Perry Como, whose singing style was so mellow that Bing Crosby once referred to him as "the man who invented casual," will be missed.
Como, who was a television regular either in weekly variety shows or specials from the 1950s through the 1980s, died peacefully while sitting in a chair in his bedroom last Saturday night, just a few days before his 89th birthday.
The great thing about Como is that he was exactly the way he portrayed himself on TV — a very pleasant person with an excellent singing voice who cared about people.
As singer Tony Bennett aptly noted, Como will be remembered for his "warmth, relaxed charm and genuine goodness."
He was always ready to give people a helping hand. Longtime friend Harry Pezzullo said that Como "was the most charitable man I met in my life."
Nothing unseemly ever was associated with Como. He didn't resort to the crass elements so frequently linked to today's entertainers. Either in song or in dialogue his material was always appropriate for families.
And he was a dedicated family man. He was married 65 years to his wife, Roselle, who preceded him in death in August of 1998. They met at a picnic when he was 16.
Como was one of 13 children born to Italian immigrants. By age 14 he was a self-employed barber and always kept a barber chair in his home, saying with some seriousness that he always had another occupation he could fall back on.
He enjoyed the easy-going vocal style of Bing Crosby and was soon to follow in Crosby's footsteps. He sold more than 50 million albums featuring such tunes as "Catch a Falling Star," "Til the End of Time," "Surrender," "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows" and "Hot Diggity."
With the success he had, it would have been easy for Como to get caught up in himself, but he never did. He had a self-effacing sense of humor, never taking himself too seriously.
People sensed that, and that's why, as he told Los Angeles Times music critic Robert Hilburn some years ago, "people don't feel any hesitancy to come up to me in the lobby and say 'hello.' "
A few years ago when asked to reminisce about his career, Como said, "For the amount of talent I had — and I couldn't dance, act, or tell a joke — I enjoyed a tremendous career."
He did indeed.