John O'Banion (16 February 1947 – 14 February 2007) was an American

vocalist Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...

and

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

Early career

O'Banion was born in Kokomo,

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

in 1947 and was performing in theater by the age of 13 as well as in a local Indiana band Hog Honda & the Chain Guards. By age 15, he hosted his own

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...

show on WIOU and had hosted his own local

television show A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed b ...

by age 20.

Recording and acting career

O'Banion was the lead singer in Doc Severinsen's band, Today's Children. He was managed by Bud Robinson, also Severinsen's manager. They parted ways in early 1974. O'Banion said that Johnny Carson was a big fan and supporter of his career. O'Banion made five appearances on Carson's ''Tonight Show'', and as many on

Merv Griffin Mervyn Edward Griffin Jr. (July 6, 1925 – August 12, 2007) was an American television show host and media mogul. He began his career as a radio and big band singer, later appearing in film and on Broadway. From 1965 to 1986 he hosted his own t ...

's and Mike Douglas' shows. He also appeared on '' American Bandstand'', '' Solid Gold'', and was the winning singer of the pilot of ''

Star Search ''Star Search'' was an American television show that was produced by T.P.E./Rysher Entertainment from 1983 to 1995, hosted by Ed McMahon, and created by Al Masini. A relaunch was produced by 2929 Productions from 2003 to 2004. On both versio ...

''. His song "Love You Like I Never Loved Before" was a hit single in 1981, making it to No. 24 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, No. 32 in Canada and No. 51 in Australia. O'Banion won the prestigious

Tokyo Music Festival The Tokyo Music Festival was an international music contest that ran from 1972 to 1992. It was organized by the Tokyo Music Festival Association. The first edition of the Tokyo Music Festival took place on 13 May 1972 with 12 participating countri ...

Award in 1982, with " I Don't Want to Lose Your Love", later sung by Crystal Gayle on her 1983 album ''

Cage the Songbird ''Cage the Songbird'' is the eleventh studio album by American country music singer Crystal Gayle. Released on October 17, 1983, it peaked at #5 on the Billboard Country Album chart. Four of the album's tracks became Top 5 hits on the Country Si ...

'' and achieving the No. 2 spot on ''Billboards

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...

chart. O'Banion also sang two songs for the Japanese period film ''

Legend of the Eight Samurai is a 1983 Japanese historical martial arts fantasy film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. The script is adapted from Toshio Kamata's 1982 novel ''Shin Satomi Hakkenden'' (新・里見八犬伝), itself a loose reworking of the epic serial ''Nansō Sato ...

''; "I Don't Want This Night to End" and "White Light". He also appeared in the films '' Borderline'' with Charles Bronson, TV film ''Courage'' with Sophia Loren and

Billy Dee Williams William December Williams Jr. (born April 6, 1937) is an American actor. He appeared as Lando Calrissian in the '' Star Wars'' franchise, first in the early 1980s for ''The Empire Strikes Back'' (1980) and ''Return of the Jedi'' (1983), and thir ...

and starred in the 1990 independent film '' The Judas Project''. In 1995, he released an album of

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s of contemporary hits such as " I'm Not in Love", " What You Won't Do for Love" and the title track " Hearts".

Death

Just two days before his 60th birthday, O'Banion died of

blunt force trauma Blunt trauma, also known as blunt force trauma or non-penetrating trauma, is physical traumas, and particularly in the elderly who fall. It is contrasted with penetrating trauma which occurs when an object pierces the skin and enters a tissue ...

as a result of being hit by a car while touring in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

. He died at his home in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

surrounded by friends and family. He had been battling the long-term effects received as a result of the trauma to the head following the incident in New Orleans.

Discography

Studio albums

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Obanion, John 1947 births 2007 deaths Singers from Indiana Road incident deaths in Louisiana People from Kokomo, Indiana Elektra Records artists 20th-century American singers 20th-century American male singers