites that have a little bit of info and a few measly pictures of The Golddiggers and the other groups here and there, but NOTHING at all like what’s here…not just pictures, but so many details and it’s all incredibly well written, interesting and very nicely presented. It comes off like a really well made documentary.
I bought some of those Dean Martin DVDs that they advertised on TV JUST SO I COULD SEE THE GIRLS AGAIN (lol), and I was pretty disappointed because as it says on another page, they just didn’t show that much of them.
But there sure are plenty of them here, and I find I still remember quite a few of them even after all these years!!!
They are as gorgeous as I remember them…in fact, maybe even better than I remembered them because I can appreciate them more now.
There’s one specific girl that I never forgot because I was always crazy about her and it’s that blonde girl who I see is named MICHELLE. I never knew her name…the shows never gave any of them credits…but I sure was in love with that blonde,,,and now seeing those new photos of her…if those are really new photos then she is STILL unbelievably fabulous!!!
I mean she looks about 25 in those pictures!!!!!! The rich get richer…the poor get poorer…and Michelle stays gorgeous!!!!
I see that she left a few comments up above on this page, so Michelle, if you ever stop by again, I just want you to know that I think you are STILL the greatest!!!!
Since her album comes highly recommended, when I’m done looking around here, I’m going to download it from itunes.
Thanks for doing this site. Its really out of sight!!! And if they release DVDs that really feature the girls as much as the shows used to, then you can count on me to buy them,,,especially the ones with Michelle!!!!!
Hi —
This is a GREAT site!
I love all the great pics and the thoughtfulness of your site. You really pulled out all the stops to do this!
I love the thoughts especially in your Open Letter to Lee Hale – you are so right! You said all the things i have been thinking for years!!
There is a huge market out there for Dino stuff – more now than ever it seems, with the new release of a CD of people who wanted to sing with him STILL!
I hope he and anyone who has a share of the show will consider putting it out (uncut and with commentary would be awesome – I bet Lee Hale could give some great commentary himself and has a wealth of memories to share, as he did in his terrific book!)
This is what i myself have wanted for so long. When, a few years ago, the Dean Martin variety DVDs came out, it merely whetted my appetite for more shows – they are such fun, so musical, the guests are great…but the songs by Dean and Dean and the girls were fantastic – and obviously Lee Hale was the genius behind a lot of that.
Getting those shows released would be too terrific to even think about – it’s a little scary, for fear of the letdown of not seeing any new material come out.
Thanks for this terrific site and for your suggestion – i hope Mr Hale will see it and respond!!
Kimmy and Dover, the Wonder Dog
Variety shows on dvd are so rare and any release of this material would be a cause for rejoicing! Dean Martin’s show exemplifies the genre. What passes for “variety” on television nowadays is channel surfing. If shows like this could see the light of day as dvd releases, maybe the format could rise again for a new generation. I mean, just the other night, Tony Bennett’s wonderful television special won several emmys–there’s a hunger for some song & dance, some comedy banter and the Golddiggers!
Hello, I am overjoyed that so many remember me. Thank you Mike and Sean for the lovely compliments. I too wonder about Tara, she and I were roomates on the road and in England when we taped the summer show there. We had so much fun. I do hope she is healthy and safe and loved by many. We all loved her!
This site is so wonderful, it seens like this should have been available to the public a long time ago. At least this is happening now!! My best to all peace and blessings, Michelle DellaFave
Hello Again, Wow the information about NBC is incredible!! I hope dear NBC can get a hold of the shows and we can all have copies. I loved the Garrison family and I hope they can work this out. By the way, we have to get to the record producers that did Dean’s new CD and let them know that there are ladies from Dean’s shows who could have done songs with Dean. I know that there are many who are still singing… hint,hint, hint, yes Golddiggers who would love to work again, and yes dear Dingalings who are still in good form, ask all the Vietnam Vets!!! But alas, maybe if we are thought about by our fans, that will get the powers that be, interested. My goodness we had our own summer shows and the Golddiggers had their own show, and we were featured every week on Dean’s show. Does that mean we are not a part of Dean’s past as well?? Some of the girls worked with Dean for many years, and I am sure if he were alive today, he would want the GoldsandDings to be a part of his new CD’s, I wonder how much the stars on his new Cd wanted? My goodness I would have sung for nothing, just to be included as part of his legacy. Were we not?? Well, I am off my soap box for today. Fans let Video Vision know your thoughts, Much love and Peace to all, Michelle
As always, Michelle, we’re honored to have had you stop by. And before the fans chime in with their thoughts, we’ll take the liberty of expressing one of our own by giving a full, ringing endorsement to your inspired idea of having some of the talented ladies who sang on Dean’s series paired with him again on a second album of duet recordings.
The first release has been such an out-of-the-box smash hit that it has already spawned talk of a sequel. For all those who remember with deep fondness the lush, sonorous “Welcome To My World” and Dingaling medleys that featured Dean and The Golddiggers and Dingaling Sisters respectively, the prospect of some of those same gals harmonizing with the King of Cool — in stereo for the first time — on a selection of his vintage tracks has to be tremendously appealing.
Of course, there is no one who provides better proof that these gals are up to the task than Michelle herself, who was not only a standout member of both The Golds and The Dings, but remains in top form vocally, physically, spiritually — in fact, in just about every way one could think of. Her concert this past July at the Vietnam Veterans convention with fellow Dings Susie Lund and Wanda Bailey was, by all accounts, a huge success. And attentive visitors to this site know that Michelle also has a recently released album of her own entitled “Cool Burn” that showcases her continued mastery of her craft.
As if all that weren’t enough, the air is rife with speculation that Wes Guidry, the rainmaker behind that VVA concert, is cooking up something really big as a follow-up, and as soon as details are finalized, we’ll let our visitors know all about it.
So, with not only Dean, but also many of the women who sang and danced with him on his show, back in the spotlight, bringing them all together again on a second edition of “Forever Cool” sounds like something that would be just about as cool as it gets.
Thanks Video Vision, Yes, tell Melissa and Diana, Great singers from Dean’s girls, and Susie, Suzy Cadham, Jackie, Rosetta, Liz, Nancy, Sheila,Nancy Bonnetti, Golddiggers; and Taffy, Lindsay, Wanda, Dings; and hopefully, Paula and Micki from the Golddiggers… we want to get this going, Love sister, Michelle
Now there is a great group of singers if I ever heard them!!! Ok, we have Susie McIver Ewing, Suzy Cadham, Sheila Mann, Jackie Chidsey, Nancy Reichert, Rosetta Cox, Liz Kelley, Nancy Bonetti, Micki McGlone, hopefully Paula Cinko, maybe Tara, and the Dingalings, Taffy Jones, Lindsay Bloom, Wanda Bailey and little ol’ me… Ah any one else aboard? Now that sounds like a good group of 4-part harmony… Are you ready Lee Hale to tackle a group of older more experienced Golddiggers?? Peace, Michelle
PS. please excuse the spelling of names, but you know who I am addressing, right ladies???
Not to worry, Michelle. Our resident Golddiggers spell checker has straightened out all of the names — and what a terrific lineup of ladies you’ve suggested for pairing up with Dean on a second “Forever Cool” album.
As you rightly point out, the talent would span three different sets of performers from The Dean Martin Show — Dean’s Girls, The Golddiggers and The Dingalings — and all one has to do is to look at some of the comments both on this page and on other websites to see how popular Dean’s medleys with the women on his program always were.
Bring in Lee Hale, the musical maestro who arranged all of those medleys, and you have virtually all of the elements in place to recreate the magic that was a staple of Thursday nights in American homes for close to a decade.
So we urge all whom Michelle named to heed her call. This could turn out to be a Gold Record in more ways than one.
Thank You for the submission on the legal rights to the Dean Martin Show. As an attorney as soon as I read that Lee Hale’s Company might have an ownership interest in some of the materials, it occurred to me that the NBC lawyers thought they had to include his company in the law suit as a “necessary party” under the Rules of Civil Procedure and good litigation tactics. Sue everybody in sight is about the third thing they teach you in law school. It is not so much an insult or malice to Lee Hale as just trying to do the right thing legalwise.
Thank you, David, for your insights. One only has to spend a short time around these parts to see that we’re quite partial to Lee Hale, but we are very appreciative of the perspective that you, as an attorney, bring to this matter.
We can only hope that a system that casts so wide a net can also be smart and judicious enough to eventually recognize that an amicable settlement with certain parties in the case would in the long run be far more sensible than pursuing a fight to the finish.
Great detail on the merits and positioning of the lawsuit and potential winners/losers in the update section. Unless the entire series, along with the various Golddigger series are sold as a complete set, we the public all lose. I’m glad that Dean Martin is suddenly “hot” again from the public perspective, as this is the main point that all of us fans can leverage. I just finished reading Deana Martin’s book about her Dad, and in it she says that Dean told her a year or two before he died that none of his children would have to work again because of the rights to the Dean Martin Show. So from that statement, I’m sure the folks behind the Dean Martin Family Trust believe they have some level of rights to the material as well. Deana also pointed out how livid his children were that Dean changed the production company from “Claude” to “Sasha”. I’m surprised he didn’t change it to something else after he divorced Cathy in 1976, but as you point out, in Dean’s 1983 special from London, it is still “Sasha” productions. I guess either Dean really did care for Sasha or at that point in his life didn’t care about the minutia around names of companies, rights to shows, etc.
Keep up the fantastic work!!
Speaking of finding Tara Leigh, I bought the movie “Protection” (2001) for $2 on Amazon. Although she doesn’t have a speaking role, and she is in the background, you can see Tara in two spots in the movie. Weird to see her with graying hair, but then again, when I look in the mirror, I too wonder how in the hell did my hair turn gray also!
From what I have read about her in the comments from other Golddiggers, by all accounts she was a sweetheart even off camera. Hopefully she’ll come forward, as it seems like there are a lot of fans that want to tell her how much enjoyment she gave people.
Thank you, Craig, for information that is both very enlightening and also laced with wit that at one point made us laugh out loud.
It will be interesting to see if what Deana wrote in her book indeed foreshadows any intervention by the Dean Martin Family Trust in the current case.
And thanks for passing along your sighting of Tara in a 2001 movie. As we noted in our profile of her in the DEAN’S LIST section, we’ve seen some movie roles of recent vintage ascribed to her in her Internet Movie Database listing, but one can never be too sure of how accurate that data is. For instance, one only need to try looking up The Golddiggers on the IMDB to see how much misinformation is there to be had. Perhaps recognizing their own deficiencies, the good folks who run the IMDB very generously permitted us to include in their Golddiggers listing a mention of our site as a more credible source for those seeking accurate information about the group and its members.
There’s one aspect of Tara’s appearance in the movie that you referenced about which we’re especially curious: How was she billed in the credits — as Tara Leigh, or as Renee Anderson (the name that she used on General Hospital, and perhaps her real name)? Or did she go by yet a third name? If you’re able to see how she was identified, we’d certainly be interested to know what name she used.
Hi everyone,
Here are links (see below) to 3 video clips with Tara’s role on General Hospital. The first is the best clip. The second only shows her near the end. The third shows her dancing in a disco, but sadly only from the back and not enough time of her. Even from that brief few seconds you can see what a great dancer she was (is)!
Mostly these clips are about Luke and Laura, so go ahead and fast forward through all their chit-chat (ha!).
I also put the link to the webpage at the end where these General Hospital links are kept just to be fair to the website owner. There may be more clips of her there.
I hope these links work. Everyone keep posting! Let’s keep the ball rolling! Great hearing from everyone!
http://www.buckwildeweb.com/Ice%20Princess/robert,%20laura,%20and%20luke%20have%20dinner%20-%201.wmv
http://www.buckwildeweb.com/Ice%20Princess/robert,%20laura,%20and%20luke%20have%20dinner%20-%202.wmv
http://www.buckwildeweb.com/Ice%20Princess/robert,%20laura,%20and%20luke%20at%20disco.wmv
http://www.buckwildeweb.com/ice_princess.htm
The links DO work, Mike, and we’re indebted to you for discovering some truly hard-to-come-by footage of Tara (or, as she was billed in this context, Renee Anderson) in her post-Dingaling days on General Hospital.
Now, if only there were a way to squelch that overbearing faux-disco music droning on and on in that first clip!
In the movie “Protection” she is billed at Tara Leigh. I also have a clip of her on Charlies Angels in 1978 that I will go ahead and try to upload.
Thank you, Craig.
If things continue at this rate, we may have to start a separate section just for Tara memorabilia.
It’s interesting to hear that she made a guest appearance on Charlie’s Angels, because over at the GoldsAndDings group, there’s a still in the Photos section from the closing credits of a 6th season episode of The Dean Martin Show that features a 3-shot of Tara, Michelle and Jackie Chidsey looking so stunning that it moved the person who uploaded the pic to caption it with the words: “Charlie’s Angels Would Be Jealous!”
Who knows..Maybe that is Tara’s strategy. By being elusive, it keeps her in our thoughts. We always want more of what we can’t have. I think what makes everyone scratch their heads is when you look at her, she had that “girl next door, open book, could be anybody’s kid sister” appearance. The utilization of different names and dropping off the face of the earth and the secrecy, just reminds you that you can’t always judge a book by its cover!
Interesting tidbit with the Charlie’s Angels episode, is that Tara is on the same Season 3 DVD, that includes the three part episode where Dean Martin plays the Las Vegas Casino owner and falls in love with Kate Jackson.
All for now. Must go out and prove that I do “have a life” beyond tracking down people associated with the Dean Martin show!
Any chances of the Golddigger’s albums coming out on CD?
Ah, Mike W, so you want to open up a whole new can of ownership worms, do you?!
No, but seriously, the answer to your question would depend at least in part on what entity currently owns the rights to those recordings.
The first two albums were released on the Metromedia label, which, as you can probably guess, no longer exists. The third album was put out by RCA Records, whose catalog has been absorbed by Sony BMG. However, ownership rights to record masters sometimes, after a certain set period of time, revert to the production companies or artists involved in the making of the recordings, and so, there are a number of possibilities as to who owns The Golddiggers albums at the present time.
It might be Sony BMG and whatever successor party inherited the Metromedia label releases; or it might be Barrump-Bump Music, in which Lee Hale was partnered; or it might be yet some other entity or entities. Another possibility is that the ownership might be in dispute (uh-oh, sound familiar?!)
It’s certainly within the realm of possibility that The Golddiggers albums could be reissued on CD, and by making known your desire to see that happen in forums such this, you and others who share that desire can publicly send a message to the record companies — which, these days, are more anxious than ever to find product that will help shore up their sagging sales.
Moreover, if Capitol-EMI were to release a second album of “Forever Cool” duets that featured one or two latter-day pairings of Dean with The Golddiggers and Dingalings, as Michelle described above, that in itself might help spur demand for a re-release of the original Golddiggers albums.
In the meantime, there is at least one option available for those seeking Golddiggers albums that sadly doesn’t exist with respect to any of The Golddiggers television shows: You can fortunately find second-hand copies — and in some cases, even ones that are still factory-sealed — of the original Golddiggers LPs for sale on ebay and from many used record dealers around the country.
If only The Golddiggers TV series were available in the same way.
Just came across this site, I’m a Viet Nam Vet, and after serving I became a Martial Arts teacher in WLA, it is thier that I met Wanda Bailey. She became a student of mine for about three years, her dancing made learning Kenpo Karate easy for her. She used to relate stories about being on the Dean Martin Show.
If she reads this…Just a note to say hi,
Larry
Thanks, Larry, for sharing that item about Wanda.
We were wondering if, as a Vietnam Vet, you had a chance to catch Wanda, along with her Dingaling Sister colleagues Michelle DellaFave and Susan Lund, at their reunion concert at the VVA convention this past July.
By all accounts, the event was a crowd-pleaser from start to finish, so we hope you were in attendance, but even if you didn’t have the chance then, The Dings remain on the comeback trail, and we’re fairly certain they’ll be harmonizing again in the not-too-distant future. If and when plans are announced, we’ll report them here at the Super Site.
No I missed the concert at the VVA….I was out of country teaching Karate Seminars. I found that so many people around the world are still concerned and remembering the Vets of Nam.
I remember coming out of the field for a day to see the Bob Hope Christmas Tour. It gave us all the feeling of being home, at least for awhile.
I remember Wanda telling me about a Christmas Album they did for the Dean Martin Show. Are they planning on releasing it in the future?
Also a side note…if you hear from Wanda would you tell her I’m in the new releace of the movie “Protecting the King” a film about Elvis’s life with his half brother. It opens Oct. 9th in the states. I think she will remember some of the fighting techniques I taught her that I do on the screen.
Larry
Actually, Larry, there WAS a Golddiggers Christmas album, and the cover of that LP, as well as those of the other two which featured The Golddiggers as the star attraction, are on display in the Striking Gold section of this website.
However, the Christmas album — The Golddiggers’ second — was released the year before Wanda joined the group, and the third and final Golddiggers disc came out several months after she left, so unfortunately, her voice is not among those on any of The Golddiggers records.
But she did take part in both the Christmas and New Year’s episodes of The Dean Martin Show during the season in which she was a regular on the program (1970-71), and perhaps one day, those shows, along with all of the others that Dean and the ladies did, will turn up again on the tube or become available as nice stocking stuffers for yuletide gift-giving.
We will certainly do our best to pass along your greetings to Wanda and forward your message to her about your role in “Protecting The King”. And we’d add to that that there are currently some developments in the works that may even give you another opportunity to see her again for yourself in the near future. So watch this space…We’ll keep you and everyone else posted.
Appreciation after all these years!!!
A big huge “Thank You” to Video Vision for all of your painstaking efforts in not only creating a resurfacing of The Golddiggers after literally decades, but bringing us back together as girlfriends.
I called Liz Kelly last week and left a message with her. She returned my call the following morning and we had a great talk. I remember her distinctly as thee most wonderful dancer I had ever seen, when she first joined our road tour in 1970, later to take my place on the show after I left.
Michelle, (still as beautiful as ever,maybe even more actually!!!) and I have been calling and e-mailing back and forth. A great singer and human being, I’m happy and honored to be her friend.
Just sent a letter off to Paula Cinko and hope to hear from her soon.
Thank you to The Golddiggers Super Site, GoldsAndDings and Wes for all you have done for us. We should all be worshiping the ground you walk on.
God bless you.
Mickie McGlone
1970 Golddiggers
Mickie,
We’re thrilled to have you stop by and deeply touched by your comments.
We know that you were one of the standout performers on The Golddiggers In London when it aired in the summer of 1970, and were particularly renowned for your superb vocal stylings, which were showcased often and to great effect on the London skein.
Your presence here on our site just serves as one more reminder of why we continue to press our case for (here comes the broken record again) complete season sets of ALL of The Golddiggers series…oh, and yes, a little hit called The Dean Martin Show, as well.
Having with us those such as yourself who were vital participants in those shows can only lend further credibility to the cause, so thank you again, Mickie, for acknowledging our efforts and those of our fellow advocates at GoldsAndDings.
All the ladies look smashing in their swim fashions and Michelle Dellafave looks for all the world like Aphrodite walking on air. Then I look at the current photos of her and I can’t get over how remarkably beautiful she still looks. I well recall her and many of the other ladies you show here even though it has been many many years since I have seen any of them on television. I live in England and have especially fond memories of the London Golddiggers shows. Since I’m so far away it would be difficult for me to attend the Veterans Day concert that you write about, but if there is any way that I can schedule a trip to the states during that time I shall make it my business to be there.
Does a heart good!!!
Hi everyone,
Just stopping by to thank all of our fans for writing such nice things about us.
I loved reading all of the comments from you all, and am so happy and surprised that you are still thinking of us.
Thank you Video Vision for your generous compliments in regard to my vocal ability, you are very kind and thoughtful.
Today is a great day for me, since I am still alive (Thank you God!) and I will be in the recording studio laying down three vocals for my new CD project today.
My sister Teddi who has MS, has been improving lately, (all prayers welcome)
When I was a Golddigger, I remember signing autographs on Teddi’s back, she was my biggest fan and still is.
Another thing that makes me REALLY happy is seeing how all of Michelle’s efforts have brought her back in to the hearts of our fans all over the world.
Thank you Michelle for mentioning my name in your comments, it makes me feel warm and fuzzy all over, I love you.
Thank you again, to the fans who are generous with their time and spirit, for taking part in this fantastic effort to pay tribute to all of us who worked so hard. You and Video Vision are responsible for the evolution and resurfacing of us.
There are no words for the appreciation I have and feel for you.
God bless you all.
Micki McGlone “Golddigger 1970”
Thank you for paying us another visit, Micki. We are always honored whenever you or any of the gals that we celebrate on this site drop by to say hello.
We also take pleasure in hearing about the various projects with which many of you are currently involved, and are thus excited to learn from you, Micki, that you are in the midst of recording a new album. Please keep us informed about that venture as it moves forward, and by all means, let us know when it’s completed so that we can alert visitors to our site about its release and where they can purchase it.
We will certainly keep your sister Teddi in our thoughts and prayers, and feel confident that all of the good people who read your message will do the same.
Our best to you and your family, Micki, and we look forward to hearing from you again soon.
Release the Shows!
To help get the message home to the owners of the rights, even in dispute; contact every Leader of every state VFW organization, and the individual state directors of AARP.
Both are very influential in getting things done, that benefit the GI’s.
I recently attended a 60th surprise birthday for a Vietnam Vet, now retired police officer. How moving it would have been for him to receive as a gift from someone in attendance, the video of the Bob Hope Christmas Tour, or the TV Special, of his times in war. The surprise guest at this event, was his best friend from the Air Force. For some in war, these were the only good times.
There is a market for the Golddiggers shows, clearly defined by the many that remember Dean, the Bob Hope Era, and the many that fought the War, particularly in the times of the current War with Iraq.
Get the Message out to the VFW folks, you know their age group is the fastest growing Internet user group!
Get the Message out to the AARP Leaders, on behalf of all those that want to have a piece of their history, to pass down to their next generation. Get an AARP cover person (Kevin Costner, Morgan Freeman, etc) to champion your cause.
Invite those AARP folks in the Washington AARP Office, to the Reception where the Golddiggers are on the 10th…they can surely sell them, as they’ve sold me! A little push from Washington, goes a long way on the Left Coast.
Best!
New Jersey Bill
p.s. Get the Governator in CA in your camp too!
Bill, you’ve certainly fired up all of us here at the Super Site, and we hope that your rallying cry will motivate both the very talented ladies to whom our site is dedicated and their fans — as well as fans of the great Dean Martin all around the world — to heed your call to action.
You’ve made some very constructive suggestions, and if enough people followed them, it could well help to raise the consciousness of some pretty influential folks about a cause that all visitors to this site hold near and dear to their hearts — witnessing the fresh availability of every episode of The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers series, complete and uncut, as they originally aired.
We’re here on this earth for a very short time, people — do we really want to go through the rest of our lives without once again experiencing the sheer joy of watching these precious programs?
If your answer to that question is what we think it is, then how about following Bill’s lead: Get involved! And there’s no better time to start than now.
WOW I just had an experience of a life time with The Golddiggers and as a Dingaling and then as “Blue Eyed Soul”, I plan to write all about my experiences. They were Awesome. Nothing can compare to performing on a stage in front of the Washington Monument and to serve my country in a way that I would never imagine. Thanks to National Meetings and Special events director Wes Guidry I have been so blessed. Lindsay was great and I loved performing again with her. It was as if we had been doing this for years and never stopped after we went our separate ways. God Bless her. We had fun and exciting. More on the entire trip later. I want to thank all the Veterans of Vietnam who did come out to see us in the cold and I hope I can someday meet them all and give them a big hug!!! Thank you Reg Davis for that wonderful compliment, my goodness, yes God has been good to me. I also want to say hello to Mickie McGlone and I am sure your CD will be great, now there is a woman who sings with soul. I also want to say how wonderful it was to do the “Funky Chicken” with my fellow Dingaling Sisters Susie and Wanda, always such fun!!! I am grateful to have shared the stage with Susan Cadham, Sheila Allan, Rosetta Cox, Jackie Chidsey and Nancy Reichert. They are all as beautiful as ever. I even got to meet Neil Daniel’s the head of The Dean Martin Fan Club. His video of the Golddiggers is excellent, a great tribute to The Golddiggers. I wish I could have seen it but I was back stage waiting to go on. It sounded awesome. Finally, thank you Bill Kopp for your interest and helpful information.Bill and I are from the same town Bergenfield, New Jersey. I am flattered that he is visiting the site. Hi Bill! Well I am going to begin my chapter on my experiences of this trip. Much love to all, Michelle DellaFave. God Bless America!
Michelle, we can’t wait to read all about your weekend at the Wall Anniversary Commemoration and can guarantee you that we and all of the fans of The Golddiggers, Dingaling Sisters, and now Blue Eyed Soul, too, will be following along with rapt attention.
Hello. I just read the story about the lawsuit involving the Dean Martin Trust and Greg Garrison and I must say that I find it absolutely fascinating. As an attorney specializing in the practice of entertainment law, I am very impressed with the professional way that this site has covered this story from the beginning. Whether or not any of your writers have a legal background, they show a good grasp of the law. I’m also amazed at how the site has been able to come up with one scoop after another on the story. Whoever does the research is obviously really on the ball.
My own take on the pending litigation is that it will probably drag on for years, but let’s all hope I’m wrong. Your story made a sensible plea to the feuding parties to resolve their differences amicably, but I’m afraid that big egos and me-too demands for money often stand in the way of the most sensible solutions.
But I applaud the effort. If anyone gives out awards to web sites, this one deserves one for enterprise reporting. It’s first-rate journalism, the writing is excellent, even the headlines are really clever. TRUST THRUST COMBUSTS, etc., has to rank right up there with one of the most famous Variety headlines off all time: “Hicks Nix Sticks Pix.”
Bravo. Stay hungry. Stick with it.
I agree with what the lady said in the previous comment. Bravo! Excellent! You lay out all the facts and then end with an emotional appeal. No attorney could have made a better case! In fact, that’s the one disagreement I have with the previous commenter. I don’t think this has to drag on for years and maybe if the people behind all of these lawsuits read the story and takes its message to heart, it won’t.
Ed
Memories of the Ding-A-Ling Sisters
This site is terrific and brings back many memories. As a shy 13 old Thursday night offered me a chance to watch four lovely, talented ladies without worrying about rejection. I too would discuss the show the next day with friends. What I find interesting today is that the Dings were treated with great respect and affection, we weren’t discussing playmates. The Dings were almost icons to us young boys: talented, beautiful & sweet.
I learned their names on one show when Dean introduced them, and I repeated their names in that order as not to forget: Taffy, Tara, Lynn & Michelle…Taffy,Tara, Lynn & Michelle. That’s how I remember them today. I remember these four ladies as the “classic” Dings and was brokenhearted when two new ones came on board in the last year (no disrespect to Helen & Jayne).
As time went on I grew up (sort of) and moved on but never forgot my first crushes. I am thrilled they have done so well. The advent of the internet gives me the opportunity to say something to Taffy, Tara, Lynn & Michelle I have wanted to say for over thirty years: Thank you!
Paul C.
One last thing, shortly after the Dings were dropped from the show I was buying a newspaper and who was staring at me from the magazine rack but Michelle on the cover of Photography Today and she was posing with a tiger! Anyone remember this cover? P
Thank you, Paul, for sharing with us your own personal recollections of The Dingaling Sisters.
It seems that only now, resulting from the expressions of appreciation coming from fans such as yourself and those who have attended their reunion shows, are the women who made up both The Dingaling Sisters and The Golddiggers fully realizing just how much they have meant over the years — and still mean all these years later — to their multitude of fans the world over.
And yes, we’re familiar with that Photographic magazine cover picture of Michelle DellaFave, which put a wry spin on Frank Stockton’s classic short story of The Lady, or the Tiger by bringing the two together for one ferociously captivating shot.
Hi. Great site. Could you identify all of The Golddiggers in that first picture on the updates page, the one with them holding presents.
Yes. That photo is from the cover of The Golddiggers’ glowing album of holiday songs, We Need A Little Christmas, originally issued in the fall of 1969. In our haste to wrap up our latest post in time for Christmas, we neglected to put I.D. tags on several of the accompanying photos, so thank you for calling that oversight to our attention. We have now added captions to all of the previously unidentified pics.
I have two questions:
Do they still make Red Rose tea? Michelle has inspired me to try it 🙂
Did she make any more commercials besides this one?
Thanks, Jeff
Red Rose Tea IS still being made, and as you might expect in this day and age, the company even has a website:
http://www.redrosetea.com
With all the free publicity that they’re getting out of this — very likely the most attention they’ve received in years — they might want to give serious consideration to reenlisting Michelle as their commercial spokeswoman.
As for lending her magic touch to other products, we know that over the years, Michelle has done a number of print advertisements — some with The Golddiggers, some on her own — and you’ll probably be seeing a number of those surface here in the months ahead. Whether there are other TV or radio spots that she’s done, we’re not certain, but you can rest assured that if there are and they’re accessible, we’ll make every effort to bring them to you.
Hello.
I have been looking for the Dean Martin Christmas Special from 12/1967 with Frank Sinatra. You have a picture from it in your Christmas post.
I would love to get a copy of this show. Do you know where I might be able to find it? Is this show included in the Guthy-Renker series?
Thank you for your help.
Well, Len, we’re afraid that the answer to your question is one that only an unregenerate Scrooge could love.
Unfortunately, no part of the 12/21/67 episode of The Dean Martin Show, subtitled “Christmas with The Martins and The Sinatras”, was included on any of the volumes of the Guthy-Renker series, nor is the program available commercially in whole or in part in any form.
However, we can tell you that there is great demand for it, and that that demand isn’t limited just to fans. Two famous offspring of the stars of that program, who themselves appeared on it, have publicly expressed a desire to see the show made available again — Nancy Sinatra on The Sinatra Family Forum (http://sinatrafamily.com/forum/index.php) and Deana Martin on her website (http://www.deanamartin.com).
So if the legal issues can eventually be resolved, that gem from Christmas past — along with over 200 other Dean Martin Show episodes — may one day be a part of Christmas future.
I love the way Michelle DellaFave looks with dark hair in that red dress, so glamorous, like EVITA! I would love to see the Red Rose commercial. Is that something you will be able to put on the site?
From a technical standpoint, Donna, we certainly have the capability to display not just still pictures and audio, but video, as well. Please understand, though, that Señora DellaFave has many commitments; but if her schedule permits and she is able to supply us with a copy of the spot, we’ll be happy to process the transfer and bring you and everyone else the full touch of star quality on view in her Red Rose commercial.
Court Case Settled
This could be great news, the main thing is the court case has been dismissed.
Now I only hope and pray The Dean Martin shows will be released to dvd complete.
The Best of shows would be better than nothing but I dearly hope the complete series of Dean`s shows will be released.
It`s still confusing, but at least the court case is out of the way.
I live in hope 🙂
Hugs from Kylie xxxoooxxx
Kylie, we know that you are of a generation born many years after The Dean Martin Show had its last first-run telecast; but we also know that, your youth notwithstanding, you are a very knowledgeable and devoted aficionado of Dean, The Golddiggers and The Dingaling Sisters.
Frankly, if enough people in and around your age group had a musical and aesthetic palette as sophisticated as yours, then you can be sure that complete season sets of Dean’s series would have hit the market years ago, in spite of the high costs of the rights clearances involved.
To be profitably released on DVD, a musical-variety skein such as The Dean Martin Show must either: A) be able to command mass market sales numbers on the order of a series like Friends or The Simpsons; or else B) have a smaller but still sizable fan base so dedicated that it is willing to pay premium prices for a product laden with entertaining but budget-draining musical selections.
Now addressing the first of those two conditions, we can fairly well assume that DVDs of Dean’s programs are unlikely to top the sales charts so many years after their last televised airings. On the other hand, we also believe with wholehearted conviction (and there are reams of data to back this up) that there are millions of Dean Martin fans worldwide amenable to pungling up substantial sums in order to get their hands on unedited episodes of his series.
So what it may in the end boil down to is whether — assuming, with the recent settlement of the NBC U lawsuit, that it’s contractually allowable — we long-neglected Dinophiles will finally be permitted the opportunity to vote with our wallets and pocketbooks.
Like you, Kylie, we, too, would rather live in hope than in fear.
Hi,
Thanks for providing a great informative site on all the cast/members/performers of The Golddiggers.
As a frequent member in several science fiction fan communities, former Golddigger, Janice Whitby is popular for the role she played in the multi part Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman episode “Kill Oscar”. In it she played Dr. Franklin’s (John Houseman) fembot,assistant and operative. Her on screen presence was superb on capturing the suspense creepiness those evil fembots gave to viewers.
I would have never have guessed that after seeing Janice Whitby’s evil role that she got her first break in the business as one of the sweet, talented and lovable Golddigers.
I was a bit surprised that Ms. Whitby didn’t get a mention for her role as Katy on this website (considering that Lezlie Dalton got a mention for role as Drea on Star Trek) nor did she get a mention for her role on Mel Brooke’s “Blazing Saddles” . Never the less I was more than happy to see the information provided on this Website for Janice Whitby and I thank you.
A few of us fans were considering starting a fansite honoring all of Janice’s work. It’s unfortunate that Ms. Whitby seemed to have disappeared sometime after the late 70s. I just hope that she’s alive and happy and doing well wherever she may be. If any of her former cast mates and/or this website owner are still in touch with her, please let her know that I wish her well and I respect her privacy and to let her know that she still has fans out there.
For anyone that is interested, here are some links to Janice Whitby’s other work:
Fembot Fan Video starring Janice Whitby as Katy:
A scene from Mel Brooke’s “Blazing Saddles” featuring Janice Whitby as the tour guide:
Katy’s (Janice Whitby) Character Profile:
http://bionic.wikia.com/wiki/Katy
Thank you, Mark, for your very warm and considerate thoughts regarding Janice Whitby, who served with The Golddiggers from 1970-72. We also appreciate your providing us with additional details about some of her career highlights.
We actually learned of Janice’s guest starring role on The Bionic Woman several weeks after the Super Site was inaugurated, and we had planned to incorporate that information in our first major update to the Dean’s List section, which will probably be done in late Winter or early Spring.
However, we confess to having been completely unaware of her participation in Blazing Saddles, and are grateful to you not only for that revelation, but also for supplying us with links to clips showing her both in that landmark Mel Brooks farce AND as a “fembot” (as it were) in The Bionic Woman, under the control of John Houseman, essaying a role that was obviously a far cry from Professor Kingsfield in The Paper Chase.
But then again, as with Lezlie Dalton on Star Trek, Janice’s own science fiction sojourn represented quite a departure from her stint with The Golddiggers.
Upon her initiation into that group on The Dean Martin Show in the fall of 1970, Janice always appeared to us rather shy and reserved in contrast to some of her more seasoned peers. But that diffidence seemed to vanish the following season, when Chevrolet Presents The Golddiggers debuted in syndication, and Janice returned sporting redder hair, sassy bangs, and a manifestly more confident attitude that shone through both her on-screen presence and energetic dancing. We can still picture her bouncing to the rhythm of “Gimme Dat Ding”, and of course, we all hope to one day again be able to see that image not just in our memories, but on our TV screens.
In the interim, if you wind up proceeding with the establishment of a fansite honoring Janice Whitby, please let us know about it and we’ll be sure to pass along the information to all of our visitors.
We here at the Super Site don’t have any direct contact with Janice, but if any of her former colleagues are in touch with her and should read your message, Mark, we sincerely hope that they will let her know about it.
Hi from Joy Hawkins (Golddigger/Tiger Girl)
Hi…..what fun to see old and new photos and updates. I was a Golddigger in 1968-1969, with several featured spots.
Greg Garrison asked me back in the 1973-74 season to create a character called The Tiger Girl. Dean would walk me in the park each week along with a guest star who had a real animal on a leash….then Dean and I would sing a song together.
We also had a spot each week where Dean would sing on top of the piano with me playing with my paws while Ken Lane really played off camera. I became resident comedienne that season and played everything from Jane to William Conrad’s Tarzan to a crazy guest on a “Price is Right” skit with Bob Barker.
Today I live in Key West, Florida. I am the Artistic Director of The Red Barn Theatre, now in it’s 28th season. I am still professionally directing, acting and singing. I have played the role of Louise in Always…Patsy Cline in many theatres around the country as well as a tour of Scotland and England. I send regards and best wishes to all.
Joy Hawkins
Joy, thank you so much for writing to us and providing us with not only additional background about yourself, but also an update on your current activities.
Undoubtedly the biggest surprise in your message had to be the revelation that enabled us to finally put together all the pieces of a puzzle that’s been gnawing at us for years: Who WAS that beautiful lady in the tiger outfit on the 8th season of Dean’s series?
Indeed, that was one cat that had, if not nine, at least two lives, because we already knew that Michelle DellaFave, your colleague from the 1969 Golddiggers, played the part of pretty “Kitty” on several episodes. But that still left us wondering who did it on all of the other shows.
Although you as Kitty always looked very familiar to us (and, by the way, reminded us a good deal of Ann-Margret), we could never quite figure out from where we recognized you. Obviously, in the back of our minds, we remembered your lovely visage from your stint with The Golddiggers, and thanks to your enlightening us today, the mystery is now solved.
But whether it was you or Michelle suiting up as “Kitty”, we think that Greg Garrison chose purr-fectly — each of you made for a fabulous feline in your own right. We have stills of both of you in the part and will try to post them as soon as possible.
And now that you’ve also made us aware that that was you playing a very fetching Jane alongside William Conrad’s Tarzan, we’ll put up a still from that sketch, too.
We know that when you played Kitty, you and Dean performed charming renditions of “You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To” “Let’s Fall In Love”, “”Cuddle Up A Little Closer”, and “”Wouldn’t It Be Loverly?”, among others. We”ll make note of those details, as well as include all of the other information about yourself with which you provided us, in an upcoming update to your profile in the Dean’s List section of our site.
Apropos of that update, Joy, if you have any additional photos of yourself from your time with The Golddiggers and on The Dean Martin Show (we used the only shot available to us when the site launched), then please, by all means, forward them to us. We’d love to include them.
Thank you again for contacting us and please stay in touch.
Hi Everyone, Michelle DellaFave here. I am very happy that Joy has enjoyed this site. I think The Golddiggers Super Site is such a wonderful effort to keep our work alive, and that the entire group of lovely young women who worked on The Dean Martin Show should be acknowledged and their history in show business should be remembered.
Joy, I had no idea that Greg had his team of fantastic writers create the character for you, and that you were asked back for that role. How wonderful. I was traveling so much on the road that I did not know this. Thanks for letting everyone know how the character all came about. You did a fantastic job and I always thought you looked so good in that costume.
I always thought Joy was a very special actress, and when she left, Greg asked me to do the bit. I could not resist, being the cat lover I am. Plus I love comedy, as well, and with Dean by my side, how could I miss? I loved to see him smile and have a good time.
Wasn’t that costume fabulous? I guess I am ready to sing “Memories.” This cat has so many to sing about. Again, Joy, please send our Mr. Video Vision anything that you would like to have under you name.
I need to see Key West. I have yet to visit there. Imagine someone from Florida and I have yet to get down there. Peace and Blessings, Michelle DellaFave
We both grew up watching Dean Martin and we loved Dean and the girls and love this web site.
What’s your secret ladies? Michelle and Lindsay should be selling youth cream! They could sell it at their concerts. What vitamins are they taking?? They look incredible! Michelle is so pretty and has legs that won’t quit and Lindsay with that smile is as cute as a button. If they ever come to Bloomington, Indiana we will go see their show and give them a great big welcome.
Please tell us if they put out a CD or DVD. Good luck to both of them.
Gary & Lorraine M.
What a wonderful, well-researched web site! I can’t thank you enough for your devotion to detail and accuracy. I’ve been an admirer of the Golds since that wonderful summer in London (although I did look in on the ’68 Summer show, albeit for.. ahem… the fabulous Joey Heatherton.) It’s good to know that so many of these talented performers have gone on to live such happy, fulfilling lives, and are just as beautiful today as they were way back then. If only they would consider a West Coast reunion concert…I’d be there in the front row! Best wishes to all. Now I’m off to order my copy of ‘Cool Burn.’
Great Site
I just discovered this website. It’s great!! Hope the shows are all released..Michelle I ordered your CD.
Hey guys,
I just heard that Blue Eyed Soul will perform on March 30th in Slidell, Louisiana. Is that true Michelle and Lindsay? I would love to come and see you perform! Do you take requests? LOL!
Mike
Hi Mike.
It’s good to hear from you again. We thought you might like to know that our site stats indicate that the links that you provided here on the Comments page to clips from a few of Tara Leigh’s early ’80s appearances on General Hospital get clicked all the time, so once again, we want to express our appreciation to you for that contribution.
Thanks, as well, for your inquiry about Blue Eyed Soul. We asked the group’s manager, Wes Guidry, about that March 30th gig in Slidell, LA, and it came as news to him! After doing a little investigating, he got back to us and cleared up the mystery: Evidently, there is another group called the Blue Eyed Soul Review that will be performing on that date in Slidell, but it won’t be with Michelle and Lindsay.
However, there is a way that you and other fans of our favorite blue eyed twosome can keep apprised of their concert dates, and that’s by checking the Schedule page of their own dedicated website:
http://pages.suddenlink.net/blueeyedsoul/booking.html
As you’ll see, they currently have a couple of engagements on the slate, with many more to come…and that’s actually only the beginning. There are other exciting plans in the works for these soul stirrers, and news on that front will be forthcoming in the weeks ahead.
Meanwhile, there’s a new section on the ladies’ site that allows you or anyone else to leave them a message, so if your soul is moved to do so, by all means, feel free to drop them a line. If you want to make a request, this would seem like the perfect place to do it:
http://pub47.bravenet.com/forum/4006189309
Glad I Asked!
I’m so disappointed to find out that I won’t be seeing and hearing Lindsay and Michelle sing in person! I knew it was too good to be true. Slidell is practically in my backyard, so I was thinking how great that would be to finally see 2 of my favorite Ding a Ling Sisters. Now I find out some blue eyed impostors are singing instead! LOL!
I was unable to make it to the Washington DC event last year because I was out of the country, but I’ve been stopping by regularly to keep up to date and hoping that more events would be coming. Thanks so much for those links. I’ll keep checking back.
I’m glad to hear that the General Hospital links have been of great interest for Tara’s fans. Maybe some more will turn up. I think it is so nice to know that Tara is still remembered and loved by her fans. I certainly miss her performing and hope she is doing well.
Your website is a labor of love and such a nice way of letting these beautiful and talented ladies know how much they were appreciated by their fans. There are plenty of us out here who miss them and wish them well.
Mike
Thank you, Mike. We appreciate your kind words, and we know that the ladies are deeply grateful for your support, as well.
There’s strength in numbers, and based on the thousands of people whom statistical reports that we receive show have visited our website since it was launched last summer, we know that there are numerous fans out there who not only fondly remember these wonderful women, but also yearn to once again see complete, uncut episodes of The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers series on which they appeared.
And don’t give up hope of being able to catch two of those unforgettable gals — Michelle and Lindsay — performing live. Announcements of additional concert dates for Blue Eyed Soul WILL be forthcoming, and one of them may well turn out to be at a venue that’s convenient for you to attend.
Hi!
I was one of the Golddiggers in 1969. I toured with the girls all over the country, played the Sahara Hotel in front of comic-headliner, Buddy Hackett, and then came home to Los Angeles, where I appeared on over a dozen of the Dean Martin shows. Singing and dancing on Dean Martin’s show, and going to Vietnam as a Golddigger with Bob Hope in 1969, I was the 13th Golddigger! After the Vietnam tour, I was engaged and then I married the Dean Martin Show writer, Ed Scharlach in 1970. My father-in-law was Harry Crane—the head writer of Dean’s shows. I thought that you might want to update your site to include me, since I appear in the photos.
My best to you.
Sheryl Ullman
Sheryl, thank you so much for contacting us and providing some background information about yourself.
We have added your name to our Dean’s List section, and will fill out your profile with more photos and further details when we unveil the first major update to our Dean’s List section this coming spring. Toward that end, if you could furnish us with a few images of yourself from the time of your stint with The Golddiggers, we would appreciate it.
We also love hearing about, and being able to share with our readers, interesting tidbits that we’ve not heretofore heard mentioned, such as your telling us about how your professional connection to The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers eventually turned into a familial one.
Certainly any loyal viewers of Dean’s series will recognize the names Ed Scharlach and Harry Crane as long-residing mainstays on the writers’ credits at the end of each weekly episode of Dean’s program. By any measure, their contributions, along with those of the other scribes and personnel who worked behind the scenes on the program, were vital to the success of both The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers series.
Little wonder that demand to see these collaborative gems of artistic craftsmanship in their original, complete and uncut form has done nothing but grow over the years, reaching their peak today, as evidenced by the outpouring of support for full release of the shows to be found here and in other quarters.
So, Sheryl, our hats off to you, Ed and your late father-in-law Harry Crane for your work, both in front of and behind the cameras, on Dean’s series and with The Golddiggers. It is not only our hope but also our conviction that keeping such endeavors in the public eye will continue to call attention to the resurgence of interest in The Dean Martin Show, and in turn, help drive the impetus to have this outstanding and landmark television series once again made available to the public as it was intended to be seen.
Thanks so much for sending your website. It’s absolutely remarkable how you list everything the show did and what I did so accurately. It was like reading my Dean Martin Show diary. I’m happy, too, that you and so many others are out there rooting for the wonderful girls who sang and danced on our show. I’m sure you realize that I am very close to them all.
Lee
Lee, we are enormously grateful to you for taking the time to look over our site, as well as deeply honored and humbled by your very kind and generous words about it. We can think of no one from whom such praise could possibly mean more.
Like the multitude of fans of Dean Martin, The Golddiggers and The Dingaling Sisters worldwide, we hold out the hope that the television series which so felicitously showcased not only their creative talents but yours, as well, will one day soon resurface in original, unabridged form.
If and when work toward that end were to get underway, we find it hard to imagine it proceeding — or, at least, proceeding on the right course — without your participation. Because as we noted in our Open Letter to you, we know that you are the only one who possesses the background, intimate involvement, and innate feel for what Dean’s program and The Golddiggers shows were all about to be able to fully do justice to the selection and packaging of material from those series.
For now, we are sustained by the extraordinary effort that you already undertook several years ago in choosing all of the priceless gems to be found on the existing 29 volumes of The Best of The Dean Martin Variety Show collection. As we celebrate this rich legacy, and dream of what additional treasures might come our way one day in the future, we pledge to you to do our utmost to make certain that The Golddiggers Super Site continues to live up to the high standards set by you, Dean, Greg, the ladies, and all of the other talented individuals to whom we pay homage.
Hi Michelle and Lindsay,
I loved this interview so much and wouldn`t have missed it for the world 🙂
You were both fantastic and the singing was so beautiful.
Great Big Hugs and Kisses
from Kylie xxxoooxxx
To Michelle & Lindsay:
Loved your Memorial Weekend photos — Great Job and wonderful for you two to devote your time and talent to our Vets.
Jackie Luis, Miami
I was curious as to why Wanda Bailey, my favorite Golddigger and Ding a Ling sister, left the show after 1971.
As you’ve no doubt witnessed over the years, Scott, personnel changes in the casts of television series are quite common, and might especially be expected in groups as large, diverse and filled with performers just starting out in show business as were both The Golddiggers and The Dingaling Sisters.
Naturally, the reasons why a particular cast member would leave a series are many and varied, and could range from wanting to move on to other forms of work in the entertainment field, to seeking a career change, to getting married. Often, it’s the performer’s decision, but in other instances, the program’s producers might want to bring in fresh faces, and sometimes, there’s simply a mutual parting of the ways.
Other than the few specific instances cited in our history of The Golddiggers and Dingalings, we couldn’t speak to why any individual members might have left the group or groups to which they belonged. Some former members have chosen to address the subject during the course of interviews, and any are, of course, free to do so at any time in this forum or elsewhere.
Our stance is to leave it to the discretion of each performer, and focus our attention on the contributions made by each during the course of her tenure with the respective group or groups of which she was a part.
Hi everyone and hello Video Vision.
I am very grateful for all the wonderful articles you do about my work with Lindsay. I have had nothing but pure joy doing the Vietnam Veterans Welcome Home Tour so far. I have met some awesome people and have had fellowship with some great men and woman. I love singing and dancing with Lindsay and our audience is always SO appreciative. I am richly blessed by all this.
Hi Jackie, and I am so happy you are enjoying this site. Yes I am busy and next month I am back on the road with “Blue Eyed Soul”. Lindsay and I did a CD together and had a blast. I am hoping to make this available for everyone very soon. Peace and Blessings to all, Michelle DellaFave.
Michelle, as exhilarating as it is to cover the whirlwind of concerts and other personal appearances on which you and Lindsay Bloom have embarked with your new singing-dancing duo Blue Eyed Soul, it is even more of a thrill and honor, not only for us, but for your numerous fans and visitors to our site, as well, whenever you stop by to say hello.
The acclaimed shows that you and Lindsay are putting on for the Vets, and the personal touch that you’re both bringing to these performances, is not only drawing admiration from many quarters, but indeed, serves as an inspiration to both the general public and others in your profession alike.
That one of the by-products of these efforts is, as you mentioned, a forthcoming CD on which you and Lindsay are paired, is the icing on the cake which all of us can share. So please keep us posted on the album’s release date, and in the meantime, we don’t think it’s giving away too much to say that thanks to your help, we here at the Super Site have some unique surprises — with treats both vintage and contemporary — in store for your fans in the not-too-distant future.
Hello,
I just wanted to say I enjoy your website, and wanted to add that I would absolutely love to see full episodes of the Dean Martin Show available for purchase on DVD, and would certainly purchase it if that were possible. The “Best Of” is certainly better than nothing, but it would be so much better to be able to see each episode as it was aired!
Keep up the good work!
Thanks, Lynn
Lynn, you’ve crystallized perfectly not only our thoughts on this subject, but also those of innumerable fans of The Dean Martin Show the world over. Re-release of every episode of that series, as well as all five seasons of The Golddiggers series — complete and uncut — remains a front-burner issue for us, and rest assured that we will continue to press the case for reissue of the shows on DVD, on television, or both.
Please know, too, that every single expression of vocal support — your message above being the latest example — helps further the cause, and so we thank you, Lynn, for taking the time to make your voice heard. In fact, we’ll be applying a little amplification to sentiments such as yours in the coming weeks, with the aim of raising the volume even more on behalf of this movement, and for that and other developments, we invite you and everyone else to stay tuned.
I just heard Michelle’s CDs and boy is she good! I know Lee Hale said some of the girls on the show were hired because of other – um – “talents” – but it’s clear Michelle wasn’t hired just because of her looks, but also because she’s a great singer!! I was thrilled to hear some of my old favorite songs (esp ones that Dean never covered himself) and loved the Christian album as well. Thanks so much, Michelle, for continuing to share your incredible talents with us!
– Kimmy and Dover, The Wonder Dog
Greetings Michelle
I had (and still have 😉 ) such a crush on you!! I just came across this site and saw some of the old photos and yep, you still make my heart jump. And without saying, you are still as gorgeous a lady as ever! I wanted an autograph so bad….must have written you ten times through Dean’s show. One day I (have to say it) struck gold, there it was an autographed photo and a super sweet note from you. I still have the photo and note to this day. I hope one day we will cross paths and I can finally thank you in person. I know this is a Bob Hope thing but…THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES!!
Peace, Love and Happiness to you dear lady!
Lee Calkins
Redlands, CA
Looking For Karen Cavanaugh
I’m wondering if anyone knows where Karen Cavanaugh is?
She was my dance teacher in Michigan, married a Detroit Lion football player. I would love to touch base with her again.
Thanks.
Diane Taglioli-Hura
A Former Student
Thank you for your inquiry, Diane.
Regrettably, Karen is not someone whose present whereabouts are known to us, but we’ve posted your inquiry here in the hope that one of her 7 colleagues from the 1972-73 Golddiggers, or perhaps some other friend or acquaintance of hers perusing our site, might take notice of your message and have some idea of what Karen is up to these days.
We have also forwarded to you directly one other potential lead that we hope might prove helpful in your quest.
Needless to say, we’ll be happy to pass along to you any information that might come our way regarding Karen, and we’d ask that you do the same for all of us should you eventually be successful in finding out anything on your end.
Of course, there’s always the possibility that Karen herself might come across your comment here on the Super Site and write to us directly. We’ve certainly been privileged to receive correspondence of that type in the past, and we’ll keep our fingers crossed that one way or another, you’ll be able to reconnect with your former dance instructor and a fondly-remembered alumna of the legendary Golddiggers troupe.
Hi,
I just wanted to give an update to my last letter that was submitted in the comments section in reference to a Janice Whitby fansite that I was starting.
Well I finally found some free time to research and compile as much information as I can find on Janice Whitby’s careers before, during and after her work on The Golddiggers.
Here’s the link for anyone who is interested:
http://feildagentx.tripod.com
And as always, I’m open for suggestions, feedbacks and constructive criticisms because I want to honor Janice’s work the best way possible.
It’s still somewhat in the bare bones stages considering the limited amount of information about Janice available on the Internet and the few old rare books that I had access to.
However, I am confident that more information will be provided in the near future and this fansite will expand along with additional future DVD releases of Janice’s other film and television work. I will also keep hoping that The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers will someday get the DVD and/or Blu-Ray release that it rightfully deserves with bonus features because all their talent and hard work needs to preserved.
I also want to give a big thanks to The Golddiggers Super Site for their feedback, encouragement and support.
And I also want to give my regards to each and every pretty and very talented member of the Golddiggers (who came and went over the years) for giving this lifelong metal head a newfound appreciation for show tunes.
Mark
Great story about the girls singing for the Marines. Come to think of it, everything about this site is great. Love all the puns and musical references in the headlines, stories, captions and so forth. I don’t know if everybody catches on to them, but this old timer sure does. Wanted you to know how much I enjoy it all.
Just wish this world had more women like Michelle and Lindsay. Lots more!
Ed
I came across your website when I was goofing off. You did a terrific job.
But I have a question: why is there no mention of Patty Gegenheimer? She was on the show – or at least, some of the shows, while we were in college together, so maybe 1970 or 71. I know she was not a regular, but she did get screen time, and her voice was often used for short solos. I think she was dropped – or maybe she left – part way into the season, but I know she did a number of shows. She was asked to rejoin the company for a Vegas run the following year, but by then she’d gone back to college.
Patty had very long, straight black hair and dark eyes. Her first gig (with The Golddiggers) was a live benefit show – I think for a hospital, and Bob Hope was on the bill. Again, it’s a long time ago – I can only relate it to where I was living at the time, so it was 1971.
At that gig Patty & the gang wore gold spangly bikinis with the big gold circles hanging off it – there is picture on your web site of the rest of the cast wearing a similar costume. I remember it pretty well because I was living in a big co-operative house near USC at the time. A girlfriend of one of my roommates tried on the costume as a joke. A couple years after Patty and I broke up I ran into that girl — and we have been married for 32 years now. Life is funny, eh?
Any chance of adding Patty’s name and photo to the roster? She was very proud of her work, and I remember her as a terrific singer & dancer and a beautiful young woman. But then, I was in love.
Thank you so much, Mark, for contacting us about Patty Gegenheimer, and sharing with us some of your very warm and touching memories of her.
She was indeed involved for a time as a member of The Golddiggers, and you are also correct about when — it was during the 1971-72 season, the first year of the syndicated series, Chevrolet Presents The Golddiggers.
In fact, a black-and-white picture of Patty appears, along with similar photos of her nine colleagues, on the back of the group’s third and final record album, The Golddiggers: Today. We have in our archives the full-color version of that portrait, but hadn’t up till now posted it, nor included a profile of Patty in our Dean’s List section, due to deadline constraints that we faced when the Super Site was first constructed more than a year ago.
As noted in the introduction to our roster of those who served with The Golddiggers, Dingaling Sisters and Dean’s Girls, we have striven from the outset to be as thorough as circumstances and resources would permit, and we’re proud to say that what we have presented on this website remains the most accurate and detailed survey of its kind done to date.
But back when the Super Site was launched, we also acknowledged that with so much ground to cover, certain omissions were inevitable, and that’s precisely why we left the door open to future updates. Toward that end, many more names, as well as more images of, and information about, those already covered on our site, will be added to our Dean’s List section in the coming weeks.
Now, Mark, that’s our long-winded explanation (a.k.a. our excuse) in answer to your question about why there’s been no trace of Patty Gegenheimer on our site. However, we’d point out that no other source of current information about The Golddiggers contains any mention of Patty either. So in light of that, we thought that we’d take this opportunity to be the very first (just as we were previously the first to include another Patty — Patty Booth), by placing Patty Gegenheimer on our Dean’s List now, even prior to the unveiling of our full update to that page.
We hope that you and all of our visitors will enjoy this newest entry, and consider it a preview of the additional material soon to follow.
Hello
I struck Gold by finding this site about ten minutes ago. Great work! Well planned out and researched. Lovely to see so many stills to of these lovely ladies. I’m in the UK and therefore have probably only seen a very small proportion of Golddiggers performances on a few Dean Martin videos/DVDs. I did enquire about the Dean Martin show releases once and was put off when I heard they were edited compilations which I thought would possibly omit a lot of the portions with the dancers unfortunately.
Does The “Golddiggers In London” series exist? Has it ever been seen anywhere since 1971?
One tip about some of the video grabs you have made that might improve things slightly. If there’s motion on the shot you sometimes get an effect called “combing” on the screen grab which looks like jagged lines. If so then this really needs to be deinterlaced to remove it. Below is an example on one of your shots. I hope this is helpful.
BEFORE
AFTER
Best wishes,
Jonathan
Thank you for your message, Jonathan — as well as your very professional assistance in the area of image enhancement.
Actually, as inveterate Photoshop users, we are quite familiar with the technique of deinterlacing, and applied it to many of the stills included on our site. Nevertheless, as you are very right to call to our attention, there was at least one screen capture which could have benefited from deinterlacing that your sharp eye spotted but which we had inadvertently overlooked — namely the picture of the lovely Melissa Stafford that appears at the beginning of her profile in the Dean’s List section of our site.
Your discovery prompted us to review ALL of the images on our site, and as far as we could determine, there were only two others that had not been previously deinterlaced but which could be improved by the adjustment — those being the lead-off picture of Diane Davis in her profile and the next-to-last screen capture of Michelle DellaFave in hers. So accordingly, we have fixed and replaced those shots, and likewise, supplanted our original first still of Melissa with a deinterlaced version similar to the one that you sent us.
There were a couple of other stills that we adjudged to be potential candidates for deinterlacing, but as you are no doubt aware, in making ANY changes to images, there are often trade-offs involved, and in this case, we found that experimenting on other stills with the deinterlace command in Photoshop resulted in the introduction of an unacceptably high level of grain and other artifacts, so we decided to leave all else as is. However, if you see any other shots on our site that you believe could be further refined, please don’t hesitate to let us know.
As to your questions about another subject — one near and dear to our hearts — the answer is that yes, all 9 episodes of Dean Martin Presents The Golddiggers In London are extant — the negatives (in this case, the original two-inch tape masters) being in the possession of the estate of the series’ Executive Producer, Greg Garrison.
Regarding your second question on that topic, the one-hour London shows were, in fact, repeated in syndication in the USA during a brief window between the time that the series ended its original run on NBC in September of 1970 and before the weekly half-hour Chevrolet Presents The Golddiggers debuted in September of 1971.
Edited, 30-minute versions of the London episodes were also telecast in 1970 in the UK. Those programs included many of the segments shown on the longer US versions, but due to contractual restrictions, none of the Great Britain shows featured Marty Feldman.
Paradoxically, a handful of comedy bits in which Marty appeared on the U.S. edition of the show are the ONLY portions of The Golddiggers In London that are available for public consumption anywhere today. Those segments can be found on Guthy-Renker’s The Best of The Dean Martin Variety Show collection.
And finally, sad to say, but what you have heard is true regarding the amount of footage of The Golddggers — as well as The Dingaling Sisters and Dean’s Girls — that’s contained on Guthy-Renker’s Dean Martin Variety volumes: There is some — and that’s certainly better than none — but it’s still nowhere near what exists and what we should be able to — and wish we could — see.
If you’re a big fan of Dean — as all of us here are — that 29-volume set is still very much worth purchasing; and there are a lot of wonderful guest stars who make it worthwhile, too.
But when it comes to wanting to see more of the ladies, all we can say is: We empathize! That’s why, from the very day that this site went up, one of our top priorities has been to focus on, and lobby for, the reissue of complete, uncut episodes of The Dean Martin Show and the various Golddiggers series.
There are actually right now some developments on the horizon that may (and we emphasize may) offer a glimmer of hope on this front, and we’ll be reporting on them in the very near future. Meanwhile, Jonathan, we invite you and others who share our goal to join with us, spread the word, and keep the movement going. It CAN make a difference. 52,431 and counting (the number of visitors to our site to date) represents an awful lot of voices that want to be heard.
Thank you for your excellent piece on Lee Hale. I was a big fan of the Dean Martin show and remember seeing his name on the credits but I had no idea that he did so much for the show. It certainly seems like he was and is loved by everybody. It was great to see all of the ladies that he helped say how much he meant to them (and those are some mighty fine looking ladies too so I envy him – he’s one lucky guy 🙂 ). Thanks for this great site for all of these ladies. Keep up the good work. I also hope we can get to see the COMPLETE shows again – hopefully sooner rather than later. You can count MY vote in favor of it.
Regards,
Dan Miller
I’ve always been a huge Dean Martin fan and I like all the girls too, so I really enjoyed “We Hail Lee Hale.” The introduction about him was interesting, but what I liked most were the personal stories about him by each of the Golddiggers. Some, like the ones by Lezlie Dalton and Taffy Jones, made me cry…Some, like the ones by Michelle DellaFave, Linda Eichberg and Sheryl Ullman, made me feel like I was almost part of the scene at the time they were there. All of the women’s stories were well done and intelligent and I would love to see more articles like this in the future.
Cynthia DeLuca,
a Dino fan
I congratulate the Golddiggers site in honoring my friend Lee Hale. A few years ago, in quest of material on Dean Martin for my book The Music Men, I invited Lee to contribute commentary on Dean Martin, fully aware of Lee’s valid role in the nine-year run of the Dean Martin show. He graciously accepted.
Lee and I were members of the Society of Singers, and when organizing interviews for my first few books, Lee volunteered subjects and put me in touch with those he knew, including Jerry Vale whose bio I later put together with Jerry. When Lee decided to write his book on Dean, he wrote me for advice and sent galleys. He originally called the book The Phantom Star, or something like that, and I proposed he change it to Backstage at the Dean Martin Show. I liked his book and made him aware of the pitfalls of writing and publishing and encouraged him to submit it to publishers. He eventually struck gold. The book is the best Dean Martin book.
Lee Hale is a very unselfish, talented and modest man who deserves much credit for the validity and success of the Dean Martin show. He quietly kept each show together by gaining the confidence of guests who were chagrined at Dean’s absence at rehearsals until the final moments. And, for nine long years he was the stand-in, the musical director and show organizer. The Golddiggers absolutely loved – and still love him. Dom DeLuise loves him. Dean Martin was grateful, too. And, Lee was a good friend to June Allyson. That alone tells you of his character. June very carefully chose her confidants.
I repeated Lee Hale’s original take on Dean in my new book STAR*DUST-The Bible of the Big Bands that features all the great vocalists. Lee Hale is a great voice for our kind of music. Thank you Lee.
Richard Grudens
Richard, we thank you so much for providing us with some additional thoughts and information about Lee Hale, drawn from your own knowledge of his career and your experiences in working with him and getting to know him as a friend.
The chapter on Dean Martin that Lee first wrote back in 1998 for your book The Music Men contains some details and insights about Dean and the making of The Dean Martin Show not found even in Lee’s own book on the subject.
Beyond that, The Music Men, as well as another of your compendiums featuring Lee’s essay (The Italian Crooners Bedside Companion), furnish fans of the King of Cool with two invaluable bonuses — your own biographical background on the man and his career, as well as your account of a conversation about Dean that you had with one of the performers who worked with him most frequently on his series and afterward, Dom DeLuise. For true fans of Dean Martin and the show that bears his name, this is essential material that should not be missed.
And the fact that Lee Hale’s essay has now been reprinted in your newest volume, Star*Dust, gives those who appreciate Dean and his style of music not only the opportunity to read Lee’s chapter in its most recent iteration, but also to explore other legendary singers, as well as the big bands and their leaders, that rose to fame in the twentieth century.
Indeed, as with all of your tomes on music of this genre, we can’t help but be impressed by the fact that your latest features contributions from some of those who were closest to the artists about whom they’re writing, and that Star*Dust even boasts a foreword by one of the top singing stars of the late ’40s and ’50s, Frankie Laine, plus an introduction by Kathryn Crosby, wife of one of the most popular crooners of all time — and certainly a huge influence on Dean — der Bingle himself.
Considering the level of expertise that informs these books, as well as how entertaining they are to read, we can’t recommend them highly enough, and we’d thus encourage visitors to our site to examine them and add ones that interest them to their own libraries.
Several of these works, including your newest, Star*Dust, are available from Amazon, but we’d also point out that ALL of them can be ordered directly from your website:
http://www.RichardGrudens.com
Thank you again, Richard.
AWESOME SITE!
I’ve been to this site many times, but after reading about Lee Hale and seeing all the ladies who wrote about him, I finally had to send in a comment. This is really tremendous! It’s interesting to learn about how much he did for the show (which I love) and for all of the women.
Dean was one of a kind. He was “Mr. Cool” and I’ve noticed that even though his girls were all different types, they all have a certain look about them: wholesome but sexy too.
Great job on the site! Can’t wait to see what you come up with next!
Thanks, Lydia. We have a lot in store for the future, and we’ll do our best to keep you and all of our visitors happy.
Hi.
That’s a great tribute to Lee Hale – and so deserved. Is he aware of it?
Thanks for keeping a television treasure alive that we’ll never see the likes of again. And a period of our past that means so much.
Ed
Ed, we are honored that you took the time to look over our website, and deeply gratified by your kind words about the site in general, and our recent salute to Lee Hale in particular. To answer your question, Lee has indeed seen the tribute and we’ve been elated to learn that he thinks it’s wonderful.
Of course, when it comes to the subject matter covered by our website, we’re keenly aware that this is an area in which you truly know of what you speak. But for those of our visitors who may not be completely familiar with your professional background, we’d like to point out how close your ties are not only to The Dean Martin Show, but to The Golddiggers, as well.
From 1969-71, Ed was a writer on Dean’s program, and also penned sketches for the first two editions of The Golddiggers summer series. But the connection doesn’t end there. Ed’s stepfather, Harry Crane, served as the head writer on all nine seasons of Dean’s show…and there can be no doubt that Ed both appreciated and respected the beauty, talent and charm of The Golddiggers, since he took one of them — Sheryl Ullman of the 1969 Golddiggers — to be his bride.
But involvement with Dean and company has been just one chapter in Ed’s storied career. Before joining Dean’s series, he wrote for sitcoms such as The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, That Girl, and The Doris Day Show, and by the mid-70s, he was not only regularly writing episodes for such series as The Odd Couple, Love American Style, Mork and Mindy, Welcome Back Kotter, and Happy Days, but also co-producing the latter skein. In addition, he was the producer for one season of Chico and The Man, produced the summer replacement variety series that starred 5th Dimension singers Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis, Jr., and wrote material for several of Bob Hope’s specials.
In the ’80s, Ed crossed paths with another alum of The Dean Martin Show when he wrote for, and acted as Executive Script Consultant on, the CBS-TV series Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer. It was on that very show, of course, that onetime Dingaling Sister Lindsay Bloom went from blonde to brunette to play Velda, Mike Hammer’s beauty-with-brains assistant.
Among his most recent credits, Ed has written for, and served as Story Editor on, the animated TV series What’s New, Scooby-Doo? And he’s also penned several feature-length animated Scooby-Doo productions — some made originally for theatrical showing, others for television, and still others for direct-to-video release.
But Ed, even with all of your other accomplishments over the years, we’d imagine that — like so many millions around the world and all of us here at the Super Site — The Dean Martin Show, The Golddiggers, and all of the talented individuals with whom you worked on those productions, retain a very special place in your memories and in your heart. Thanks again for stopping by.
At one time I had a copy of the Christmas album that was recorded on the Capitol Records Label. Is there a way for me to obtain that prior music? I have tried searching for it, but have not had any luck.
Thanks for your time.
Judith
Judith, if it’s The Golddiggers‘ 1969 holiday album, We Need A Little Christmas (released on the Metromedia label), about which you’re asking, the answer is that while it has been out-of-print for many, many years, it IS possible to find used copies of it being auctioned all the time on ebay and for sale from second-hand record dealers. We’d recommend going the ebay route first, but if you’d like to conduct a quick global search of rare records vendors, there is an excellent website for doing just that. It’s called GEMM, and here’s where you’ll find it:
http://gemm.com
Once there, just enter the word Golddiggers in the Search box, and you should be greeted with many happy returns.
Now, if it’s primarily the music that you’re seeking…if you don’t mind not having the physical LP and the jacket in which it’s housed…and if you’re content with high-quality mp3-encoded versions of all of the songs on the album, which you can play on your computer, download to your ipod or other portable music device, or even burn to disc for playing on any regular CD player, then you might want to check out the following website, from which you’ll be able to obtain all of the music on the album absolutely free and faster than Santa can make it down the chimney:
http://falalalala.com/?p=11
Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas to all the Golds and Dings
To the girls,
I received the set of the Greg Garrison’s Dean Martin Variety Shows as a gift some time ago, and have only recently slowed down (in retirement) enough to watch them; they are a good remedy for the times we are experiencing now. I watched those shows when I was a teen (as much to see you girls as for Dean) but transitioned out of the TV habit when I went to college, about mid-way through the shows’ span. I didn’t realize until Greg’s explanation that Dean didn’t rehearse, and that everything was a one-take affair. It puts watching the shows in a whole new light; is it safe to say that you girls never knew what was going to happen? Were you, as a group, ever tempted to mess with him a little just to keep him on his toes? I would imagine the set was rife with practical jokes…
As I recall, Chevrolet was a sponsor of the Gold Digger’s summer show, and every intro had Dean sitting in an antique Chevy roadster,a group of girls would descend on the car and disassemble it, and another group would walk out and assemble a Camaro in its place, with Dean remaining in the car the whole time: am I dreaming this?
Also, do you all stay in touch? After rediscovering the greatness that was Dean Martin’s weekly show, I never knew what became of the Gold Diggers/ Ding-A-Lings, and I think it’s great that you have a site.
Even though Dean Martin is gone, we are fortunate that Greg Garrison had the foresight to release the shows on tape and CD; Dean’s memory stays alive through being able to watch those great routines over and over, and also because you ladies have stayed active in entertainment. Thanks for all those great shows. It’s good to see you are still out there, cute and curvy these years hence.
Have a safe and peaceful Christmas and a prosperous New Year
Jon
Jon, we can tell you for sure that the show opening that you described never took place on either the 1969 or 1970 Golddiggers summer shows, or on either of the two seasons of the 1971-73 Chevrolet Presents The Golddiggers series. So unless it happened on the very first season of The Golddiggers’ summer program (1968 — the one year for which we can’t vouch), we’d say that it probably was a dream…But then, how uncommon would it be for fans of The Golddiggers and Dingaling Sisters to have dreamt over the years about their favorite female singer-dancers?
What we can tell you with utmost certainty is that many of the Golddiggers and Dingaling Sisters have indeed kept in touch over time, and in fact, if you’ll keep your eyes peeled on our Updates section (or at least check back in every once in a while), you’ll see an exclusive story, coming up right here on our site early in the New Year, about an historic reunion of one especially well-known set of those gals.
Happy Holidays!
Well, I haven’t stopped by in a while and I’m happy to see that you have been updating the site with so much new content! It’s a nice present! I’ll have to spend some time going through it. I see a lot of new photos of Michelle and Lindsay on their Blue Eyed Soul tours and some stories about Lee Hale here. I’m sure it is all interesting and will make for good reading.
By the way, I’m listening to Dean sing some Christmas carols, to help get me in the mood for the holidays. It brings back memories of Christmases past.
I just want to close by sending everyone my best wishes for the holidays and I hope that 2009 is a year of great happiness and peace for you and your families.
Mike
Mike, it’s always a pleasure to have a long-standing and dedicated Golds, Dings, and Dean fan such as yourself return to visit us. We know that as a doctor working in the field of ophthalmology, you have a busy schedule, so we hope that it will be a joy for you, and not a burden, that we’ve just posted yet another update to our site that you’ll doubtless want to add to your backlog of material to catch up on — our Second Annual Golddiggers Super Site Christmas Extravaganza!, featuring lots of video clips of Michelle and Lindsay, past and present:
https://thegolddiggers.wordpress.com/2008/12/24/this-christmas-get-funky-bunky
And we wish Happy Holidays and a Happy, Healthy New Year to you and your family, too, Mike.
This is A-MAZ-ING! Last Christmas I left a comment asking if you could show Michelle Dellafave’s Red Rose commercial. You said you would if you could get a copy from her. I checked back a few times during the year and never saw it. But I had a little time now and something told me to look in again around Christmas to see if maybe it might be there…and PRESTO! I wonder if this was just a coincidence or you guys were saving it.
Anyway I think it’s beautiful and Michelle looks so stately and beautiful with dark hair and the way its all done up. When I saw the picture last year I said she looked like EVITA. But after seeing the commercial, I think she could PLAY Evita. She would have been perfect for the movie (She can sing much better than Madonna too!)
Thank you for showing that clip and also the others. I would love to see more. It would be REALLY great if you could also show some old clips of the Golddiggers and the Ding-a-lings. I know that might not be possible but it sure would be NICE!
Thank you for your write-up about the litter of Maine Coon Cats raised by our cattery and named after Dean Martin and The Dingaling Sisters.
Taffy Jones has emailed me and I was so surprised and happy I copied the email from her and have shared it with my “cat” friends.
I’m always looking for themes for my litters. One of my friends had suggested Dean Martin and the Golddiggers. Upon surfing to find names I came across the Dingaling sisters. Well that was perfect as there were 4 females. Unfortunately little Tara had a congenital defect and I lost her at about 4 weeks old. That is why there are only the 3 girls names there.
I went and perused your web site. How much fun is that?! And I found a picture of “Dean” (the kitten). Way kewl! The lady that adopted Dean was so excited when I shared your web site with her. Too fun.
I plan on using other Dingaling names and Golddiggers names when there is the right litter.
Again I would like to say thanks.
Lorelei Cauffman
Psycatics Maine Coon Cats
Lorelei, it was both a genuine eye-opener and a delightful treat, whilst roaming the Internet one sleepy night not long ago, to discover a variation on Dean Martin and The Dingaling Sisters of a decidedly different, but altogether winsome breed.
As you might expect, we were instantly taken with the good-looking and obviously talented ensemble that we found on your website, and we were hardly the only ones who felt that way: It was love at first sight, as well, for members of the GoldsAndDings group, with whom we first shared this adorable item, before passing it along over Christmas to the wider audience of the Super Site.
As we’re sure that Taffy Jones must have indicated when she wrote to you, both she, and her Dingaling Sisters cohort, Michelle DellaFave, were very flattered by your tribute to them, as well as impressed with the beauty and majesty of their feline namesakes (we might add that this is territory that Michelle knows especially well, not only as an animal lover, but having deftly mimicked cat-like mannerisms in essaying the role of “Kitty”, the tiger girl, on a number of episodes of The Dean Martin Show during the 1972-73 season).
While we’re sad to learn about what happened to little Tara (we want to emphasize that we’re talking about Tara the kitten, NOT the Tara Leigh), we are heartened by the information on your website showing that Dean and all three of his other Dingaling Sisters have now either been placed or are already in their new homes.
We salute you, Lorelei, for the humane loving care with which you raise these wondrous creatures, and we hope that our readers will visit your site not only to see for themselves the latest update on — and most recent photos of — the fabulous foursome on which we’ve focused, but also to hear their brand new, and we might add, purrfectly felicitous theme song:
Dean Martin and the Dingaling Sisters
Recently my mom passed away and upon going through her things I came across several record albums. These were her “regular” albums. Upon talking with my nephews I found out that my mom had passed her Christmas albums to my brother to record on cassette. (A cassette was easier for her to handle since she was 84 years old.)
When my only brother and sister-in-law died 14 months ago, before mom, the nephews got rid of everything. Threw away, gave away, whatever! I never knew that they did this until I lost my mom.
What I would like to know is how I can get a copy of THE 1969 GOLDDIGGERS WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS. It doesn’t have to be an album again; it could be anything that has the music. I would really appreciate any help you could offer.
Actually, Paula, we received another inquiry last November from someone else who was also trying to track down a recording of The Golddiggers’ Christmas LP, and we provided a couple of suggestions which should ensure the ability of just about anyone to obtain, in one form or another, all of the songs from the ladies’ vintage 1960s yuletide collection. Clicking on the link below will take you directly to our original reply that gave all of the details:
https://thegolddiggers.wordpress.com/comments/#comment-407
It has been brought to my attention than the opening theme song for The Dean Martin Show was Here We Go Again – words and music by Lee Hale. May I inquire if this song was ever recorded? If not by Dean Martin then by another vocalist, or, perhaps, as an instrumental?
Norman Meyerson….
Norman, although you didn’t specifically say so in your message, we assume that your reference to “Here We Go Again” was in response to the Musical Trivia Question that we posed at the end of our Tribute to Lee Hale. Just to refresh everyone’s memory, here’s what we asked:
What little ditty with words and music by Lee — first used as a signature tune for a regular segment on Dean’s series during the 1969-70 season — was revived a few years later in purely instrumental form as the theme song for the Dean Martin Roasts?
You gave the right answer — “Here We Go Again” — but identified that number as the theme for The Dean Martin Show, rather than the Roasts. However, that’s a minor quibble. We know what you meant, and since you were the only person, out of several who took a shot at this admittedly difficult challenge, to hit the bull’s eye, we want to extend to you our congratulations. While we’re at it, we thought we’d add a few grace notes about the theme songs used for Dean’s series.
As just about anyone who frequents this site knows, the original theme for Dean’s show was his 1964 chart-topping mega-hit, “Everybody Loves Somebody”, co-written by Irving Taylor and a man very familiar to viewers of Dean’s program as his longtime piano accompanist, Ken Lane. Dean would sing the first few bars of the song at the top of the show, and an upbeat instrumental version by Les Brown and His Band of Renown would play over the opening and closing credits.
After the first five seasons of the series, producer Greg Garrison decided that he wanted a new theme for the show — one to which he could own the valuable publishing rights. So he commissioned Van Alexander, the series’ assistant conductor and orchestral arranger, to compose a new instrumental tune, and beginning with the 1970-71 season, it was used for the show’s opening credits, with a soft, lullaby-like version of “Everybody Loves Somebody” retained for the close of the program and played over dissolving close-ups of The Golddiggers.
The following season (1971-72), Lee Hale took the beginning portion of Van Alexander’s instrumental theme and added the lyrics, “Don’t touch your dial, keep it right where it’s set,” etc., to assemble the now-famous opening sequence performed by The Dingaling Sisters.
The song hence became known as “A Whole Lot of Lovin’”, and the instrumental version of it, with additional music by Geoff Clarkson, was employed as the opening and closing theme for the remaining three years of Dean’s series.
It was during the 9th and final season (1973-74), when the program was retitled The Dean Martin Comedy Hour, that the Roasts were introduced, and that “Here We Go Again” — the little jingle used for some of the finales on Dean’s series four years earlier — was reworked as an instrumental piece to open and close the Roasts.
Finally, Norman, you wanted to know if “Here We Go Again” had ever been recorded — presumably, you meant on vinyl, tape or CD. The answer is: Yes, BUT…
The “BUT” is that the only such recording ever issued was on an LP made by Lee Hale, Van Alexander and Geoff Clarkson entitled TV Themes that received a very limited release on the decidedly obscure BBP Records label in the early 1970s. We made note of that album in our Lee Hale tribute, and even included a photo of the front cover jacket. But as you might imagine, it’s been out-of-print for many years, and is extremely hard to come by. As we had recommended previously in connection with The Golddiggers’ Christmas LP, one of the best places that you could try to search for it would be the database of the GEMM website (http://gemm.com).
Should you get hold of a copy, not only will you find on it the instrumental version of “Here We Go Again” that was used for the Dean Martin Roasts (under the title “Curtain Time”), but also the instrumental rendition of “A Whole Lotta Lovin’”, as well as several other instrumental interpretations of music used on both The Dean Martin Show and The Golddiggers series — all in stereo.
But as tough as it might be to locate a copy of the album, there’s a far easier — and we think in the long run, more satisfying — alternative that we’d like to propose:
The full instrumental version of “Here We Go Again” (a.k.a. “Curtain Time”) can be found on the DVDs of The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts from Guthy-Renker, and the vocal version of “Here We Go Again” (performed by Dean’s Girls), as well as the complete vocal and instrumental versions of “Whole Lot Of Lovin’”, plus a huge array of other music and jingles from The Dean Martin Show, is all packed into the 29 volumes of G-R’s The Best Of The Dean Martin Variety Show DVDs.
If you don’t already have them, we’d advise acquiring these sets as the best way to not only hear this rich abundance of wonderful music, but also to see it as it was originally performed.
Gentlemen,
I like the site on the Goldiggers and Ding A Ling Sisters.
My favorite was Tara Leigh. Can you post a biography and update on Tara Leigh.
Thank you,
Daniel Wyatt
Daniel, if you’ll scroll down to approximately the midway point in our Dean’s List section, you’ll see what we believe to be just about as complete a profile of Tara as anyone has yet done. But like you and so many of her other fans who write to us, we, too, yearn to see more of her. Toward that end, we hope you’ll note that since the time that you sent us your comment, we’ve posted some photos in our most recent update, entitled Catch Of The Day, that include shots of Tara and a number of her colleagues from The Golddiggers and Dingaling Sisters that have either rarely or never before been seen by the general public.
A while back, another visitor to our site had supplied us with links to a website that featured a few clips of Tara as Alexandra Quartermaine, the role that she played (under her real name of Renee Anderson) as one of the stars during the early 1980s of the long-running and popular ABC daytime serial General Hospital. Unfortunately, it’s come to our attention that those links are no longer valid.
But Renee (a.k.a. Tara) fans, take heart! We’ve uncovered two other excerpts running on YouTube that showcase Tara on GH — and one of them is from the climactic scene in which both her character and the character’s significant other meet their demise.
Thankfully, it’s all just fiction. In real life, Tara remains the picture of beauty and health, and we look forward over time to celebrating more of her legacy from her days with The Golddiggers and Dingaling Sisters.
In the meantime, here are the new links to some of her fondly-remembered performances on General Hospital:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tft_q1ivFoM
When I was growing up my dad always used to watch Dean Martin and he got me watching it too. I developed kind of a crush on Dean but I was also fascinated by the women on his show. They were so beautful, I wanted to be just like them.
When I first started using the Internet a few years ago I tried looking up some information about them, about whatever happened to them, but I couldn’t find much. Then along comes this site and it was like I was reliving the memories of all of those old shows. Lately I’ve noticed there are other sites that are starting to jump on the bandwagon. But this one is still the classiest and the best. The pictures are so well chosen and the information is interesting and very well written. I’m learning SO MUCH that I never knew. Only thing is I haven’t seen a lot of new stories lately but I hope you keep adding more. I also hope that they put out the shows again. That would be great.
Very truly yours,
Julie Richardson Reynolds
San Diego, CA
Thank you, Julie. Needless to say, we, too, would love to see the re-release of every episode of The Dean Martin Show and all of The Golddiggers series.
And we want to assure you that new additions to our site haven’t stopped coming. In point of fact, to paraphrase Al Pacino’s famous line from his Oscar-winning role in Scent Of A Woman, we’re just getting warmed up. Stay tuned.
Hello,
I could never guess in a million years that I would end up on your
site. I was researching the story of Billy Meier and his ufo’s, and
just never imagined that the two drop dead gorgeous girls from another
planet would be singing for Dean Martin! Wow what a small universe! I
guess this proves he really could schmooze with the ladies of any planet
couldn’t he!
I was only a couple of years old during the original run, but I remember
seeing the reruns, and you girls just stole the show on most nights (yes
Dean had a few good jokes too). It’s been great reading up on what
happened to the girls, and thank you for doing such a good job putting
the web site together! Wishing you and the girls all the best.
Trev
Thank you, Trevor, for pointing out the universal appeal of these daughters of Venus. We’ve long thought of the talent and beauty of stars such as Michelle DellaFave and Lindsay Bloom as being out of this world, and your message provides us with convincing proof that in harboring that opinion…we are not alone…
Is Lee Hale alive? I know Greg Garrison died at 81 in 2005. The book Backstage at the Dean Martin Show tells it all! Thanks for a great memory with the site!
Joe, we couldn’t be more delighted to report that Lee Hale is not only alive and well, but continues to be very active in the music and entertainment fields.
Dear Michelle & Lindsay. I am a Vietnam era veteran and proud member of VVA Chapter 32 in Queens, NY. I have seen you in Greenville, SC, and Louisville, KY. It is a wonderful thing that you do for veterans. I thank you, may G-D bless and keep you.
Paulie
Miss Sue [Sue McIver] taught dancing to my daughters Carla and Sharon Stokes in Houston. Daughter Sharon teaches dance at a University. We followed Miss Sue’s career and that of her son with great interest.
Betty
I just came across this site! I was 9 years old in 1969 and was just totally in love with Susy Lund! So much so that I never forgot her name and instantly looked her up on here! In hindsight I must say, I had REALLY good taste!
Thank you for fielding my query pertaining to Lee Hale’s song, Here We Go Again. Surprisingly, and coincidentally, Here We Go Again, as recorded by Dean Martin, is a track on a number of Dean Martin CD compilations. However, it’s an entirely different tune, and was written by one Don Lanier. I thought you might find that of interest.
Norman Meyerson……
Norman, not only is that both interesting and a remarkable coincidence, but we also greatly appreciate your calling attention to it, because it provides valuable information for those who aren’t familiar with Dean Martin’s recording of “Here We Go Again” and might otherwise confuse it with the Lee Hale-penned song of the same name that was used on Dean’s television series.
We would add that for anyone who hasn’t heard the Don Lanier tune “Here We Go Again” as sung by Dean and would like to give it a listen, that number originally appeared on the 1970 Reprise LP My Woman, My Woman, My Wife, and is available as a digital download from itunes and Amazon.com, among other sources. And for both CD purists and Dino completists, the song can also be found on Disc 3 of Lay Some Happiness On Me, the fourth and final installment of Bear Family Records’ Dean Martin musical treasury.
Michelle DellaFave…I finally know your name. That wonderful smile of yours. I was so awed by your beauty as a teenager and the highlight of the week watching Dean’s show. Lucky Dean…when I finally drove out to California from Nova Scotia in 1973 naively hoping to meet you somehow but in those days so hard to get information even who you were.
Saw a photo 20 years ago of a supposed alien called asket that always reminded me of you, now have put that puzzle together thanks to the internet.
Wow you are still as beautiful as ever and if I’m 56 …. well if you are ever in Vilcabamba in Ecuador…
Hello Super Site,
I wanted to post an update on my Janice Whitby fansite:
http://feildagentx.tripod.com/index.html
On the the eve of the 1 Year Anniversary since the fansite first went online, Janice herself has made contact and I’m happy to report that she is alive and doing very well. She left acting in the early 80s to pursue her first love, art.
Since then she’s been living a successful life as a graphic designer and has recently expressed a desire to get back into acting and making convention appearances.
She provided me with additional photos that I posted in the gallery section including her “Cloud Hill” performance.
In the meantime, I will be revamping the fansite with a new dot com domain within the next few months.
Additionally I just want to say that Janice Whitby is a class act and a very nice person. I’ve enjoyed the email conversations I had with her.
And as always, I want to thank the Super Site for feedback and support while I was building the site and I will continue to keep you posted on any updates.
Mark
Mark, we’re happy to learn this latest piece of news about the Janice Whitby Fansite that you created, and want to congratulate you on being contacted by Janice herself. We know that it must have been both exciting and highly rewarding to have heard from her, and it’s a tribute to the hard work and dedication that you put into assembling the site that she discovered your efforts on her own and wrote you to thank you for them.
Now that you’ve been in touch with her and she’s been kind enough to give you some direct feedback and input, it seems certain that the renovation that you plan for the site will make it even better and more informative than ever. Already, there’s good reason for our readers to take a look at the photos that Janice contributed to your existing site. And by all means, please let us know when the wraps are ready to come off the redesign, because we’re confident that fans of both Janice and all of The Golddiggers will be eager to see the finished results.
hey its reilly from Liz Kelley Dance Studio 1!! I’m going to dance in a little bit. see ya there Miss Liz!!!
Thanks for the heads up, Reilly! And if it’s your good fortune to be studying dance under the tutelage of the instructors at the studio run by The Golddiggers’ ever-graceful Liz Kelley, then make no mistake about it: You’re off to a flying start, because you’re learning from the very best in the business.
Now, with that in mind, don’t be late for class!
Salutations. Great pictures. I wish you had one for all the girls. I was not one of them, I’m male by the way, was 14-15.5 when that show aired. When that showed aired, fell in love with them all. One girl whom you have no picture or mention of was Jimmy Sue Cannon, sister of a girl I knew from church. She helped the family out by giving my sisters some clothes to wear, times were tough for us back then, lots of people are experiencing that kind of thing now. Jimmy Sue was nice to us and I was looking to see what happened to her these days. I heard she was performing somewhere, if I can find that paper I’ll send you a copy of it. Any way, why is there never any mention of Jimmy Sue?
James, we may have left out what is either her middle name or the second part of her first name — Sue — and that’s only because we didn’t know it until you told us (thank you for that). But by no means did we leave out Jimmi Cannon herself! As proof of that, all you need do is jump to the Dean’s List section of our website, and you’ll see Jimmi Sue among all of the other ladies shown there, arranged alphabetically by their last names at the time that they were a part of The Golddiggers, The Dingaling Sisters, or Dean’s Girls.
You’ll also see Jimmi in any of the group photos of the 1971-73 Golddiggers that are sprinkled throughout the site, and if you’d like to read a note authored by Ms. Cannon herself on some of her accomplishments in the years since she left the Golds, just click on the link that we’ve provided near the end of her Dean’s List profile.
We’d also invite you to check back here at the Super Site every now and then, as we’ll be posting more vintage images of Jimmi and other gals from The Dean Martin Show and Golddiggers series in the near future. In the meantime, we want to express our appreciation to you for sharing with us your own personal recollections of Jimmi Cannon while growing up, and for shedding light on an example of the kindness and generosity that you witnessed her display to others in need.
Hello Supersite,
In honor of Janice Whitby’s upcoming first convention appearance at the Boston Super Mega Fest, the time has come to go public and I proudly unveil the newly revamped (and now authorized) fansite honoring Janice Whitby’s illustrious career in showbiz.
Feel free to visit:
http://www.janicewhitby.com
Mark, we know that you’ve been hard at work retooling what started as a fansite and has now become the officially-designated website of Janice Whitby; and with your efforts, plus the cooperation and direct input that you’ve received from Janice herself, the results are looking mighty splendid indeed.
You’ve also reminded us of our own need to get cracking and update not only Janice’s profile, but the photos and bios of quite a few of the other ladies in our Dean’s List section, as well. That goal remains high on our list of priorities, and we promise to complete the job soon. But at least for fans of Janice, there’s now (thanks to you, Mark) a full-fledged, dedicated place on the web to explore her achievements and view highlights of her career, and we’d urge all of our readers to check it out. Once again, here’s the place to find it:
http://www.janicewhitby.com
I’ve been checking around the web since the mid 90’s for something on Tara Leigh. Actually it was some time before I learned her actual name. I’ve been checking this site for several years also. I had such a crush on her when I was a kid. It was a toss up between Tara and Mannix’s secretary.
I see, finally, a post from March 8th that indicates you’ve made contact. AWESOME !! I was worried maybe she had a sad story but it sounds like she is doing fine. Please notify me on any Tara/Renee updates. Love the site !
We’re grateful for your appreciation, John.
And while we’re sorry that one of the two famous objects of your youthful affection — Gail Fisher, who played Peggy, gal Friday to Mike Conners’ Joe Mannix — is no longer with us, we couldn’t be more pleased to confirm that The Dean Martin Show’s dulcet diva, Tara Leigh, remains the picture of health, and as such, is still as radiant as ever.
I hope you can convince her to get involved with the website in some way and share her stories, memories, etc…
Thanks
I own hundreds of Christmas LPs & CDs, and my very favorite is “We need a little Christmas” by the Golddiggers. If some of you have never heard it there is a free download on this website. It was originally released on a LP only.It is in stereo and it is fantastic. I just listened to it and it was very uplifting.
Joe, we’re glad to know that you, like so many others, not only make it a holiday tradition to listen to The Golddiggers’ Christmas LP, but consider it to be your favorite Yuletide album.
Its enduring popularity is a tribute to both the ladies who sang on the disc and the musicians who performed and worked on it — especially Van Alexander, who arranged and conducted all but two of the numbers; Sid Feller, who handled those chores on the other two; Ron Kramer, who produced; and of course, Lee Hale, who not only co-wrote all of the original selections on the album with either Van Alexander or Geoff Clarkson, but oversaw the entire production, as he did with virtually every project with which The Golddiggers were associated from the time of their creation in 1968.
We do, however, want to set the record straight on one point: There IS a website from which it’s possible to download all of the tracks on “We Need A Little Christmas” in the mp3 format, free of charge — but it’s not ours. We simply provided a link to that site, in response to several earlier requests that we received as to where the music from this long-out-of-print collector’s item might be obtained. So, for the benefit of anyone who might still be searching for it, here’s that link once again:
http://falalalala.com/?p=11
…Because particularly after the year that’s just passed, to paraphrase Jerry Herman’s lyric from the album’s title song, We likely all Need A Little Christmas Now.
For the life of me I can’t find the download. Can someone post a link to it? Thanks and Merry Christmas!!!!
LOVE this site!!!
No problem, Joe. The present is under the tree — you just have to look a wee bit harder to find it. Here’s all you need to do:
Simply click on the link that we’ve already provided in our previous replies. We’ve reposted it below for easy access:
http://falalalala.com/?p=11
After you arrive at the destination page, scroll down a little ways until you see an icon containing the word “Download” just above an illustration of a vinyl record and a red arrow. Press that button, and to the right place you’ll be whisked, where you can download the music, and the process will be brisk.
Just finished reading your Christmas story. One word: Fabulous! The ladies look amazing and as always your site presented everything with dignity, class and style. Also loved the takeoff on the Bob Hope TV shows. I remember them well and you got that down pat. Looking forward to more in the future.
This site is great! I was glad to see the girls again and get updates on what they have been doing. I’m especially pleased that Michelle and Lindsay have appeared at the Vietnam Veterans of America conventions as well as other veterans activities. Their presence is much appreciated. The Golddiggers were pin-ups over there. Thank you, girls. May God bless you both.
Jim Dugan
U.S. Army Vietnam, 1969-70
Life Member, VVA
Hi Jim, Hi Paul, Hi Patricia.
Just wanted to thank the three of you for writing to us! Michelle and I have been blessed not only to perform together again, but also to perform for our Veterans who deserve every moment of joy they can find.
We have loved every minute of it! Especially going into the Veteran’s Hospitals and visiting with the guys and gals and also praying for their recovery.
I had 2 uncles who went to Vietnam. So, this has meant alot to me…
God Bless All of You!
Lindsay
Great site! Love to know if anyone knows where an ill fan of Cathy Lee Crosby’s and Jayne Kennedy’s can send them a snail mail letter. Thanks!
John, out of respect for the privacy all concerned, it’s our policy not to give out physical addresses. However, we can tell you that Cathy Lee Crosby has her own website — http://www.CathyLeeCrosby.com — which contains a section with information on how to email her.
And for anyone who’d like to write to Jayne Kennedy, you can simply send a message to her in care of our mailbox here at The Golddiggers Super Site by clicking on the link below:
…and we will forward the message directly to her.
Speaking of links, John, we clicked on the one that you included with the question that you sent us, and discovered the richly-appointed website that you’ve created for fans of that granddaddy of all sitcoms, I Love Lucy. In view of how many devotees of Dean, The Golds, and The Dings also loved Lucy (including Dean himself, who worked with her on several occasions), we thought some of our visitors would enjoy browsing your celebratory site, which they can do by clicking on your name as it appears right above your comment on this page.
I always loved the Golddiggers and the Ding-A-ling Sisters, I never missed them when they were on.
But the one who you call Michelle, will always be Cat Eyes to me.
And Tara will always be The Princess. I’m sure, there were many that gave them names back then.
Lyn
Ahoy,
Do you know the actual title of the Dean Martin Variety Show opening theme song? And who composed it?
And I don’t mean Everybody Loves Somebody. I mean the tune that when it was used as the opening theme for his Variety Show it was given the following lyrics as sung by The Golddiggers: “don’t touch your dial keep it right where it’s at, there’s something big comin’ up on your screen, so settle back and relax ’cause you’re gonna get a whole lotta singin’ — a whole lotta dancin’ — a whole lotta laughin’ with dean”. It was also normally used as the closing theme song for his Celebrity Roast series, played as an instrumental.
Also, do you know the same two things regarding the tune that was used as an instrumental opening theme song for the Celebrity Roast series? It was also sometimes given the following lyrics of which I recall very few:”here we go again, here we go again, da da da da da da the show”. I’m eventually hoping to find out if these two songs, in whatever instrumental and/or vocal incarnations, were ever released on any music recordings.
I truly look forward to hearing from you. I really hope you can answer my questions.
Funny you should ask, Maximilian, because all of your questions have already been addressed — and right here in our Comments section at that. Take a look at this earlier inquiry and the reply that follows it, and we’re quite sure that you’ll find the answers that you’re seeking:
https://thegolddiggers.wordpress.com/comments/#comment-762
I’ve always had a crush on Wanda Bailey and would like to know where I may buy pictures from her Ding-A-Ling days. Also, when music by Ms Bailey comes out I’ll be first in line to buy it. I can remember when Wanda did the song “My Wife The Dancer” on the show. I happened to come across the song on 45. Every time it was played there was Wanda doing her dance. Thanks, Wanda.
Greg, we’re not sure of any place where you can “buy” pictures of Wanda from her stint as one of the original four Dingaling Sisters, but you can certainly view quite a few of them for free on this website.
And while you’re online, you might also want to cruise down the information superhighway a bit and stop off at our brand new sister site, Dean, Golds and Dings, to have a look at some stills of Wanda giving form and substance to Engelbert Humperdinck’s vocals in the number that you mentioned, “My Wife, The Dancer”.
For further details, see the reply to someone else’s question about the same subject on the Dean, Golds and Dings site:
http://deangoldsanddings.wordpress.com/pallies-lounge/#comment-140
My mother, Lynn Cheryl Steiner-Mallein was one of the original 12 Dean’s Girls. I have not seen any information regarding her on this site but I am searching for pictures and clips of her. I wanted to buy for her one of the DVDs from the Dean Variety Show Collection that contained the Golddiggers as I saw her during the advertisement for the dvd set on TV! I called and asked how the DVDs were organized and there is really no organization. No years, just names. Apparently dvd #16 says golddiggers on it but I am not interested in buying anything until I know for sure that she would be in that DVD. Has anyone seen this DVD set? Does anyone know which DVDs contain Golddigger scenes of the original 12 (1967-1968)? I would love any info or feedback you can provide me. Her birthday is in September so I have a bit of time to track stuff down but I would like to get started on this! 😉
THANKS!
Danielle Mallein-Noble (daughter of Lynn Cheryl Steiner-Mallein)
Danielle, you’ve run into a problem that has confounded not only fans, but as you’re discovering for yourself, even many performers and their relatives, attempting to determine what material is on which volumes of the 29-volume Best of The Dean Martin Variety Show collection.
We’re aware of one specific disc on which your Mom and the rest of the 1969 Golddiggers appear (albeit briefly), and we mention that item below; but since you asked about Volume 16 and its reference to The Golddiggers, we first wanted to address that subject and try to clear up some of the confusion surrounding both it and the way that ALL of the Dean Variety DVDs are labeled.
The fact is that most of the volumes in that set contain a mélange of segments culled from different seasons of The Dean Martin Show’s 9-year run, and Guthy-Renker, the distributor of the home video series, has never published a formal guide or index to the contents of those discs. Although we can’t be sure, we suspect that the strategy behind this approach has been quite deliberate — namely, because G-R sells the Dean Martin DVDs (as well as others that it markets) on a subscription basis, and thus, wants people to buy the whole collection. If, however, consumers had advance knowledge of what was on each installment, they might cherry-pick just the ones that appealed to them — a practice that G-R would obviously prefer to discourage.
Yes, it’s true that the cover of each volume features a list of some of the guest stars included on that volume, but even those listings can be misleading — and Volume 16, which you cited, and which is the only volume that lists The Golddiggers on the packaging, is a prime case in point. Here’s why:
Vol. 16 is actually one of two consecutive installments in the 29-vol. set that depart from the format of presenting highlights from Dean’s series in order to offer a single program — but in neither instance is that program an episode of The Dean Martin Show! Rather, Vol. 17 is an episode taken from another series produced by Greg Garrison, entitled Music Country USA, and on which Dean only does a guest stint.
Vol. 16 — the one that claims to have The Golddiggers — is actually an edition of Christmas in California, the umbrella title of Dean’s annual yuletide specials, which began airing the year after Dean’s series went off the air. As such, The Golddiggers featured on those specials were of the later generation that debuted in 1973 on The Dean Martin Comedy Hour. And anyone hoping to catch them on this DVD release will be out of luck, for while they indeed appear momentarily in the opening credits, that’s the last that you’ll see of them — the number that they performed on the original telecast is cut from the edited version that makes up Vol. 16.
So, Danielle, to return to the question that you raised, the answer is that you won’t find your Mother, Lynn Cheryl Steiner-Mallein, on Vol. 16 of the Dean Martin Variety DVDs…but you CAN catch her, along with other members of the 1969 Golddiggers, singing parts of the tune “Let’s Get Away From It All” as an introduction to a sequence of comedy blackout sketches, on Volume 12 of the Guthy-Renker set.
In fact, for you and anyone else who might like to see a preview of that segment, you’ll find a still from it that we first posted in the Striking Gold section of our website at the time of our launch back in July 2007. That image has since made the rounds of a number of other sites, but to see it in the place from whence it came, just click the link below and look for the picture of the 1969 Golddiggers in flight attendant uniforms, arrayed in front of a jumbo jetliner:
https://thegolddiggers.wordpress.com/striking-gold
Was there ever a dancer and choreographer named JD Stokes that danced with the Golddiggers?
Not that we know of, Stan, but if someone can offer us evidence to the contrary, we’ll certainly be willing to examine it.
Hi, This is Ron Kramer. I produced two albums with the Golddiggers, “The Golddiggers” and ” We Need A Little Christmas”. For some reason, I was thinking about a song I wrote for “The Golddiggers” album, so I Googled the title and ended up on this site. I must say that I’m rather amazed that after all these years (hmm 42 to be exact), there is still an active interest in this group. And it was nice to hear that so many people liked the Christmas album. I had a great time collaborating with the incredibly talented Lee Hale and Van Alexander…not to mention the lovely and equally talented girls. Or should I say “women” now? Thanks to all for some fond memories… Ron
Ron, we’re elated that you found our site and wrote to us about your work producing the first two albums recorded by The Golddiggers. We assume that the song that you were thinking about and which brought you here was the rollicking tune that you authored for the ladies’ maiden voyage on vinyl — the cheeky, flapper-flavored ditty called “The Kumquat Tree”.
As you’ve seen from the messages on this board, the Christmas LP indeed remains a perennial favorite, not just of dedicated Golddiggers fans, but among a broad cross-section of folks who enjoy listening to yuletide-themed holiday music. Given the strong level of enthusiasm that continues to exist for all three albums, it would seem a pretty safe bet that reissues of those gems on CD would rack up some pretty sizable sales — and represent a gift to all of us not only for Christmas, but one that lasts all year long.
Hi..great site that brought back many wonderful memories. I had the biggest crush on Jimmi Cannon and it was nice to see a few pictures of her on here…would love to see more.
Joe, you can already see a little more of Jimmi on our sister site, Dean, Golds and Dings (http://www.DeanGoldsAndDings.com) and its accompanying Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/DeanGoldsAndDings); and there’ll be even more of her, as well as all of The Golddiggers and Dingaling Sisters, coming to both sites later this Spring…so as the weather turns warmer, please check back.
Susan McIver; Wasn’t she in the first “Smokey,and the Bandit” movie. She was “Hot Pants Hilliard”? What ever happened to her? Haven’t been able to find out any information,or pictures. Thanks.
Yes, Ron, Susie indeed played the role that you mentioned in the 1977 Burt Reynolds-Sally Field vehicle Smokey and The Bandit, and here’s a clip to prove it!:
http://qa.anyclip.com/movies/smokey-and-the-bandit/hot-pants-hilliard
As for more info about her and pictures of her, a good place to start would be in the Dean’s List section of our site, with additional details and images to be found throughout our Striking Gold and Updates sections, as well as the pages of our sister site, Dean, Golds and Dings.
What wonderful memories.You ladies all look great.
Wanda
I seem to recall a “Golddiggers” episode in which a guy imitating Peter Falk (as Lt. “Columbus”) is interviewing a roomful of suspects, each of whom suddenly dies before he or she can say anything — while the detective carries on as though nothing had happened? I think most of the “suspects” were Golddiggers girls except for a comedian (Jackie Vernon?) who died the most melodramatic death. Anybody have any details on this skit? And who played the Columbo figure?
Patti Booth Julius ( a Golddigger 70-71) will appear on our blog talk radio show today, October 15th at 10:00am EST. The link if you would like to give it a listen is http://www.blogtalkradio.com/onthegrid and we would love it if you would call in and talk to Patti! The call in number is (323) 792-3071! Hope to see you there – On The Grid – Where Real Life Happens!
You can listen to the show in archive. Nancy Bonetti, a Golddigger from 1968-69 was one of the callers and it was a great show!
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/onthegrid
I don’t care who has the rights but I think the Dean Martin series and Roasts should be released in their entirety and at a decent price not the astronomical charge Gunthy-Renker charges.
What a fantastic site and what fabulous memories! Thank you, thank you thank you~ One never knows, I went on the audition for the Golddiggers in Houston, Texas and flew to Los Angeles a few short weeks after. It became the audition that changed my life and brought many lifelong friends, exciting times, travels and opportunities. I’m indeed blessed to have been a part of the Dean Martin experience. Francie Mendenhall
Francie, we are honored to hear from you, and it is our privilege to have this chance to extend many, many thanks to YOU for all of the great joy that you have brought to us, your fans.
We feel blessed to have been able to see you make your national debut with The Golddiggers on The Dean Martin Show; entertain both U.S. Service Men and Women around the world and civilian audiences at home during the course of Bob Hope’s 1970 Christmas Tour; and dance up a storm, display great timing in comedy sketches, and most especially, sing with that outstanding, glorious, versatile voice of yours every week on Chevrolet Presents The Golddiggers.
We continue to hold out the hope that the latter series will one day be available for all of us to view again, perhaps on DVD; but in the meantime, we’re delighted that we can still listen to your stirring solos on The Golddiggers: Today album, and to know that, as you mentioned in your remarks for our site’s tribute to Lee Hale, you continue to sing. Your style, grace, enchanting voice, wit and talent are gifts to the world that we will always treasure.
Thank you so much. It’s so gratifying to be remembered and well thought of. I appreciate all of you who continue to share our legacy~
Hello,
I am Mahesh, from India. I would like to get a simple clarification from your side, which would help me in my research, which basically is to document the shows and years of ‘The Dean Martin Variety Show’ in which they were broadcasted around the world other than the US & also their availability in markets as VHS tapes.
1) So as a part of this, i would like to know, when ‘The Dean Martin Variety Show’ (to be precise season 6 & 7) broadcasted for the first time in Europe (to be precise Switzerland)?
2) When were the ‘The Dean Martin Variety Show’ available for the first on VHS in US and Europe?
Thank you very much! Great site.
Mahesh, the only European country where we know for certain that any part of The Dean Martin Show aired was in West Germany. There, during the mid-to-late 1970s, portions of Dean’s weekly NBC variety series were edited down to half-hour episodes and broadcast on an omnibus program called Larry’s Showtime, which ran on Saturday afternoons at irregular intervals on the ZDF television network. On alternate weeks, the series would feature excerpts from other U.S. variety programs, including those hosted by Danny Kaye and, believe it or not, Jerry Lewis. The singing on the shows was left in English, but the speaking voices were dubbed into German.
As for when footage from The Dean Martin Show first became available on home video, a compilation of Dean’s numbers initially appeared on a collection called That’s Amore, which was released in 2001, while the earliest volumes of Guthy-Renker’s The Best Of The Dean Martin Variety Show followed later that same year.
Great site to great singer who gave so many joy and amusement.
What happened to Jeri Jamerson? Does anyone know?
The only news that we’ve heard about Jeri Jamerson in the last few years is that she was involved for a time in volunteering with an animal welfare organization. That would certainly be in keeping with the sweet persona that she displayed not only on Dean’s series, but even before that, as one of the Tony Charmoli Dancers on The Danny Kaye Show.
My cousin, Mary Anthony “Toni” Long, recently died. Her sister mentioned that she had been on Dean Martin’s show as a dancer. Does anyone know anything about this? I didn’t see her in the listing.
Jaclyn, in addition to all of the female cast members who regularly appeared on Dean’s series over the years — most of whom we’ve tried to include in our Dean’s List section — there were many other dancers and models who were hired for short stints, and sometimes, only one or two episodes. Your cousin may have worked on the show in one of the latter capacities; and although her name doesn’t ring a bell with any of us at the Super Site, if someone who was connected with the series sees it here, recognizes it, and contacts us, we will be sure to let you know.
I loved the Dean Martin show and the Golddiggers who added so much to the show. One of my favorites from the group was the sweet and talented Melissa Stafford. Is there any fan contact number or address that I may express my appreciation and good wishes to her?
Thanks ,
Harold D.
Harold, there is no specific website or contact address for Melissa that we can provide, but we do know that she is acquainted with The Golddiggers Super Site, so the odds are good that at some point, she will see your message here, as she has earlier ones on these pages that have also paid her compliments, and we think it’s also a pretty safe bet she’ll feel flattered that you, along with so many others — including ourselves — remember her from Dean’s program with such fondness and affection.
Great site. I want to include my picture. I was one of the original Golddiggers from 1968. Please contact me and I’ll send you one from the show. Thanks much. Merry Elkins
Thank you for getting in touch with us, Merry. We would be delighted to include one or more photos of you on The Golddiggers Super Site, as well as any biographical information about yourself that you’d like to provide, and we’ve written to you directly toward that end.
I’m looking to get as complete a set as possible. Does anyone know the difference between the following:
Greg Garrison Presents The Best of The Dean Martin Variety Show Complete 29 DVD Set (2003) – this is on Amazon
The Dean Martin Variety Show collection (30 DVD Set Colllector’s Edition). I can’t see this anywhere except auction sites. Here’s a photo: bit.ly/17j0Yr6
Also do those sets contain everything that’s in the new 2011 sets such as “The Best of the Dean Martin Variety Show: Dean’s Ultimate Collection”, etc?
David, while there is some overlap in content between the earlier Dean Martin Show volumes released by Guthy-Renker and the more recent DVDs issued by Time-Life (née StarVista), there are also many segments that are unique to each company’s collection. Thus, if you’re interested in owning the broadest possible range of material from Dean’s variety series, you’ll want to acquire both distributors’ sets, as well as an even earlier single-DVD anthology called That’s Amore, comprised largely of some of Dean’s solos from his show, plus a couple of his duets — one with Peggy Lee and the other with Petula Clark.
You’ll find a complete rundown of all of the musical selections from The Dean Martin Show discs distributed by Time-Life, comparing what they have in common with the Guthy-Renker volumes and where they differ from them, at the end of each of our detailed reviews of the T-L releases:
The Best of The Dean Martin Variety Show
The Dean Martin Variety Show Uncut
King of Cool and The Dean Martin Christmas Special (also sold, along with the other sets listed above, as part of Dean’s Ultimate Collection)
Just wanted to update everyone who hasn’t attained the opportunity of buying the entire Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts sets from Time-Life…well good news for y’all as it will be made available via a general retail release on 9/30/2014…link from TVShowsonDVD.com outlining it is listed below…http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Dean-Martin-Complete-Collection/20076
Wanted to present yet another important update on a new Dean Martin Roasts baseball edition DVD coming out on April 14, 2015 and all the details can be found at this link…http://www.amazon.com/Dean-Martin-Roasts-Hall-Famers/dp/B00SCDXSAG/ref=pd_sim_sbs_mov_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=0RBYHFDP5JWMVZYN6PSG
Would also like to include another new offering just spotted on amazon for an 8-DVD Collector’s Edition of the Roasts and all the details can be had in this link, which comes out on 4/15/2015…http://www.amazon.com/Dean-Martin-Roasts-Stingers-Zingers/dp/B00SCDXS88/ref=pd_sim_sbs_mov_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1Z0J1QC33ZEMD55KQT40
Absolutely!!
I certainly want to see all of the episodes of Dean’s variety show issued in their complete form. So much great music needs to be heard. This is Dean’s legacy were talking about here!
McpheePickler here, I have been gone from any of the Golddiggers/Ding-a-Ling Sisters sites. What has happened to everyone that used to join in on conversations regarding the Golddiggers and Ding-a-Ling Sisters.
Is there any hope there will be more Dean Martin Shows released on DVD and any chance of a Golddiggers show release on DVDs.
Hope all you loyal fans of The Golddiggers and Ding-a-Ling Sisters are doing well.
Take care!
Jon
Am enjoying this web site very much! Have been going through the Gunthy-Renker (sp?) volumes, and I was wondering, have you guys ever compiled a track list of everything that’s on them? A complete list of the contents of the G-R discs?
We have an index of some of the highlights from the Guthy-Renker volumes, Will, for our own internal use, but have not published a formal table of contents for those DVDs. But we’re happy to hear that you like our website, though we’d be the first to acknowledge that it needs to be updated — an objective we hope to meet in the coming year. In the meantime, we continue to post fresh content on a regular basis on our Dean, Golds and Dings Facebook page, and if you’d like to join us there, along with more than 2,300 others, including many alumnae of Dean Martin’s Golddiggers and Dingaling Sisters, we’d invite you to LIKE the page and feel free to take part in it at http://www.facebook.com/DeanGoldsAndDings
oh very sweet! Please! If you have a listing / table of the G-R volumes it would be a major help to me… by the way, I have found your other listings and tables extremely helpful. Yes!
One thing they would NEVER tell you is how many and which sketches and segments and were edited and what is missing.
Believe me there is plenty.
Not to mention the songs……….
I’ve seen more than one were the SETUP for a joke is edited.
That’s why i gave up on them YEARS ago,, shortly after the DVD FINALLY became available.
I have and had about 35 episodes on VHS that were AS AIRED and seeing them edit out important and GREAT stuff with a sledgehammer got to be too much for me.
AND
The fact that every time a face came on the screen it would have their name under it ruining the little time warp I wanted to take.
If you don’t know who John Wayne is……..
They should have made those switchable in the dvd’s but that would have cost Guthy-Renker another 3 cents a unit so that was OUT.
I am in Old school, But what i Loved Deans World in Youth!
I was 5-10 years when they Broadcast his Tv Show!
I was Living in Sweden and we are little bit of Italien and family to Dean!
Dino Saetre Dominique
Bernardini- Dottrie! – Vittone! Vulcaniere Domenique (silvula)!
http://www.olovskog.wordpress.com
I’m having so much fun just looking through this site. I wish this level of talent and class still existed on television today.
Love the Golddiggers!
Thanks, Richard. We’re glad you’re enjoying it. If you’d like to see a good deal more about The Golddiggers, The Dingalings, and of course, Dean — as well as catch up on the latest news about them — we invite you to Like and peruse our Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/DeanGoldsAndDings
Thank you so much for this wonderful website! I found it about a year ago and have been remiss in thanking you for it until now. I loved watching the Golddiggers and Dean Martin in the 1970s. I even have the Golddiggers (one?) record album “Golddiggers Today! Somehow I learned the names of a couple of my favorites and remember so many of them now 50+ years later. It is now a tab that automatically opens when I launch my browser so I can see if there’s anything new. You’ve done a great service to a lot of people and it is much appreciated!
Just placed my post and I goofed! It was the late 1960’s and early 1970’s that I watched them. I was an awestruck teenage boy then!
Thank you for your kind words. Although we haven’t updated the site in some time, we plan to eventually expand and enhance it. In the meantime, you can find a multiplicity of much more recently posted articles and photos about Dean Martin, The Golddiggers and The Dingaling Sisters, current through December 2021, on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/DeanGoldsAndDings