66 Facts About Johnny O'Keefe

John Michael O'Keefe was an Australian rock and roll singer whose career began in the early 1950s.

Johnny O'Keefe had twenty-nine Top 40 hits in Australia between 1958 and 1973.

Johnny O'Keefe was the younger brother of Australian jurist Barry O'Keefe.

Johnny O'Keefe was born in the eastern Sydney suburb of Bondi Junction on 19 January 1935.

Johnny O'Keefe was the second of three children of Raymond Moran O'Keefe and Thelma Edna Kennedy.

Johnny O'Keefe was raised as a Catholic and attended the local Catholic primary school, followed by secondary schooling at Waverley College in nearby Waverley.

Johnny O'Keefe had a solid musical background and listened to the radio almost constantly at home although he did not often sing around the house.

Johnny O'Keefe's mother was an excellent pianist and his father occasionally played in a jazz band.

Johnny O'Keefe made his stage debut at the age of four when he played the role of "Dopey" in the Waverley College production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

The young Johnny O'Keefe was intelligent and perceptive, with a great sense of humour, although his school grades fluctuated due to his misbehaviour and the fact that he was easily distracted.

Sydney radio personality Gary O'Callaghan, who was a classmate, later recalled that Johnny O'Keefe was often in trouble.

Johnny O'Keefe was a keen swimmer, surfer and sailor and often sailed with the Vaucluse Juniors sailing club.

Johnny O'Keefe matriculated in 1951, gaining an 'A' in French and a 'B' in English, mathematics, physics and economics.

Johnny O'Keefe had already begun performing at dances and 'socials' while at high school, but his interest in music blossomed after he left school.

In December 1952, Dale and Johnny O'Keefe were called up for National Service.

Dale went into the Army and Johnny O'Keefe went into the Royal Australian Air Force.

The first turning point in Johnny O'Keefe's career was in early 1953, when he began singing with the quintet of jazz accordionist Gus Merzi at charity dances.

Johnny O'Keefe became a regular singer with the Merzi quintet and performed with them every Sunday at the charity shows they performed at the Bondi Auditorium.

Johnny O'Keefe performed his routine no matter how small the audience, sometimes braving the rotten eggs and fruit thrown at him.

Up to this point Johnny O'Keefe had performed for free, simply to gain experience.

In June 1955, Johnny O'Keefe's life changed irrevocably after seeing and hearing Bill Haley singing "Rock Around the Clock" in the film Blackboard Jungle.

Johnny O'Keefe realised that this was the style of music he wanted to perform, and dedicated himself to becoming a rock 'n' roll singer and a star.

In September 1956, Johnny O'Keefe and his friend Dave Owen, an American-born tenor sax player, formed Australia's first rock'n'roll band, the Dee Jays.

Johnny O'Keefe Greenan joined the Dee Jays on tenor saxophone, replacing John Balkin.

Johnny O'Keefe was born in Ambon in 1924, grew up in Aceh and Jakarta, began playing guitar at an early age, and became a dedicated jazz musician.

Johnny O'Keefe was introduced to O'Keefe by Keith Williams, whom he had known from a jazz trio in which they played.

At their first meeting Johnny O'Keefe played Casch a selection of rock 'n' roll records and asked him to imitate the guitar playing, which he was easily able to do.

Johnny O'Keefe's trademark was his flamboyant stage attire, which included gold lame jackets and brightly coloured suits trimmed with fake fur.

Johnny O'Keefe was involved in every aspect of the group's career including hiring the halls, placing ads in the local newspapers and putting up posters.

Johnny O'Keefe first met Bill Haley during his tour in 1957 in Australia.

Anxious not to lose face, Taylor auditioned Johnny O'Keefe and signed him to the label.

Johnny O'Keefe had become a close friend of the music concert promoter, Lee Gordon, and Johnny O'Keefe and the Dee Jays' popularity really took off when they were installed as the featured support act for Gordon's famous "Big Show" concert bills at the Sydney Stadium.

Johnny O'Keefe and the Dee Jays' first major break was a support spot on Lee Gordon's first "Big Show" rock'n'roll tour, which starred Little Richard, Gene Vincent, and Eddie Cochran.

When Gene Vincent and his band were stranded in Honolulu on their way to Australia, Gordon contacted Johnny O'Keefe and asked him to fill in for Vincent for the first night of the tour in Wollongong.

Johnny O'Keefe had played a few dates in New Zealand in 1958, but in early 1959 rising NZ promoter Harry M Miller organised a two-month tour.

Johnny O'Keefe took the staid NZ music scene by storm, although he was banned from playing at some halls and faced problems getting airplay.

Johnny O'Keefe toyed with the local press, playing on Lou Casch's exotic appearance by telling journalists that Casch was the son of an Arrernte Aboriginal chieftain from Ayers Rock and that Casch's hand-built guitar was made from mulga wood.

In mid-October 1959, Johnny O'Keefe performed in shows titled Lee Gordon's 1959 Rock'n'Roll Spectacular.

In February 1960 Johnny O'Keefe returned to the US for a promotional tour, where he was promoted as "The Boomerang Boy", and much to his chagrin, Johnny O'Keefe was obliged to give boomerang throwing exhibitions.

Johnny O'Keefe's face was smashed and Greenan was thrown out of the car, landing six metres away on the Pacific Highway, causing a fractured vertebra and loss of front teeth.

Johnny O'Keefe suffered multiple lacerations, a concussion and fractures to his head and face.

Johnny O'Keefe lost four teeth, and his hands were badly lacerated.

Johnny O'Keefe was air-lifted back to Sydney for treatment and survived.

In January 1961 Johnny O'Keefe attempted another tour of the United States, but it was unsuccessful.

Johnny O'Keefe's run of Australian hits continued in spite of his mounting personal problems.

Johnny O'Keefe was alienated by the new developments in pop music, and later described this period as "the biggest downer in my career".

Johnny O'Keefe's popularity continued to decline and sales of his records fell.

In January 1967, Johnny O'Keefe compered a new TV show called Where The Action Is.

Johnny O'Keefe released a 'spin-off' album titled Where The Action Is in 1967, but the series was not successful and budget problems and low ratings led to its cancellation in November 1967.

From 1968 onwards Johnny O'Keefe devoted most of his time to performing on the burgeoning Australian club and cabaret circuit, and aside from the 1969 live LP Live on the Gold Coast, his only album releases were compilations of past hits, mostly issued on Festival's budget label Calendar.

In 1969, Johnny O'Keefe toured Vietnam to entertain Australian troops stationed there.

In January 1973, Johnny O'Keefe performed at the second Sunbury Pop Festival.

Johnny O'Keefe continued to issue singles, including a cover of the Harry Vanda-George Young song "Saturday Night", originally recorded by The Easybeats.

Johnny O'Keefe married Marianne Renate Willimzik, a 23-year-old hairdresser, at St Therese's Catholic Church, Dover Heights, on 2 August 1958.

Johnny O'Keefe blacked out and woke three days later to find himself in a psychiatric hospital.

Johnny O'Keefe spent several days confined in a straitjacket and heavily medicated, but by chance he encountered a staff member who had recently arrived from Australia who recognised him and was able to confirm his identity.

Johnny O'Keefe returned to Australia as soon as he was well enough to travel.

On 14 February 1975, at the Masonic Hall, Waverley, Johnny O'Keefe married for the second time to Maureen Joan Maricic, a 29-year-old fashion consultant.

Later that year in 1975, Johnny O'Keefe was the subject of This Is Your Life in which his father, mother, sister and brother all paid tribute to him.

Johnny O'Keefe died on 6 October 1978, from cardiovascular collapse caused by an overdose of prescription barbiturates and Methaqualone.

Johnny O'Keefe was buried at Macquarie Park Cemetery and Crematorium in Sydney, with full catholic rites.

In 1988, Johnny O'Keefe was posthumously inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame.

In 1998, Australia Post issued a special stamp edition celebrating the early years of Australian rock'n'roll; the first stamp in the series commemorated Johnny O'Keefe's rise to stardom in 1958.

In December 2020, Johnny O'Keefe was listed at number 39 in Rolling Stone Australias "50 Greatest Australian Artists of All Time" issue.

Johnny O'Keefe was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1988.

Johnny O'Keefe won one awards in that time, and the encouragement award was named named him.