Rydell:

this week, a host

by Aleene MacMinn

Bobby Rydell, who roams in and out of television on various comedy, variety, and (occasionally) dramatic shows, will be on again this week as one of the hosts of America's Junior Miss Pageant which NBC will beam Saturday night from Mobile, Ala.

Rydell, you may recall, was the young singer (comic, mimic, drummer, actor) who was featured on the first four Milton Berle shows of the season. He's also the fellow who had kept a dozen or so guest starring dates on the Red Skelton Show. And it's the same Bobby Rydell who has frequently worked with Jack Benny, George Burns, Danny Thomas.

If it sounds like he's a comedian's singer, it's true. All of the aforementioned comics are great boosters of the Rydell talent, particularly Skelton who included Bobby in his "Clown Alley" special last fall.

What then is Bobby Rydell doing hosting a teen-age beauty pageant? "Exposure," answered the subject. "The exposure I got on the four Berle shows certainly didn't hurt." Since those TV dates, Bobby has been busy with his night club and concert career, traveling the road from California to Montreal, Las Vegas to Philadelphia.

But he looks on television as an important tool in helping once and for all to bury his image as a rock 'n' roll singer. "It's so hard for young kids to get started today," he emphasized. "There's no more vaudeville where you can go out and work, work, work.

"The only way is to make a record and then immediately you're branded as a rock and roll singer. Then it's hard to break the image. You have to bridge it very carefully. You don't want to lose the kids but you do want to gain the adults. If you aren't careful, you can lose the kids, and if you don't gain the adults, you lose out entirely.

"I was lucky. I think my TV exposure with Skelton was a big help because I was able to be on his show and do something other than my hit record."

Does he want to concentrate on a specific field -- comedy, music, drama? "I'd like to pattern myself after Sammy Davis Jr.," replied Rydell, "and become well-rounded in comedy, dancing, musical instruments, singing and some acting." Hell probably get a chance to do a little of each Saturday on the Junior Miss pageant which he'll co-host with John Forsythe and Anita Bryant.