Roy Orbison

Actor

April 23, 1936 (52 years)

† December 6, 1988

Vernon, Texas, USA

Biography

Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist known for his distinctive and powerful voice, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. Orbison's most successful periods were in the early 1960s and the late 1980s. Many of Orbison's songs conveyed vulnerability at a time when most male performers projected strength. He performed with minimal motion and in black clothes, matching his dyed black hair and dark sunglasses. Born in …

Filmography

7.5

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

Self (archive footage)

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson is a talk show hosted by Johnny Carson under The Tonight Show franchise from 1962 to 1992. It originally aired during late-night. For its first ten years, Carson's Tonight Show was based in New York City with occasional trips to Burbank, California; in May 1972, the show moved permanently to Burbank, California. In 2002, The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson was ranked #12 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.

6.7

Top of the Pops

Self

The biggest stars, the most iconic performances, the most outrageous outfits – it’s Britain’s number one pop show.

6.9

Saturday Night Live

Self - Musical Guest

A late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels. The show's comedy sketches, which parody contemporary culture and politics, are performed by a large and varying cast of repertory and newer cast members. Each episode is hosted by a celebrity guest, who usually delivers an opening monologue and performs in sketches with the cast, and features performances by a musical guest.

5.3

Wogan

Self

Chat show hosted by Terry Wogan, featuring live studio interviews with famous and notable personalities.

6.8

The Ed Sullivan Show

Self

The Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in September 1971 by the CBS Sunday Night Movie, which ran only one season and was eventually replaced by other shows. In 2002, The Ed Sullivan Show was ranked #15 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.

7.7

Classic Albums

Self (archive footage)

A documentary series about pop and rock albums that are considered the best or most distinctive of a well-known band or musician or that exemplify a stage in the history of music.

8.1

The Midnight Special

Self

The Midnight Special is an American late-night musical variety series that aired on NBC during the 1970s and early 1980s, created and produced by Burt Sugarman. It premiered as a special on August 19, 1972, then began its run as a regular series on February 2, 1973; its last episode was on May 1, 1981. The ninety-minute program followed the Friday night edition of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. The show typically featured guest hosts, except for a period from July 1975 through March 1976 when singer Helen Reddy served as the regular host. Wolfman Jack served as the announcer and frequent guest host. The series also occasionally aired vintage footage of older acts. As the program neared the end of its run in the early 1980s, it began to frequently use lip-synched performances rather than live. The program also featured occasional comedic performances such as Richard Pryor and Andy Kaufman.

5.0

Legends

Self (archive footage)

The story of the big names that have shaped the musical genres, plus an occasional stopgap for the new rock 'n' roll - comedy.

6.7

The Dick Clark Show

Self

The Dick Clark Show is an American musical variety show broadcast weekly in the United States on the ABC television network 7:30-8 PM on Saturdays from February 15, 1958 through September 10, 1960, sponsored by Beechnut Gum.

6.4

Shindig!

Self - Singer

Shindig! is an American musical variety series which aired on ABC from September 16, 1964 to January 8, 1966. The show was hosted by Jimmy O'Neill, a disc jockey in Los Angeles at the time who also created the show along with his wife Sharon Sheeley and production executive Art Stolnitz. The original pilot was rejected by ABC and David Sontag, then Executive Producer of ABC, redeveloped and completely redesigned the show. A new pilot with a new cast of artists was shot starring Sam Cooke. That pilot aired as the premiere episode.

6.5

The Johnny Cash Show

Self

The Johnny Cash Show was an American television music variety show hosted by Johnny Cash. The Screen Gems 58-episode series ran from June 7, 1969 to March 31, 1971 on ABC; it was taped at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. The show reached No. 17 in the Nielsen ratings in 1970. Cash opened each show, and its regulars included members of his touring troupe, June Carter Cash and the Carter Family, The Statler Brothers, Carl Perkins, and The Tennessee Three, with Australian-born musical director-arranger-conductor Bill Walker. The Statler Brothers performed brief comic interludes. It featured many folk-country musicians, such as Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Linda Ronstadt, Kris Kristofferson, Mickey Newbury, Neil Young, Gordon Lightfoot, Merle Haggard, James Taylor and Tammy Wynette. It also featured other musicians such as jazz great Louis Armstrong, who died eight months after appearing on the show.

6.7

Just Our Luck

Just Our Luck is a short-lived American sitcom which aired on the American Broadcasting Company in the fall of 1983. Created by brothers Lawrence and Charles Gordon, it was considered a modernized version of the classic 1960s sitcom I Dream of Jeannie. The series stars Richard Gilliland as a mild-mannered TV weatherman for KPOX-TV, and T. K. Carter as a hip, fun-loving 3,000-year-old genie who is freed by Gilliland after being imprisoned in his bottle for nearly two centuries. The series was produced by Lorimar Productions, and initially promoted by ABC as one of its new ambitious comedies along with Webster. Just Our Luck was created to compete against The A-Team on NBC but earned low ratings for much of its run. It was poorly received by critics, however, and was the subject of controversy when the NAACP charged the show with promoting negative stereotypes of African-Americans. The NAACP originally campaigned to have the show removed but later settled for a degree of creative control in the show's development. This included changes to Carter's dialogue, the hiring of black staff writers and the addition of Leonard Simon to the cast. The show was cancelled after three months.

6.0

She's Having a Baby

Roy Orbison (uncredited)

Jake and Kristy Briggs are newlyweds. Being young, they are perhaps a bit unprepared for the full reality of marriage and all that it (and their parents) expect from them. Do they want babies? Their parents certainly want them to. Is married life all that there is? Things certainly aren't helped by Jake's friend Davis, who always seems to turn up just in time to put a spanner in the works.

8.4

McCartney 3, 2, 1

Self (archive footage)

Paul McCartney sits down for a rare in-depth one-on-one with legendary producer Rick Rubin to discuss his ground breaking work with The Beatles, the emblematic 70s arena rock of Wings and his 50 years and counting as a solo artist.

7.6

Roy Orbison and Friends: A Black and White Night

Self - Lead Vocals/Guitar

Recorded live at the Coconut Grove in Los Angeles, Roy is joined by an eclectic ensemble of rock and roll superstars including Jackson Browne, Elvis Costello, T-Bone Burnett, J.D. Souther, Jennifer Warnes, k.d. lang, Bonnie Raitt, Bruce Springsteen and Tom Waits.

7.6

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: Runnin' Down a Dream

Self (archive footage)

Directed by Peter Bogdanovich and packed with rare concert footage and home movies, this documentary explores the history of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, including Petty's famous collaborations and notorious clashes with the record industry. Interviews with musical luminaries including Jackson Browne, George Harrison, Eddie Vedder, Roger McGuinn, Jeff Lynne, Dave Stewart and Petty himself shed some revelatory vision.

7.3

Chuck Berry: Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll

Self

St. Louis, 1986. For Chuck Berry's 60th, Keith Richards assembles a pickup band of Robert Cray, Joey Spampinato, Eric Clapton, himself and long-time Berry pianist, Johnnie Johnson. Joined on stage by Etta James, Linda Ronstadt and Julian Lennon, Berry performs his classic rock songs. His abilities as a composer, lyricist, singer, musician and entertainer are on display and, in behind-the-scenes interviews, are discussed by Bo Diddley, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bruce Springstein, the Everly Brothers, Roy Orbison and others. There's even a rarity for Berry—a rehearsal. Archival footage from the early 1950s and a duet with John Lennon round out this portrait of a master.

5.9

Roadie

Self

A young Texas good ol' boy has a knack with electronic equipment, and that talent gets him a job as a roadie with a raucous traveling rock-and-roll show.

6.2

In Dreams: The Roy Orbison Story

Self (archive footage)

Roy Orbison - In Dreams is the ultimate exclusive music documentary of the life of Roy Orbison. It provides in-depth insights into his legendary career with classic performances, personal home movies and photos, location footage and interviews with the great and the humble that he touched with his music.

N/A

Roy Orbison: Black and White Night 30

Self

Black and White Night 30 is a re-imagined, re-edited, remastered and expanded version of the original television special. Re-edited by Roy's youngest son Alex Orbison, the program has been restored to reflect the correct set order as the audience who attended the show saw it.