"16 Candles" the flame is out...

[ChargerMike]

Johnny Maestro dead of cancer at 70....


Singer Johnny Maestro, who performed the 1958 doo-wop hit "16 Candles" with The Crests and enjoyed a decades-long career with The Brooklyn Bridge, has died of cancer. He was 70.

Les Cauchi, a friend and original Brooklyn Bridge member, said Maestro - born John Mastrangelo - died late Wednesday in Florida.

After beginning his career in the 1950s with The Crests - one of the first interracial singing groups - Maestro joined a local New York group, The Del-Satins. It merged with a Long Island band, The Rhythm Method, to form Johnny Maestro and The Brooklyn Bridge in 1968.

Maestro's last performance was Jan. 17, when The Brooklyn Bridge was among groups appearing at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut. It was billed as "Bowzer's Ultimate Doo-Wop Party."

"As frail and weak as Johnny seemed, I knew he didn't want to have to cancel," host Jon "Bowzer" Bauman said in an e-mailed statement. "I told him afterward it was the most courageous performance I'd ever seen. As frail as he looked, that's how strong he sounded.


RIP Johnny

[LTS TRN 2]

It's also Nancy Pelosi's 70th birthday!

"it's my birthday, too, yeah..."

[Goober McTuber]

I remember the Brookln Bridge for their song whose title could describe LTS TRN 2’ s discovery of this board: "The Worst That Could Happen".

[Goober McTuber]

According to wikipedia, "The Worst That Could Happen" appeared on the list of songs deemed inappropriate by Clear Channel following the September 11, 2001 attacks .

Girl, I heard you're getting married
Heard you're getting married, this time you're really sure
And this is the end, they say you really mean it
This guy's the one that makes you feel so safe, so sane and so secure
And, baby, if he loves you more than me
Maybe it's the best thing
Maybe it's the best thing for you
But it's the worst that could happen to me

I'll never get married
Never get married, you know that's not my scene
But a girl like you needs to be married
I've known all along you couldn't live forever in between
And, baby, if he loves you more than me
Maybe it's the best thing
Maybe it's the best thing for you
But it's the worst that could happen to me

And, girl, I don't really blame you for having a dream of your own
Hey, girl, I don't really blame you
A woman like you needs a house and a home, baby
If he really loves you more than me
Maybe it's the best thing
Maybe it's the best thing for you
But it's the worst that could happen

Oh, girl, don't wanna get married
Girl, I'm never, never gonna marry, no no
No, it's the worst that could happen
The worst that could happen
Oh, girl, the worst that could happen

[Dinsdale]

No way, Jose! I call FIB! You beat up my face!

Sin,
Long Duk Dong

[Wolfman]

did not know he lived across the "border" (Caloosahatchie River) form me in Cape Coral FL. 70 ? Uh oh.

[ChargerMike]

...he means uh oh....people are checking out left and right that are our age or younger.


ps. Johnny's widow looks to be on the way to a Rumplesque future (as long as that future may last).

[Dinsdale]

Did you party with his wife in the old days?

I'm not completely ruling the possibility out.

[Wolfman]

CM is correct about the "checking out" part.

[Mace]

CM is correct about the "checking out" part.

Yeah, I know what you and CM are talking about. Wasn't it Mickey Mantle who said "if I knew I was going to live this long, I'd have taken better care of myself"? Yeah, don't we all.

[Wolfman]

I'm fairly certain that had I not quit smoking when I was 50, that I wouldn't be this far. I'll be 71 in May and got a good shot at at least 80. Now if I can only lose a half a ton or so.

[BarFlie]

I'm fairly certain that had I not quit smoking when I was 50, that I wouldn't be this far. I'll be 71 in May and got a good shot at at least 80. Now if I can only lose a half a ton or so.

I quit when I was 48. I'll be 63 this summer. A lot of friends of mine are long gone and smoking was often a big factor.