meet HERMAN and his HERMITS


Herman's Hermits, Left to right, Keith, Karl, Herman, Derek and Barry.

ONE NIGHT when a group called the Heartbeats were playing for a civic club dance in Manchester, England, a young chap named Peter Blair Denis Bernard Noone hopped up on the bandstand and sang a few numbers just for a lark. The ovation he got for his efforts was so resounding that he quickly decided on a new career for himself!
      That was over six months ago. Now Peter Blair etc. and four other handsome Manchester chaps are world renowned as Herman And His Hermits. After his stunning "audition," Karl Green of the Heartbeats suggested that Peter get his own group and get going. In fact, Karl volunteered to join him and help him. Soon Barry Whitwam, Derek Leckenby, and Keith Hopwood were in the group. Mickie Most (who produces the Animals' records) saw the boys at a concert and was so impressed by them that he signed them on the spot. He recorded I'm Into Something Good in three weeks and rest (as the saying goes) is history!
Herman, who got his nickname indirectly from a Bullwinkle character, was born on November 5, 1947, in Manchester. He is five feet nine inches tall and weighs 140 pounds. He has blue eyes and light brown hair. He studied at the Manchester School of Music and entered show business as an actor at the age of 11. He has a happy disposition except when he is worried about his "tooth" - one of his left fronties sticks out a bit!
      Keith Hopwood (lead and rhythm guitar) was born in Manchester on October 26, 1946. He is five feet nine inches tall and weighs 135 pounds. He has blue eyes and brown hair, and took guitar lessons for one month. After working for a while as a telephone engineer,

  Keith made his first public appearance at the Plaza in Manchester. He loves to watch horror movies and his hobby is collecting records, especially those of Dionne Warwick, Inez and Charlie Foxx and Jim Reeves.
      Karl Anthony, (bass guitar) was born in Salford, England, on July 31, 1947. He has blue-grey eyes and fair hair. He is five feet eleven inches tall and tips the scales at 147 pounds. He was once an actor (so was Herman) and made his show-biz debut on Broadway Cinema in 1960 at the age of 11. He lists his hobbies as reading, swimming and going out with girls (especially dark haired ones).
      Derek "Lek" Leckenby (lead and rhythm guitar) first saw the light of day in Manchester on May 14, 1946. He has brown eyes and light brown hair, is six feet tall and weighs in at 154 pounds. He is musically self-taught and once studied at the Manchester University. He loves shopping for clothes in London and his fondest dream - for the Hermits to appear in America - is about to come true!
      Jan Barry Whitwam (drums) also from Manchester, was born on July 21, 1946. He is five feet 11 inches tall and weighs 157 pounds. He has brown eyes and hair. He used to have a flair for hairdressing, but now dreams of continuing in show-biz as long as he possibly can. He loves blues music and Chuck Berry is his favorite singer. For some mysterious reason, the boys call him "Barry The Bean."

You can write to the Hermits in care of the Mal Braverman office, 15 East 48th Street, New York City 10017. They record on MGM Records in the United States.


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