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Sunday 11 December 2011

Post 396 - Tommy Leonetti - I Remember White Christmas / A Handful Of Happy New Years


Tommy Leonetti was born on the 10th September 1929 and was an American pop singer. In Australia his most famous song was "My City of Sydney" and was used by the Australian TV channel ATN7 in Sydney for station identification into the 1980s. He married the American actress Cindy Robbins and was stepfather to her daughter, Kimberly Beck. They lived in Sydney, Australia in the 1960s and 1970s before returning to America.While in Australia, Leonetti hosted his own talk-show from 1968 to 1970 for ATN-7, and provided the basis for the parody character Norman Gunston (according to creator Garry McDonald). He had a major Sydney hit with "Let’s Take a Walk" with his step-daughter Kim in 1968. Leonetti's rendition of "My City of Sydney", as used by ATN7 for nightly sign-off. Sydney punk rockers XL Capris (with lead vocalist Johanna Pigott) provided their version in 1979, this promo includes blue-tinged portions from Leonetti's TV sign-off. Other versions were performed by yodeller Mary Schneider, 1990s punk rockers Frenzal Rhomb. Here to download is Tommy's Christmas single also from 1968 "I Remember White Christmas" b/w "A Handful Of Happy New Years" (101903), the single was produced by Tommy for RCA Records. Leonetti died in 1979 in Houston, Texas, of cancer, at the age of 50.

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