Jimmy Devon Boyd (born James Devon Boyd; January 9, 1939 – March 7, 2009) was an American singer, musician, and actor known for his 1952 recording of the song " I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus."

Early years

Jimmy Boyd was born in 1939 in

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

into a musical family, with father Leslie Boyd and mother Winnie Boyd. His father, in turn, was from a family of 21 children of musician Bill Boyd. The family relocated to the

San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, Los Angeles County, California. Situated to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it comprises a large portion of Los Angeles, the Municipal corpo ...

of Southern California when Jimmy was a pre-schooler. Jimmy briefly sang with "Texas Jim Lewis and his Lonestar Cowboys". At an early age, he won a local talent show that led to television appearances, including ''

The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in September 1971 by the ''CB ...

'', as well as '' The Frank Sinatra Show'' on CBS-TV.

"I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus"

Boyd recorded the song " I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" for

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

in 1952, when he was 13 years old. It became a hit, selling over two and a half million records in its first week's release and Boyd's name became known internationally. Boyd was presented with two gold records. Boyd's record went to number one on the charts again the following year at Christmas, and continues to sell as a Christmas song. Cumulative disc sales by 1966 amounted to over 11 million copies. Boyd owned horses, so Columbia presented him with a silver mounted saddle. Inscribed in the silver plate on the back of the saddle were the words, ''Presented by Columbia Records to Jimmy Boyd commemorating his 3,000,000 record of "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus"''. When first released, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston condemned the song for implying even a tenuous link between sex and the religious holiday, and radio stations in several markets banned it. Boyd made worldwide news when he went to Boston to explain that, of course, Santa Claus and Daddy were the same man. The following Christmas the ban was lifted.

Other recordings

Boyd's next-biggest hit was " Tell Me a Story," a duet with

Frankie Laine Frankie Laine (born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio; March 30, 1913 – February 6, 2007) was an American singer and songwriter whose career spanned nearly 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to his final performa ...

, which peaked at number 4 on the charts during 1953. The same year, he recorded "Dennis the Menace," a duet with

Rosemary Clooney Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 – June 29, 2002) was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the song "Come On-a My House", which was followed by other pop numbers such as "Botch-a-Me (Ba-Ba-Baciami Piccin ...

, which peaked at number 23 on the charts. One of his surviving performances available online is with Betty White on '' The Betty White Show'' in the mid-1950s.

Acting career

In 1956, Boyd played

Huckleberry Finn Huckleberry "Huck" Finn is a fictional character created by Mark Twain who first appeared in the book ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876) and is the protagonist and narrator of its sequel, '' Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884). He is 12 ...

in the United States Steel Hour production of Frank Luther's musical adaptation of "Tom Sawyer". Boyd reprised the role a year later when Luther adapted "Huck Finn" as a musical. Boyd was a regular cast member on the situation comedy '' Date with the Angels'', starring Betty White, playing the role of Wheeler. After the show was cancelled midway through its only season (1957–58), he went on to become a regular on '' Bachelor Father'' for the remainder of its five-year run (1957–62). The popular situation comedy starred

John Forsythe John Lincoln Forsythe ( Freund; January 29, 1918 – April 1, 2010) was an American stage, film/television actor, producer, narrator, drama teacher and philanthropist whose career spanned six decades. He also appeared as a guest on several t ...

and featured Noreen Corcoran and Sammee Tong. Boyd played the role of Howard Meechum, awkward classmate and sometime boyfriend of Corcoran's character Kelly. During the same period, Boyd appeared in several films, often in dramatic roles. These included the role of schoolboy Howard in ''Inherit the Wind'' (1960), a drama starring

Spencer Tracy Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was an American actor. He was known for his natural performing style and versatility. One of the major stars of Classical Hollywood cinema, Hollywood's Golden Age, Tracy was the ...

, based on the Scopes Monkey Trial of 1925. Boyd's acting career was interrupted by military service when he was drafted into the

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

in 1960. Later in the 1960s, he went to Vietnam, but as a celebrity rather than a soldier, appearing alongside other actors and singers in two USO tours.

Personal life and death

In 1960, Boyd married actress Yvonne Craig who he met when they were costars in the Bing Crosby musical '' High Time''. The marriage ended in divorce in 1962. Boyd married a second time in 1980 to Anne Forrey. They had a son together, but divorced in 1984. He remained single for the rest of his life. Jimmy Boyd died of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

in 2009 at the age of 70.

Awards

For his contributions to the recording industry, Boyd was awarded a star (located at 7021 Hollywood Blvd.) on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...

in 1959. It made Boyd (at age 20) the youngest-ever recipient of the honor for 45 years, until actress twins Mary-Kate Olsen and

Ashley Olsen Ashley Fuller Olsen (born June 13, 1986) is an American businesswoman, fashion designer and former actress. She began her acting career at the age of nine months, sharing the role of Michelle Tanner with her twin sister Mary-Kate Olsen in the ...

(then 18) jointly received a star in 2004.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Boyd, Jimmy 1939 births 2009 deaths American male child actors American child singers American country singer-songwriters American male film actors American male singer-songwriters Male actors from Mississippi Deaths from cancer in California Dot Records artists Jubilee Records artists Singer-songwriters from California People from Riverside, California Vee-Jay Records artists 20th-century American singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from Mississippi 20th-century American male actors Country musicians from California Country musicians from Mississippi 20th-century American male singers People from McComb, Mississippi Columbia Records artists