Kenneth Edward Delo (December 8, 1938 – February 8, 2016) was an American singer best known as a member of television's ''

The Lawrence Welk Show ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' is an American televised musical variety show hosted by big band leader Lawrence Welk. The series aired locally in Los Angeles for four years, from 1951 to 1955, then nationally for another 16 years on ABC from 1955 t ...

''. Born and reared in River Rouge,

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, Delo started performing first as a magician, then a

ventriloquist Ventriloquism or ventriloquy is an act of stagecraft in which a person (a ventriloquist) speaks in such a way that it seems like their voice is coming from a different location, usually through a puppet known as a "dummy". The act of ventrilo ...

, and later a

hypnotist Hypnosis is a human condition involving focused attention (the selective attention/selective inattention hypothesis, SASI), reduced peripheral awareness, and an enhanced capacity to respond to suggestion.In 2015, the American Psychological ...

before taking up singing by

miming A mime artist, or simply mime (from Greek , , "imitator, actor"), is a person who uses ''mime'' (also called ''pantomime'' outside of Britain), the acting out of a story through body motions without the use of speech, as a theatrical medium o ...

to records. While attending the

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

-affiliated Our Lady Of Lourdes High School in River Rouge, he made his public singing debut as a member of a

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a subgenre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, ...

group known as The Pencil Smudges, a take-off of the group

The Ink Spots The Ink Spots were an American vocal pop group who gained international fame in the 1930s and 1940s. Their unique musical style predated the rhythm and blues and rock and roll musical genres, and the subgenre doo-wop. The Ink Spots were widely ...

, singing " The Battle of Jericho" at a school recital. About 1961, after serving in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, 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 th ...

, Delo teamed up with his Army friend and fellow performer

Jonathan Daly Jonathan Daly (born January 14, 1942) is an American actor who is known in America for his roles in ''Petticoat Junction'', '' The Jimmy Stewart Show'', and '' C.P.O. Sharkey'', and best known in Australia for being in the comedy duo " Delo an ...

to form the

Martin & Lewis Martin and Lewis were an American comedy duo, comprising singer Dean Martin and comedian Jerry Lewis. They met in 1944 and debuted at Atlantic City's 500 Club on July 25, 1946; the team lasted ten years to the day. Before they teamed up, Martin ...

-style comedy team of Delo & Daly. The act was popular in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

throughout the 1960s with their television

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a comp� ...

and numerous

concert A concert, often known informally as a gig or show, is a live performance of music in front of an audience. The performance may be carried by a single musician, in which case it is sometimes called a recital, or by a musical ensemble such as an ...

appearances, however upon their arrival back to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

to capitalize on their growing fame, the act broke up as Daly chose to go into

television production A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

work. By 1969, Delo was in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

moving on with his career, making guest TV appearances on shows such as '' Mission: Impossible'' and ''

Here's Lucy ''Here's Lucy'' is an American sitcom starring Lucille Ball. The series co-starred her long-time comedy partner Gale Gordon and her real-life children Lucie Arnaz and Desi Arnaz Jr. It was broadcast on CBS from 1968 to 1974. It was Ball's third ...

''. His introduction to

Lawrence Welk Lawrence Welk (March 11, 1903 – May 17, 1992) was an American accordionist, bandleader, and television impresario, who hosted ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' from 1951 to 1982. The program was known for its light and family-friendly style, and the ...

came from

Arthur Duncan Arthur Chester Duncan (September 25, 1925 – January 4, 2023) was an American tap dancer, also called an "Entertainer's Entertainer,"“About the International Tap Dance Hall of Fame: Biographies,” American Tap Dance Foundation, accessed Apr ...

, the show's featured

tap dancer Tap dance (or tap) is a form of dance that uses the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion; it is often accompanied by music. Tap dancing can also be performed with no musical accompaniment; the sound of the taps is its ow ...

who had known Delo from their days in Australia. Upon Duncan's recommendation, the maestro invited him on the show as a guest star, singing the "

Hawaiian Wedding Song "Hawaiian Wedding Song" originally entitled; ''"Ke Kali Nei Au"'' (Waiting There for Thee) was adapted from a 1926 love song written by Charles E. King and originally recorded by Helen Desha Beamer in its original (Hawaiian language) version but r ...

". Three more guest appearances and positive viewer response led Lawrence to hire him as a full-time performer for the 1969–70 season, and remained on for the remainder of the show's run. Delo's performances frequently involved his sitting in the audience, singing directly to various female show-goers. After the show ended, Delo continued his performing career, either on the road with his fellow Welk stars or as a headliner at the Lawrence Welk Resort in Branson,

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

, from 1994 to 1999. He also became an

author In legal discourse, an author is the creator of an original work that has been published, whether that work exists in written, graphic, visual, or recorded form. The act of creating such a work is referred to as authorship. Therefore, a sculpt ...

, penning the novel ''The Frozen Horror''. He lived in Gilbert,

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

with his wife Marilyn. They were married on June 30, 1956. His record label KimKev Records, was named after his two children, Kimberly and Kevin. Delo died from pneumonia in February 2016 at the age of 77.

References

External links

*
The Start of Something Big
- 2015 Interview with Jonathan Daly, Ken Delo's comedy partner, with extensive discussion of their time in Australia as Delo & Daly.
Farewell Ken Delo
- Tribute to Ken Delo. {{DEFAULTSORT:Delo, Ken 1938 births 2016 deaths Deaths from pneumonia in Arizona People from River Rouge, Michigan American magicians American male singers People from Gilbert, Arizona United States Army soldiers Lawrence Welk