Chubby Checker and Jose Feliciano

Chubby Checker, a Philadelphia rock and roll singer and dancer was best known for a dance we’ve all enjoyed. He reached the top spot not only with the same song, but also with the same record in 1960 and 1961, the only time that this feat has been pulled off. Chubby was crowned the king of dance by everyone from the American Banstandeers to the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. He made 32 hit records and performed in every major city in the country and in the world. In this conversation, Chubby told me how the “Twist” came about. The image is from a TV show we appeared on in Milwaukee.

Puerto Rican musician, singer, and composer Jose Feliciano was one of the first singers to get into trouble singing his version of the Star Spangled Banner. At the 1968 World Series, his controversial slow Latin Jazz version of the National Anthem damaged his career in the months that followed. He gave me his side of the story at the 1970 Summerfest in Milwaukee.