James Darren, a luminary who captured the hearts of a generation as Moondoggie in the 1959 cinematic ode to surfing, “Gidget,” and whose on-screen reveries with Sandra Dee ignited the California surfing zeitgeist, passed away on September 2nd in a Los Angeles hospital. He was 88 years old.
A recent diagnosis of aortic valve complications had marked his final days, as noted in a communiqué on his official website.
Throughout a storied career spanning more than five decades, Mr. Darren’s artistry was anything but monolithic. His silken baritone voice delivered chart-topping melodies, and his filmography included roles in notable productions like “The Guns of Navarone” (1961), where he portrayed a Greek freedom fighter in the company of screen legends such as Anthony Quinn and Gregory Peck. His television legacy includes roles that have left an indelible mark, notably as a seasoned lawman in the police drama “T.J. Hooker” and as the crooning holographic lounge singer Vic Fontaine in the sci-fi series “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.”
However, for legions of fans, Darren would forever remain the dark-haired, conflicted surfer from “Gidget,” torn between academic pursuits and a life chasing the waves alongside the enigmatic Big Kahuna, embodied by Cliff Robertson. Ultimately, Moondoggie’s heart is won over by the spirited and diminutive Gidget—a moniker born from the fusion of “girl” and “midget.”
The film, an adaptation of Frederick Kohner’s novel—himself inspired by his daughter—served as a cultural harbinger, bringing the vernacular, style, and ethos of surf culture to the mainstream, further popularized by bands like the Beach Boys and films such as the 1966 documentary “The Endless Summer.”
“Surfing was already gaining traction before ‘Gidget,’” essayist Davis Jones noted in Surfer magazine in 2017. “But ‘Gidget’ became synonymous with the surfing phenomenon, much like how John Travolta became the face of disco after ‘Saturday Night Fever.’”
The genesis of the Moondoggie character is shrouded in ambiguity. While a Malibu artist had once adopted the name, Darren believed the moniker aptly encapsulated the character’s essence: a romantic under the moon’s glow with a canine-like devotion, as he explained to the Los Angeles Times in 2004. Darren also recounted that Dee’s mother maintained strict supervision over her daughter during filming in Malibu—Dee was merely 17, while Darren was in his mid-20s.
“I was utterly smitten with Sandra,” Darren confessed, recalling her as the perfect embodiment of Gidget, exuding a captivating charm.
During his audition for “Gidget,” the directors contemplated having Moondoggie’s vocals dubbed. But Darren, eager to showcase his singing prowess, convinced them otherwise. A spontaneous performance in a soundstage, accompanied by a pianist, secured his role as the film’s vocal talent.
Over the course of his musical career, Darren released more than a dozen albums, among them “Presenting James Darren” (1958), featuring the title track of “Gidget.”
Despite Dee’s departure after the first film, Darren, bound by the constraints of a studio contract, reprised his role in the sequels: “Gidget Goes Hawaiian” (1961) alongside Deborah Walley and “Gidget Goes to Rome” (1963) with Cindy Carol. (The “Gidget” franchise eventually gave rise to a television series in 1965-1966, propelling Sally Field to stardom.)
Darren later portrayed a semi-autobiographical role as a teen idol in two episodes of “The Donna Reed Show.” His charisma and musical talent also earned him a place within Hollywood’s Rat Pack, the elite circle of entertainers led by Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. Darren became a regular at their legendary soirées and even served as godfather to Nancy Sinatra’s daughter, AJ Lambert. His vocal stylings were often compared to those of Sinatra himself.
Darren’s hit single “Goodbye Cruel World” (penned by Gloria Shayne Baker) climbed to No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1961, and the Italian rendition, “Addio Mondo Crudele,” was a sensation in Italy. Another chart success followed in 1962 with “Her Royal Majesty” (composed by Carole King and Gerry Goffin), reaching No. 6 on the Billboard chart.
A particularly memorable episode from Darren’s career occurred in the early 1960s at a television dance show in San Francisco. A group of fervent fans broke through a door and dragged Darren onto the sidewalk.
“They began yanking out strands of my hair as keepsakes,” Darren recalled. “While the pain wasn’t pleasant, the adulation certainly was. The police had to rescue me and take me to the rooftop. I’d gaze down at the crowd, and they would scream. That was exhilarating.”
A Star Is Born
Born James William Ercolani on June 8, 1936, in Philadelphia, Darren was the son of Italian immigrants. He abandoned formal education at 16, inspired by the career of fellow Philadelphian Eddie Fisher, to pursue his dream of becoming a singer and actor.
“I wasn’t a trained singer,” Darren admitted. “I was just a kid from Philly who’d accompany his dad to bars and nightclubs, where I’d get up and sing a couple of tunes.”
Darren’s journey to Hollywood began with acting classes under the tutelage of Stella Adler, a renowned New York drama coach. A serendipitous encounter with Joyce Selznick, the niece of legendary Hollywood producer David O. Selznick, led to his first break. An unplanned meeting in an elevator with Selznick herself resulted in a contract with Columbia Pictures a week later.
Darren adopted his stage name in homage to automotive designer Howard “Dutch” Darrin, altering the spelling slightly by swapping the “i” for an “e.”
Darren made his cinematic debut in the 1956 juvenile crime drama “Rumble on the Docks,” where he played a teenager entangled in gang life. He went on to appear in a series of films, including the 1957 military comedy “Operation Mad Ball” with Jack Lemmon and Ernie Kovacs, the 1958 western “Gunman’s Walk” alongside Van Heflin and Tab Hunter, the 1960 social drama “Let No Man Write My Epitaph” as the son of a struggling mother played by Shelley Winters, and the 1962 melodrama “Diamond Head” with Charlton Heston.
After his turn as Moondoggie, Darren gravitated towards television, co-starring in the sci-fi series “The Time Tunnel” (1966-1967) and guest-starring on shows like “Love, American Style” and “Fantasy Island.” He later transitioned to directing, working on series such as “Beverly Hills, 90210” and “Walker, Texas Ranger.”
In the 1970s and early 1980s, Darren was the straight man in a Las Vegas comedy act with Buddy Hackett. The duo parted ways when Darren joined the cast of “T.J. Hooker” alongside William Shatner. His final film appearance was in the 2017 drama “Lucky,” a meditation on mortality in a small town, starring Harry Dean Stanton.
Personal Life and Legacy
Darren’s first marriage to Gloria Terlitsky ended in divorce. In 1960, he wed Evy Norlund, a former Miss Denmark, with whom he had two sons, Christian and Anthony. He is also survived by a son from his first marriage, Jim Moret, and five grandchildren.
Before filming “Gidget,” Darren had never set foot on a surfboard. He had to quickly acquire the skill, and decades later, he retained some of the techniques he had learned for the role.