Bobby Sherman | |
|---|---|
 Sherman in 1969 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Robert Cabot Sherman Jr. |
| Born | July 22, 1943 Santa Monica, California, U.S. |
| Genres | Pop |
| Occupation(s) |
|
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1962–1997 |
| Labels | Various; see Discography |
Robert Cabot "Bobby" Sherman Jr. (born July 22, 1943) is an American singer and actor who became a teen idol in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He had a series of successful singles, notably the million-seller "Little Woman" (1969). Sherman retreated from his show business career in the 1970s for a career as a paramedic and a deputy sheriff, though he occasionally performed into the 1990s.[1]
In 1962, Sal Mineo wrote two songs for Sherman as well as arranging for Sherman to record the songs. In 1964, when Mineo asked Sherman to sing with his old band at a Hollywood party (where many actors and agents were in attendance), Sherman was signed with an agent and eventually landed a part on the ABC television show Shindig! as a regular cast member/house singer.[2][3]
Sherman made several records with Decca and another smaller label and was featured in teen magazines. In early 1968, he was selected for the role of a bashful, stammering logger, Jeremy Bolt, in the ABC television series Here Come the Brides (1968–1970). With the death of David Soul on January 4, 2024, Sherman is the last surviving member of the Here Come The Brides main cast. As of 1970, Sherman had received more fan mail than any other performer on the ABC-TV network.[3]
Sherman appeared on an episode of Honey West titled "The Princess and the Paupers" as a kidnapped band member and an episode of The Monkees titled "Monkees at the Movies", playing a pompous surfer/singer named Frankie Catalina in the vein of Frankie Avalon, performing the song "The New Girl in School" (the flip of Jan & Dean's "Dead Man's Curve").
Sherman released 107 songs, 23 singles and 10 albums between 1962 and 1976. In his recording career, he earned seven gold singles, one platinum single, and five gold albums. He had a career total of seven top 40 hits. In 1969, he signed with Metromedia Records. In May 1969, he released the single "Little Woman", which peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (#2 in Canada) and spent nine weeks in the Top 20. It sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc by the R.I.A.A. in October 1969.[4]
His other hits were "Julie, Do Ya Love Me" (US #5/AC #2) (Canada #3) (Australia #3) (written by Tom Bahler), "Easy Come, Easy Go" (US #9/AC #2) (Canada #6), "Jennifer" (US #60/AC #9) (Canada #32), "La La La (If I Had You)" (US #9/AC #14) (Canada #7), and "The Drum" (US #29/AC #2) (Canada #7) (written by Alan O'Day). Some of these songs were produced by Jackie Mills, a Hollywood record producer, who also produced the Brady Bunch Kids. In Canada, "Hey, Mister Sun" reached #19, "Cried Like a Baby" reached #10, and "Waiting at the Bus Stop" reached #31. "La, La, La," "Easy Come, Easy Go," and "Julie, Do Ya Love Me" all sold in excess of a million copies and garnered further gold discs for Sherman.[4] "Julie, Do Ya Love Me" was Sherman's sole excursion in the UK Singles Chart, where it peaked at #28 in November 1970.[5] The song competed there for chart space with White Plains' cover version, which eventually placed higher at #8.[6]
Sherman toured extensively through the United States and the world in support of his records and albums. He gave many concerts to sellout crowds of mostly screaming young women from the late 1960s to the mid-1970s.[3] The screaming of the young women was so loud that Sherman experienced hearing loss.[7][8]
Sherman was a regular star on the weekly ABC television network show Here Come the Brides from September 25, 1968, to September 18, 1970. He played the youngest brother, Jeremy Bolt.[9]
Sherman was a frequent guest on American Bandstand and Where the Action Is. A March 1971 episode of The Partridge Family featured Sherman, serving as a back-door pilot for the ABC TV series Getting Together, which aired starting in September 1971.[2] The show was canceled after 14 episodes.
Sherman was a guest star on television series such as Emergency!, The F.B.I., The Mod Squad, Ellery Queen, Murder She Wrote and Frasier. He has also been a guest on The Ed Sullivan Show, American Bandstand, The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour, KTLA Morning News, Visiting with Huell Howser on PBS, Good Day LA, The Rosie O'Donnell Show, Good Morning America, and The Tonight Show with both Johnny Carson and later Jay Leno. He was featured on 20/20, VH1, Entertainment Tonight, and Extra, among other television shows.
Sherman was a regular cast member on the television show Sanchez of Bel Air in 1986.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | The Monkees | Frankie Catalina | S1:E31, "Monkees in the Movies" |
In 1998, after a 25-year absence, fans returned to see Sherman in concert as part of "The Teen Idol Tour" with Peter Noone and Davy Jones. Monkees member Micky Dolenz replaced Davy Jones on the tour in 1999. Sherman performed his last concert to date as a solo performer in Lincoln, Rhode Island on August 25, 2001. Although retired from public life, he still appeared at corporate and charity events. He was ranked #8 in TV Guide's list of "TV's 25 Greatest Teen Idols" (January 23, 2005 issue).
When Sherman guest-starred on an episode of the Jack Webb television series Emergency! ("Fools", season 3, episode 17, aired January 19, 1974), he found a new calling. Eventually, he left the public spotlight and became a paramedic. He volunteered with the Los Angeles Police Department, working with paramedics and giving CPR and first aid classes. He officially became a technical Reserve Police Officer with the Los Angeles Police Department in the 1990s, a position he still held as of 2017.[8] For more than a decade he served as a medical training officer at the Los Angeles Police Academy, instructing thousands of police officers in first aid and CPR. He was named LAPD's Reserve Officer of the Year in 1999.
Sherman also became a reserve deputy sheriff in 1999 with the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department, continuing his CPR/emergency training of new deputy hires. Sherman retired from the sheriff's department in 2010.[8]
Sherman and his wife co-founded the Brigitte & Bobby Sherman Children's (BBSC) Foundation.[10] The foundation's mission is to provide motivated students in Ghana with a high quality education and music program, providing tools to pursue higher education.[11]
Sherman was born to Robert Cabot Sherman Sr. and Juanita (née Freeman) Sherman in Santa Monica, California.[3] He grew up in Van Nuys, California, with his sister Darlene.
Published accounts indicate that Sherman's relationship with Sal Mineo was personal as well as professional.[12][13]
Sherman's first wife was Patti Carnel; the couple had two sons, Christopher and Tyler, before they divorced.[14] Sherman married Brigitte Poublon on July 18, 2010, in Las Vegas.
In the season 4 episode of The Simpsons, "Brother From the Same Planet", Lisa Simpson develops an expensive habit of calling a 900 number for a heartthrob known as "Corey," loosely based on Corey Feldman. When her mother attempts to sympathize with Lisa by relating her girlhood crush on Bobby Sherman, Lisa repeatedly snickers and ridicules her.
NOTE: Metromedia released 2 versions of Christmas Album: one contained "Prologue"; the other replaced it with "Goin' Home (Sing A Song Of Christmas Cheer)"—rest of LP is identical.
