Killer Joe Piro
Encyclopedia
Frank "Killer Joe" Piro was a dance
instructor to high society
and popularized steps of the discotheque era of the 1960s and 1970s.
, the son of an Italian
tailor. He described himself as 'skinny and ugly', and, to meet girls, began dancing. Piro got hooked on dance by frequenting the Savoy Ballroom
in Harlem in his late teens.
He won his moniker at the dance contests that were a big feature of the New York City
scene in the 1940s. The “Killer Joe” nickname comes from a supposed ability to wear out one partner after the other on the dance floor. It has been suggested that the John Travolta
role in “Saturday Night Fever
” owes more than a little to Piro.
While serving with the US Navy in World War II
, he won a National Jitterbug contest held at the 1942 Harvest Moon Ball, and earned a transfer to Broadway's equivalent of the Hollywood Canteen
, where he strutted his stuff with Kathryn Cornell and other stage stars.
in Manhattan with such frequency that he said they offered him $15 a week to be a teacher and stay out of the contests. There he recruited as his co-instructor Carmen Marie Padilla, who was also a singer and later became the poet Carmen M. Pursifull
; he called their team ' ' Killer Joe and Carmen. ' ' Piro moved on to serve as master of ceremonies at the Palladium, into which thousands of dancers would pack each night. He would offer mass lessons in whatever step was the rage, and take on all comers willing to challenge his status as the undisputed master.
The Palladium proclaimed itself the "temple of mambo" and Hollywood inevitably capitalized on the craze. Piro can be seen doing the mambo to the music of Tito Rodriguez
on the 1950 Universal short subject, "Mambo Madness."
In the early fifties, he opened his own studio on 54 West 55th Street in Manhattan, where many in New York's high society came to take dance lessons. Invariably keeping a step ahead of trends, over the decades he taught what would become the mainstays of the discothèque scene: the Mambo
, the Cha-cha
and the Merengue
, then the Twist
and later the Frug
, the Frog, the Watusi
, and the Hully Gully
.
His students included the Duke of Windsor
, Sita Devi Gaekwar - Maharani of Baroda, Dame Margot Fonteyn, Ray Bolger
, Luci Baines Johnson, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
and, by 1965, more than a million other Americans via the Emmy award winning TV show 'I Like Things The Way They Are.'
His fame somehow spread far enough to be photographed by Richard Avedon
and to inspire a Filipino guitar band, the Rocky Fellers, to record a tribute tune, "Killer Joe," for Scepter Records in 1963. The record earned the band a spot on the Top 40 pop charts for a few weeks, though it bares more than a passing similarity to the Mickey & Sylvia
hit, "Love is Strange
."
Despite being the undisputed "King of the Discotheque," Piro never opened his own club. Asked why, he replied, "I like things the way they are. I don't want to be watching a cash register, watching the waiters - it would take all the beauty of dancing away from me and I would get old."
), "The Mule" (Skitch Henderson
), and "Viva La Pachanga" (Joe Sherman
).
In 1965, Piro released his own dance album entitled "Killer Joe's Internationial Discotheque." The LP served as an instructional dance record and repackaged a bunch of hits by Ray Charles
, The Clovers
, and other mainstays of Atlantic's R&B back catalog. The album promised it was as "the first authentic discotheque album by the King of the Discotheque," and was supervised by Atlantic Records
producers Jerry Wexler
and Nesuhi Ertegun
, brother of Ahmet Ertegun
.
The record features music to accompany the Watusi
, the Monkey
, the Swim, the Bossa Nova
, the Merengue
, the Jerk
, the cha-cha Watusi, the Hully Gully
, the Mlle, the Frug
, and the Shake, among others. Songs include "The Girl from Ipanema
," "What'd I Say
?", "Twist and Shout
" and "Hang on Sloopy
" as well as the main theme, "Killer Joe," by the Rocky Fellers. The album encourages "there is a great deal of fun waiting for you, so don't waste a moment, hear this album, and have yourself a discotheque."
for their new drink of the same name (vodka with a 7-Up mixer). Piro and his partner appear in an advertisement for the drink. In 1967, Piro served as choreographer for the stop-motion film Mad Monster Party?. During the 70s and early 80s, although no longer the mega-celebrity he once was, he still remained a much-respected regular at various New York discos and was also on the board for the New York Friars' Club
. He died of kidney disease at Lenox Hill Hospital
at the age of 68.
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
instructor to high society
Upper class
In social science, the "upper class" is the group of people at the top of a social hierarchy. Members of an upper class may have great power over the allocation of resources and governmental policy in their area.- Historical meaning :...
and popularized steps of the discotheque era of the 1960s and 1970s.
Early life
Piro was born in East HarlemHarlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
, the son of an Italian
Italian American
An Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...
tailor. He described himself as 'skinny and ugly', and, to meet girls, began dancing. Piro got hooked on dance by frequenting the Savoy Ballroom
Savoy Ballroom
The Savoy Ballroom, located in Harlem, New York City, was a medium sized ballroom for music and public dancing that was in operation from March 12, 1926 to July 10, 1958. It was located between 140th and 141st Streets on Lenox Avenue....
in Harlem in his late teens.
He won his moniker at the dance contests that were a big feature of the New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
scene in the 1940s. The “Killer Joe” nickname comes from a supposed ability to wear out one partner after the other on the dance floor. It has been suggested that the John Travolta
John Travolta
John Joseph Travolta is an American actor, dancer and singer. Travolta first became known in the 1970s, after appearing on the television series Welcome Back, Kotter and starring in the box office successes Saturday Night Fever and Grease...
role in “Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever is a 1977 drama film directed by John Badham and starring: John Travolta as Tony Manero, an immature young man whose weekends are spent visiting a local Brooklyn discothèque; Karen Lynn Gorney as his dance partner and eventual friend; and Donna Pescow as Tony's former dance...
” owes more than a little to Piro.
While serving with the US Navy in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, he won a National Jitterbug contest held at the 1942 Harvest Moon Ball, and earned a transfer to Broadway's equivalent of the Hollywood Canteen
Hollywood Canteen
The Hollywood Canteen operated at 1451 Cahuenga Boulevard in Hollywood, California between October 3, 1942 and November 22, 1945 as a club offering food, dancing and entertainment for servicemen, usually on their way overseas...
, where he strutted his stuff with Kathryn Cornell and other stage stars.
Dance Instructor
After the war, Piro started winning dance contests at the Palladium BallroomPalladium Ballroom
The Palladium Ballroom was a second-floor dancehall on 53rd Street and Broadway in New York City which became famous for its excellent Latin music from 1948 until its closing in 1966.-Opening of Palladium:...
in Manhattan with such frequency that he said they offered him $15 a week to be a teacher and stay out of the contests. There he recruited as his co-instructor Carmen Marie Padilla, who was also a singer and later became the poet Carmen M. Pursifull
Carmen M. Pursifull
Carmen M. Pursifull is a former New York City Latin dance and Latin American music figure of the 1950s, and since 1970 in Illinois, is an English-language free verse poet who was a top ten finalist nominee for Poet Laureate of that state in 2003...
; he called their team ' ' Killer Joe and Carmen. ' ' Piro moved on to serve as master of ceremonies at the Palladium, into which thousands of dancers would pack each night. He would offer mass lessons in whatever step was the rage, and take on all comers willing to challenge his status as the undisputed master.
The Palladium proclaimed itself the "temple of mambo" and Hollywood inevitably capitalized on the craze. Piro can be seen doing the mambo to the music of Tito Rodriguez
Tito Rodriguez
Tito Rodríguez was a popular 1950s and 1960s Puerto Rican singer and bandleader. He is known by many fans as "El Inolvidable" , a moniker based on his most popular interpretation, a song written by composer Julio Gutierrez.-Early years:Rodríguez , born in Santurce, Puerto Rico,...
on the 1950 Universal short subject, "Mambo Madness."
In the early fifties, he opened his own studio on 54 West 55th Street in Manhattan, where many in New York's high society came to take dance lessons. Invariably keeping a step ahead of trends, over the decades he taught what would become the mainstays of the discothèque scene: the Mambo
Mambo (dance)
Mambo .In the late 1940s, Perez Prado came up with the dance for the mambo music and became the first person to market his music as "mambo". After Havana, Prado moved his music to Mexico, where his music and the dance was adopted. The original mambo dance was characterized by freedom and...
, the Cha-cha
Cha-cha-cha (dance)
The Cha-cha-cha is the name of a dance of Cuban origin.It is danced to the music of the same name introduced by Cuban composer and violinist Enrique Jorrín in 1953...
and the Merengue
Merengue (dance)
Merengue El camino1ro de Secundaria-In popular culture:* Merengue was mentioned as a song performed between Babs and Charlie in the song by Steely Dan....
, then the Twist
Twist (dance)
The Twist was a dance inspired by rock and roll music. It became the first worldwide dance craze in the early 1960s, enjoying immense popularity among young people and drawing fire from critics who felt it was too provocative. It inspired dances such as the Jerk, the Pony, the Watusi, the Mashed...
and later the Frug
The Frug
The Frug was a dance craze from the 1960s that evolved from another dance of the era, the Chicken. The Chicken, which featured lateral body movements, was used primarily as a change of pace step while doing the Twist. As young dancers grew more tired they would do less work, moving only their hips...
, the Frog, the Watusi
The Watusi
The Watusi is a solo dance that enjoyed brief popularity during the early 1960s. It was the second-most popular dance craze in the 1960s in the United States, after the Twist...
, and the Hully Gully
Hully Gully
The Hully Gully is a type of unstructured line dance often considered to have originated in the sixties, but is also mentioned some forty years earlier as a dance common in the black juke joints in the first part of the twentieth century. In its modern form it consisted of a series of "steps" that...
.
His students included the Duke of Windsor
Duke of Windsor
The title Duke of Windsor was created in the Peerage of the United Kingdom in 1937 for Prince Edward, the former King Edward VIII, following his abdication in December 1936. The dukedom takes its name from the town where Windsor Castle, a residence of English monarchs since the Norman Conquest, is...
, Sita Devi Gaekwar - Maharani of Baroda, Dame Margot Fonteyn, Ray Bolger
Ray Bolger
Raymond Wallace "Ray" Bolger was an American entertainer of stage and screen, best known for his portrayal of the Scarecrow and Kansas farmworker Hank in The Wizard of Oz.-Early life:...
, Luci Baines Johnson, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
Jacqueline Lee Bouvier "Jackie" Kennedy Onassis was the wife of the 35th President of the United States, John F. Kennedy, and served as First Lady of the United States during his presidency from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. Five years later she married Greek shipping magnate Aristotle...
and, by 1965, more than a million other Americans via the Emmy award winning TV show 'I Like Things The Way They Are.'
His fame somehow spread far enough to be photographed by Richard Avedon
Richard Avedon
Richard Avedon was an American photographer. An obituary published in The New York Times said that "his fashion and portrait photographs helped define America's image of style, beauty and culture for the last half-century."-Photography career:Avedon was born in New York City to a Jewish Russian...
and to inspire a Filipino guitar band, the Rocky Fellers, to record a tribute tune, "Killer Joe," for Scepter Records in 1963. The record earned the band a spot on the Top 40 pop charts for a few weeks, though it bares more than a passing similarity to the Mickey & Sylvia
Mickey & Sylvia
Mickey & Sylvia was an American R&B duo, composed of Mickey Baker and Sylvia Robinson. They were the first big seller for Groove Records.Mickey was a music instructor and Sylvia one of his pupils. Baker was inspired to form the group by the success of Les Paul & Mary Ford. They had a Top 20 hit...
hit, "Love is Strange
Love Is Strange
"Love Is Strange" was a crossover hit by American rhythm and blues duet Mickey & Sylvia, which was released in late November 1956 by the Groove record label.The song was based on a guitar riff by Jody Williams. The co-writers of the song are of some dispute...
."
Despite being the undisputed "King of the Discotheque," Piro never opened his own club. Asked why, he replied, "I like things the way they are. I don't want to be watching a cash register, watching the waiters - it would take all the beauty of dancing away from me and I would get old."
Discotheque Albums
By the mid-sixties, American imitations of European discothèques—clubs where the patrons danced to records spun by a disk jockey instead of a live band—were starting to catch on, and with these clubs, the demand for new dance steps skyrocketed. Record labels feverishly rushed out whole albums of music to monkey or limbo by, or else mimicked the discothèque effect by assembling compilations of everything from the foxtrot to the boogaloo. Piro was invited to shake his moneymaker for the cover of discothèque albums "Discotheque!" (Enoch LightEnoch Light
Enoch Henry Light was a classical violinist, bandleader, and recording engineer. As A&R chief and vice-president of Grand Award Records, he founded Command Records in 1959. Light's name was prominent on many albums both as musician and producer...
), "The Mule" (Skitch Henderson
Skitch Henderson
Lyle Russell Cedric “Skitch” Henderson was a pianist, conductor, and composer. His nickname reportedly derived from his ability to quickly "re-sketch" a song in a different key.- Biography :...
), and "Viva La Pachanga" (Joe Sherman
Joe Sherman
Joel Powers Sherman was a Major League Baseball pitcher for the 1915 Philadelphia Athletics.The 1915 Athletics were one of the worst teams in major league history. Sherman appeared in two games at the end of the season, completing his only start....
).
In 1965, Piro released his own dance album entitled "Killer Joe's Internationial Discotheque." The LP served as an instructional dance record and repackaged a bunch of hits by Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
, The Clovers
The Clovers
-History:The group formed in 1946 at Armstrong High School in Washington, D.C., with members Harold Lucas, Billy Shelton, and Thomas Woods. John "Buddy" Bailey was added soon after, and they began calling themselves the "Four Clovers", with Bailey on lead...
, and other mainstays of Atlantic's R&B back catalog. The album promised it was as "the first authentic discotheque album by the King of the Discotheque," and was supervised by Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
producers Jerry Wexler
Jerry Wexler
Gerald "Jerry" Wexler was a music journalist turned music producer, and was regarded as one of the major record industry players behind music from the 1950s through the 1980s...
and Nesuhi Ertegun
Nesuhi Ertegun
Nesuhi Ertegun was a Turkish record producer and executive of Atlantic Records and WEA International.-Background:Born in Istanbul, Turkey, Nesuhi and his family, including younger brother Ahmet, moved to Washington, D.C...
, brother of Ahmet Ertegun
Ahmet Ertegun
Ahmet Ertegün was a Turkish American musician and businessman, best known as the founder and president of Atlantic Records. He also wrote classic blues and pop songs and served as Chairman of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and museum...
.
The record features music to accompany the Watusi
The Watusi
The Watusi is a solo dance that enjoyed brief popularity during the early 1960s. It was the second-most popular dance craze in the 1960s in the United States, after the Twist...
, the Monkey
Monkey (dance)
The Monkey is a novelty dance, most popular in 1963. The dance was popularized by two R&B records: Major Lance's "The Monkey Time", and The Miracles' "Mickey's Monkey" both Top 10 Pop hits released during the summer of 1963....
, the Swim, the Bossa Nova
Bossa Nova (dance)
Bossa nova was a fad dance that corresponded to the bossa nova music. It was introduced in 1960 and faded out in the mid-sixties.Bossa nova music, soft and with sophisticated vocal rhythms and improvisations, is well suited for listening, but failed to become dance music, despite heavy promotion...
, the Merengue
Merengue (dance)
Merengue El camino1ro de Secundaria-In popular culture:* Merengue was mentioned as a song performed between Babs and Charlie in the song by Steely Dan....
, the Jerk
The Jerk (dance)
The Jerk was a popular dance in the 1960s. The song You're a Jerk written by Nathan Diaz inspired the jerk to become popular.-Description:...
, the cha-cha Watusi, the Hully Gully
Hully Gully
The Hully Gully is a type of unstructured line dance often considered to have originated in the sixties, but is also mentioned some forty years earlier as a dance common in the black juke joints in the first part of the twentieth century. In its modern form it consisted of a series of "steps" that...
, the Mlle, the Frug
The Frug
The Frug was a dance craze from the 1960s that evolved from another dance of the era, the Chicken. The Chicken, which featured lateral body movements, was used primarily as a change of pace step while doing the Twist. As young dancers grew more tired they would do less work, moving only their hips...
, and the Shake, among others. Songs include "The Girl from Ipanema
The Girl from Ipanema
"Garota de Ipanema" is a well-known bossa nova song, a worldwide hit in the mid-1960s that won a Grammy for Record of the Year in 1965. It was written in 1962, with music by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Portuguese lyrics by Vinicius de Moraes. English lyrics were written later by Norman Gimbel.The...
," "What'd I Say
What'd I Say
According to Charles' autobiography, "What'd I Say" was accidental when he improvised it to fill time at the end of a concert in December 1958. He asserts that he never tested songs on audiences before recording them, but "What'd I Say" is an exception...
?", "Twist and Shout
Twist and Shout
"Twist and Shout" is a song written by Phil Medley and Bert Russell. It was originally titled "Shake It Up, Baby" and recorded by the Top Notes and then covered by The Isley Brothers. It was covered by The Beatles with John Lennon on the lead vocals and originally released on their first album...
" and "Hang on Sloopy
Hang on Sloopy
"Hang on Sloopy" is a song by the pop group The McCoys which was #1 in America in October 1965 and is the official rock song of the state of Ohio and The Ohio State University...
" as well as the main theme, "Killer Joe," by the Rocky Fellers. The album encourages "there is a great deal of fun waiting for you, so don't waste a moment, hear this album, and have yourself a discotheque."
Later life
In 1966, Smirnoff Vodka hired Piro to create a new dance called the MuleThe Mule (dance)
The Mule was a dance fad created in 1966 by famed dance instructor Killer Joe Piro based on the earlier "Mule Walk" which was popular in the 1910s.- The Mule Walk :...
for their new drink of the same name (vodka with a 7-Up mixer). Piro and his partner appear in an advertisement for the drink. In 1967, Piro served as choreographer for the stop-motion film Mad Monster Party?. During the 70s and early 80s, although no longer the mega-celebrity he once was, he still remained a much-respected regular at various New York discos and was also on the board for the New York Friars' Club
New York Friars' Club
The Friars Club is a private club in New York City, founded in 1904 and famous for its risqué celebrity roasts. The club's membership is composed mostly of comedians and other celebrities. It is located at 57 East 55th Street between Park and Madison Avenues in a building it calls the Monastery...
. He died of kidney disease at Lenox Hill Hospital
Lenox Hill Hospital
Lenox Hill Hospital, on Manhattan's Upper East Side in New York City, is a 652-bed, acute care hospital and a major teaching affiliate of New York University Medical Center. Founded in 1857 as the German Dispensary, today's 10-building Lenox Hill Hospital complex has occupied its present site since...
at the age of 68.
External links
- Killer Joe Piro, Who Popularized Discotheque Dancing, Dies at 68 - New York Times
- http://www.spaceagepop.com/piro.htm
- http://www.mambofello.com/articles/mcny.htm
- http://www.upperitaly.net/index.php?id=129
- http://www.streetswing.com/histmain/z3mule1.htm