Mark Dinning
Max Edward Dinning (August 17, 1933 — March 22, 1986)[1] — stage name Mark Dinning — was an American pop music singer. In February 1960, the song "Teen Angel", written by his sister Jean (Eugenia) (March 29, 1924 — February 22, 2011) and her husband (Mark's brother-in-law) Red Surrey,[2] reached No. 1 on the Billboard Charts. Jean and two of her sisters, Virginia and Lucille, comprised "The Dinning Sisters",[3] a popular singing trio in the 1940s. Additionally, Dinning is the uncle of Dean Dinning, bass guitarist for alternative rock band Toad the Wet Sprocket.
Biography
Max Edward Dinning was born in Manchester, Oklahoma, the youngest of nine children, and was raised on a farm near Nashville, Tennessee after his family relocated from Kansas. He followed his sisters and pursued a career in country music and, in 1957, record producer Wesley Rose signed him to a recording contract as Mark Dinning.
His recording efforts met with limited success until 1959, when "Teen Angel" became a hit. The lyrics, which told of the death of a teenage girl, were deemed by British radio stations to be too morbid to be aired, but it reached #37 on the UK Singles Chart.[4] In the U.S. it reached #1 on the Billboard charts in early February 1960. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.[5] He also was the original artist to record "What Will My Mary Say," a song later popularized by Johnny Mathis in 1963.
Dinning had an alcohol addiction, which restricted his performances, and caused promoters to stop booking him as he faded from public view. Although Dinning never duplicated the success of "Teen Angel", he had three minor hit records in the ensuing years.
Death
Dinning continued performing until his death from a heart attack in Jefferson City, Missouri, aged 52.
Discography
Singles
| Year | Title | US Hot 100 |
US R&B |
UK |
AUS |
Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | "Teen Angel" | 1 | 5 | 37 | 3 | MGM 12845 |
| 1960 | "A Star Is Born (A Love Has Died)"/"You Win Again" | 68 | -- | -- | 32 | MGM 12888 |
| 1960 | "The Lovin' Touch" | 84 | -- | -- | -- | MGM 12929 |
| 1960 | "She Cried On My Shoulder"/"The World Is Getting Smaller" | -- | -- | -- | -- | MGM 12958 |
| 1961 | "Top Forty, News, Weather And Sports" | 81 | -- | -- | 17 | MGM 12980 |
| 1961 | "Another Lonely Girl" | -- | -- | -- | -- | MGM 13007 |
| 1961 | "Lonely Island"/"Turn Me On" | -- | -- | -- | -- | MGM 13024 |
| 1962 | "All of This for Sally" | -- | -- | -- | -- | MGM 13061 |
| 1962 | "I Catch Myself Cryin'" | -- | -- | -- | -- | MGM 13091 |
| 1964 | "Joey"/"January" | -- | -- | -- | -- | Cameo 299 |
| 1965 | "Dial AL 1-4883"/"I'm Glad We Fell In Love" | -- | -- | -- | -- | Hickory 1293 |
| 1966 | "There Stands A Lady"/"The Last Rose" | -- | -- | -- | -- | Hickory 1368 |
| 1966 | "He Reminds Me Of Me"/"Run Opie Run" | -- | -- | -- | -- | Hickory 1404 |
| 1967 | "It's Such A Pretty World Today"/"Atlanta Georgia Stray" | -- | -- | -- | -- | United Artists 50169 |
| 1968 | "Throw A Little Love My Way"/"A Dissatisfied Man" | -- | -- | -- | -- | United Artists 50305 |
References
- "Social Security Death Index, hosted at Ancestry.com". Ssdi.rootsweb.ancestry.com. Retrieved 2013-10-20.
- "Jean Dinning, who wrote 'Teen Angel,' dies at 86 - latimes.com". Latimesblogs.latimes.com. 2011-03-10. Retrieved 2013-10-20.
- "Vocal Harmony A Cappella Group: Dinning Sisters". Singers.com. Retrieved 2013-10-20.
- Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 156. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p. 123. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
External links
- Rockabilly.nl biography
- Notice of Jean Dinning's death in the New York Times
- Producer website for BINGE LP 1012
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