Pat Boone at 90: Six Things You Didn’t Know About One of the Rock Era’s Most Successful Artists

Pat Boone — the second most popular artist of the first five years of the rock era, according to rock historian Joel Whitburn — turns 90 on June 1. He’s been in the spotlight since his Billboard chart debut on April 2, 1955, but surprisingly, even after 69 years, there are at least a few things you probably don’t know about the singer famous for his white buck shoes and clean-cut image.

He Was Signed to Motown

Most of his songs on Billboard’s pop singles charts were released on Randy Wood’s Dot label, followed by one solitary title on the brief-lived Tetragrammaton imprint. Then Boone was signed to Berry Gordy’s legendary Motown label. The company had many different imprints, the best-known being Motown, Tamla and Gordy. In 1974, Motown launched Melodyland, a country label. The very first single, released in October of that year, was Boone’s “Candy Lips.” That was followed in Feb. 1975 by “Indiana Girl” and six months later with “I’d Do It With You,” a duet with Pat’s wife, Shirley. The B-side was Pat’s solo cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday.” A fourth single, “Glory Train,” was issued in Feb. 1976.

By the time Motown issued Texas Woman, the first of two Boone albums for the company, the name of the Melodyland label had been changed to Hitsville, due to a lawsuit from the Melodyland Church, a Pentecostal institution in Anaheim, Calif.

Motown didn’t just sign Pat; his wife Shirley and his four daughters also joined the roster. “Mike Curb proposed that my family and I join Motown,” Boone told Billboard in an unpublished 2019 interview. “I was excited because I knew Mike was great at marketing and Berry had a marketing machine. I was looking forward to doing more R&B, which is what I started out doing. Instead, Berry started this country label with Suzanne de Passe. Ray Ruff produced my first album, which is the reason I ended up on the cover of Rolling Stone. Jann Wenner took notice that I was back on the charts on Motown, so he sent John Anderson down to do the story, which was very complimentary.”

When Wenner was asked why Boone was on the cover of the Jan. 29, 1976 issue of Rolling Stone, the singer says Wenner replied, “We sent a writer to turn over the rocks to see what would crawl out and all I can say with Pat is what you see is what you get. He’s been the same for almost 40 years. Hardly anything else has stayed the same so we tip our hat to a guy who’s been consistent. You may not like his music but you have to credit him with having success after all this time.”

To thank Wenner for the tone of the story, Boone sent 40 cartons of milk to the office in San Francisco. “I packed them in ice so everybody could enjoy a drink. He sent me a nice note saying they all lifted a carton and said, ‘Here’s to a nice guy.’”

As for his Motown tenure, Boone says, “They didn’t spare any expense recording me, with arrangements by Don Costa. Suzanne took a personal interest in me but Berry was busy making movies with Diana Ross. Suzanne had her hands full with the Jackson 5 but I made stuff I was very proud of. Berry signed me to a three-year deal with a provision that the masters would revert to me, which is how I know I recorded over 100 songs for Motown.”

He Has Something In Common With Superman and Batman

“I was a cartoonist in high school,” Boone revealed. “Nobody knows that. I drew cartoons for our high school paper. I was good with a pencil and could draw. I signed my cartoons with ‘Poo’ with two little eyes in the O’s. It was a combination of Pat and Boone. I had thoughts of pursuing a career as a cartoonist.”

Although Boone didn’t become a cartoonist, he did become illustrated, appearing as a guest in Superman’s Girl Friend, Lois Lane #9, dated May 1959. On the Curt Swan-drawn cover, Boone is playing guitar and Lois is sitting at the piano as Superman is flying into the scene, saying, “Pat Boone and Lois Lane are singing a new song about me! It’s a great tune, but I must use all my super-powers to prevent it from becoming a hit!” The big reveal in “Superman’s Mystery Song” is that the last son of Krypton wrote the lyrics, and subconsciously started each line with letters that spell out, “Clark Kent is Superman.” Oops!

“I was flattered to be in the comic book, because I’d been a comic book guy. I wish I had kept all my comics. My favorite was Plastic Man. I don’t know how many people remember Plastic Man. He could make himself into anything. And there was another one called Snuffy Smith. His super ability was his nose. Hardly anybody gets to appear in a Superman comic. I guess there have been a few. I can’t think of any. I’d like to think I was the one exception. (Ed. Note: Among the real-life personalities who have guest-starred in DC Comics’ Superman books are President John F. Kennedy, Muhammad Ali, Candid Camera creator Allen Funt, Perry Como, Jerry Lewis, Orson Welles, Don Rickles and This Is Your Life host Ralph Edwards).

Four months after Lois Lane #9 was published, Boone joined the ranks of Superman, Batman, Flash and Green Lantern with his own self-titled comic book. Pat Boone #1 was issued in September 1959 and was followed by four more issues. The book featured a fictional version of the popular singer and short text pieces about the real Pat Boone.

Elton John Was Afraid Boone Would Sue Him

In 2005, Boone met Sir Elton John at the Society of Singers’ annual Ella Awards (named for the first recipient, Ella Fitzgerald). Boone helped found and fund the organization, with a mission to provide health and welfare benefits to singers in acute financial need and establish scholarships for students seeking master’s degrees in voice.

“I was in line to take a picture with him and when it was my turn I introduced myself, ‘Sir Elton, Pat Boone.’ He was happy but looked sheepish. He said, ‘I was afraid you were going to sue me.’ I knew what he was talking about. ‘Yes,’ I replied. ‘Because of my recording of “Speedy Gonzales.” You copied the “la-la-la-la-la-la” for “Crocodile Rock.”’ I told him I took it as a compliment, and you can’t copyright ‘la-la-la.’ He told me when he only went by Reginald Dwight that he bought all of my records. He named six titles, including “Love Letters in the Sand” and “April Love.” He said, ‘When I heard “Speedy Gonzales” it really clicked with me and I wanted to use the “la-la-las” sometime and it fit in “Crocodile Rock.”‘”

You Don’t Need 23andMe to Know His DNA

When he was 19 years old in 1953, Pat Boone married Shirley Foley, the daughter of country star Red Foley. Pat and Shirley were married for 65 years, until her passing at age 84 in 2019. That means their four daughters have the DNA of two of the most successful singers of their eras, Pat Boone and Red Foley. On Sept. 1, 1979, Pat and Shirley’s daughter Debby (who topped the Billboard Hot 100 for 10 weeks in 1977 with “You Light Up My Life”) married Gabriel Ferrer, the son of actor José Ferrer and singer Rosemary Clooney. Their children have the DNA of Pat Boone, Red Foley and Rosemary Clooney. In a separate interview held a few days after Billboard spoke with her father, Debby addressed the role genetics plays in people’s lives.

“I often think talent is genetic. When I listen to my dad’s older records, I completely hear a tonal quality that I have. And with my grandfather, it isn’t so much a similarity in the tone, but there is a friendliness that either I learned because I was just exposed to it so much because my dad was a huge fan of Red and that influenced the way he started to sing and how he treated an audience from the stage. I was onstage with the family watching and learning from my dad and then I married a guy whose mother had that same gift.”

Considering what musical genetic material might be in their DNA, do any of Debby’s children sing? “It’s funny to watch what happens with kids and who they become. My youngest has that heatseeking missile attention that she was born with. So now she’s a successful actress, and she can sing. She is nervous. She doesn’t sing with confidence because there are so many singers that are around, but she can sing.

“You don’t have to have a perfect voice or an impressive range to touch people musically. You have to have a point of view and an ability to communicate something that makes people identify and I’m sure that she has that. It’s in her toolshed, and I’m sure she’ll use it. I saw her use it to my surprise in high school in plays and then an acting showcase. Suddenly she’s on the piano doing the theme from The Fabulous Baker Boys. So she continues to surprise me. My son has a great voice and does not have any desire to sing. He’s an art director for television and movies and he came out drawing. He loved to draw. That’s his passion, but when he plays around or does karaoke, I think, ‘If you had wanted it, you could’ve been Justin Timberlake.’”

Jump Shot: Boone Can Ball

Boone was 79 in 2013 when he joined the Virginia Creepers, a basketball team based in Arlington, Va., for senior men 75 and older. Creepers player James Martin was a personal friend of the singer and invited him to join the team at the National Senior Games in Cleveland that year. Team captain Del Martin told a local Arlington reporter, “Even though we didn’t bring home a medal, it was a successful trip and a once-in-a-lifetime experience to play with Pat Boone. Pat still draws the ladies and was so gracious to everyone. Plus, he’s not a bad player.”

In 1978, It Was the FTC vs. PB

Normally, the Federal Trade Commission is involved in heavy matters like anti-trust issues. But in 1978 the Commission went after the popular singer, claiming false advertising of Acne Statin, a lotion produced by a company called Cooga Mooga, Inc. Boone endorsed the product in commercials, saying it helped his four daughters with their skin problems. The FTC required Boone to pay 25 cents for each of the 13,000 bottles the company had to refund to customers.

Boone released a statement saying, “This whole experience with the Acne Statin matter has greatly improved my prayer life. I’ve had to turn the other cheek so often in the FTC situation that I’m getting punchy.”

The FTC displayed some humor about the situation. Spokesperson Susan B. Ticknor was laughing when she told The New York Times, “It’s a hell of a lot more interesting than mergers.” Maureen Reagan, daughter of President Ronald Reagan, supported Boone when she said that the lotion helped her with her skin problems during her father’s campaign for the highest office in the land. And after Boone reported that independent laboratory testing backed his claims about the product, the singer said he was going to make more commercials for Acne Statin.

Pat Boone is still active. He is the host of The Pat Boone Hour, airing on SiriusXM’s ’50s Gold (channel 72) Saturdays at 3 p.m. ET with encores on Sundays at noon ET, Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET and Thursdays at 2 p.m. ET. The show is also available on the SiriusXM app for on demand listening. SiriusXM will celebrate Boone’s 90th birthday on June 1 with a town hall. “We’ll have a career-spanning conversation and in-studio audience members will have a chance to speak with Pat,” Lou Simon, vp/music programming for SiriusXM, tells Billboard. The Pat Boone Town Hall will premiere on ’50s Gold at 3 p.m. ET and will encore on June 2 at noon, June 4 at 10 p.m. and June 6 at 2 p.m., all times ET.