#Interestingly Philippine prosecutors suspected Rod Lauren of arranging the killing... Lauren denied any involvement and fled the country before charges were filed. For years, the case dragged on. He was a fugitive back in the Philippines. #RodLauren #NidaBlanca #OneHitWondered
Nida Blance publicity photo
#Interestingly A key turning point came through location shooting: while working on a film in the Philippines, Rod Lauren met Filipino film/TV icon Nida Blanca. They married in the US in 1979… Nida Blanca was murdered in Manila on Nov. 7, 2001. #RodLauren #NidaBlanca #OneHitWondered
#Interestingly On TV, Rod Lauren mostly worked as a guest-star: shows like Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Combat!, and Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C… In movies, he did a run of low-budget flicks (if remembered, it’s for The Crawling Hand, later gaining cult afterlife on MST3K). #MST3K #RodLauren #OneHitWondered
#OneHitHistory Rod Lauren’s career didn’t go the way his record company, RCA Victor, planned… His follow-up records didn’t match the breakout of his only US #Top40 hit, “If I Had A Girl,” and his center of gravity shifted toward acting. #RodLauren #OneHitWondered
#OneHitHistory The week ending January 11, 1960, American singer/actor Rod Lauren earned US #OneHitWonder honors when his teen-pop ballad “If I Had A Girl” entered the US #Billboard #Top40 at #36. The single spent 5 weeks on the chart, peaking at #31. #RodLauren #OneHitWondered
#Interestingly Back in California, Rod Lauren lived quietly in his hometown of Tracy. But the burden of suspicion never let up. On July 11, 2007, Rod Lauren took his own life… jumping from a second-story balcony at the Tracy Inn, where he had been staying. He was 67. #RodLauren #OneHitWondered
#Interestingly Rod Lauren quickly became a suspect… Lauren denied any involvement and fled the country before charges were filed. For years, the case dragged on. He was a fugitive back in the Philippines. #RodLauren #NidaBlanca #OneHitWondered
#OneHitHistory Remembering the strange, tragic story of singer/actor Rod Lauren, who #DOTD in 2007. In 1960, the teen heartthrob earned US #OneHitWonder honors when “If I Had a Girl” spent 5 weeks on the US #Billboard #Top40, peaking at #31. #RodLauren #OneHitWondered
