In
1958, a down-on-his-luck songwriter with the unlikely name of Ross Bagdasarian
(1919-1972), plunged the last of his family's savings on a multi-speed tape
recorder and created two beloved and memorable songs: “Witch Doctor” and
“The Chipmunk Song”. Both were #1 hits and changed the fortunes for his
family and for his record label, Liberty Records, which was also on the verge
of bankruptcy.
Bagdasarian
previously had hits with Rosemary Clooney's “Come On-a My House” and
with his own “Armen's Theme”, released under his pseudonym of David
Seville.
After “The Chipmunk Song” was a major hit,
Bagdasarian parlayed this success into a series of record albums and singles
and an animated series called The Alvin Show (1961-1962). This primetime
animated series was made by Format Films, an animation studio founded by former
UPA studio personnel. Format kept up with UPA's quality with The Alvin Show
and other animated series like The Lone Ranger.
The
complete story is told in this book!
Review by James L. Neibaur
