Gary Lewis (musician)
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Gary Harold Lee Lewis, born July 31, 1945, is an American musician who performed in the band Gary Lewis & the Playboys.
His father was film (and later television) comedian Jerry Lewis. His mother reportedly intended to name him after her favorite actor Cary Grant but the birth certificate recorded his name as "Gary" instead.
He received a set of drums as a birthday gift in his early teen years. Around 1964 he formed Gary Lewis & the Playboys with four friends. He played the drums and was nominally the lead singer. Following the release of their first single, which had been recorded almost wholly with the instrumental and vocal performances of session musicians, Gary was Cash Box magazine's 1965 "Male Vocalist of the Year." He was the only artist during the 1960s to have his first seven releases each reach the top ten of the Billboard magazine Hot 100 rankings. He entered the U.S. Army as a draftee in January 1967 and served into 1968. He returned to performing and recording but did not recapture his earlier success and five releases by the band that year peaked from 13th to 39th. His musical career was later marketed as a "nostalgia act" with appearances (continuing as of 2006) on his father's Labor Day Telethons for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
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