Paul Albert Anka (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian and American singer, songwriter, and actor. His songs include "Diana", "You Are My Destiny", "Lonely Boy", "Put Your Head on My Shoulder" and "(You're) Having My Baby".
Anka also wrote the theme for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson; one of Tom Jones' biggest hits, "She's a Lady"; and the English lyrics to Claude François and Jacques Revaux's music for Frank Sinatra's signature song "My Way", which has been recorded by many artists including Elvis Presley. He co-wrote three songs with Michael Jackson: "This Is It" (originally titled "I Never Heard"), "Love Never Felt So Good", and "Don't Matter to Me", which became posthumous hits for Jackson in 2009, 2014, and 2018, respectively.
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Early life
Paul Albert Anka was born in Ottawa, Ontario, to Camelia (née Tannis) and Andrew Emile "Andy" Anka Sr., who owned a restaurant called the Locanda. According to Paul's autobiography, My Way, both of his parents were of Lebanese Christian descent; however, he also states in his autobiography that his ancestors came from Bab Tuma, in Syria. His father came to Canada from Damascus, Syria, and his mother was an immigrant from Lebanon from the village of Kfarmishki. His mother died when he was 18.
Paul Anka briefly studied piano under Winifred Rees and sang with the St. Elias Antiochian Orthodox Cathedral choir under the direction of Frederick Karam, with whom he studied music theory in Ottawa. He attended Fisher Park High School in the city, where he was part of a vocal trio called the Bobby Soxers.
Career
Early success
Anka recorded his first single, "I Confess", when he was 14. In 1956, with $100 given to him by his uncle, he went to Manhattan, New York City, where he auditioned for Don Costa at ABC Records, singing what was widely believed to be a lovestruck verse he had written to a former babysitter. In an interview with Terry Gross of NPR in 2005, he said that it was to a girl at his church whom he hardly knew. The resulting song "Diana" brought Anka stardom as it went to No. 1 on the Canadian and U.S. music charts. "Diana" is one of the best selling singles ever by a Canadian recording artist. He followed up with four songs which made it into the Top 20 in 1958, including "It's Time to Cry", which reached No. 4 and "(All of a Sudden) My Heart Sings", which was No. 15, making him (at 17) one of the biggest teen idols of the time. He toured Britain and Australia with Buddy Holly. Anka also wrote "It Doesn't Matter Anymore"–a song written for Holly, which Holly recorded just before he died in 1959. Shortly afterward Anka said:
"It Doesn't Matter Anymore" has a tragic irony about it now, but at least it will help look after Buddy Holly's family. I'm giving my composer's royalty to his widow – it's the least I can do.
Anka composed the theme for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (reworked in 1962 from a song Anka wrote earlier called "Toot Sweet"; it had been rewritten with lyrics and recorded by Annette Funicello in 1959 as "It's Really Love"). He wrote "Teddy" – a Top 20 hit for Connie Francis in 1960. Anka wrote the English lyrics to "My Way", Frank Sinatra's signature song (originally the French song "Comme d'habitude"). In the 1960s, Anka began acting in motion pictures as well as writing songs for them, most notably the theme for the hit film The Longest Day (which also was the official march of the Canadian Airborne Regiment), in which he made a cameo appearance as a U.S. Army Ranger. For his film work he wrote and recorded one of his greatest hits "Lonely Boy". He also wrote and recorded "My Home Town", which was a No. 8 pop hit for him the same year. He then became one of the first pop singers to perform at casinos in Las Vegas. In 1960, he appeared twice as himself in NBC's short-lived crime drama Dan Raven.
In 1963, Anka purchased the rights and ownership of his ABC-Paramount catalog and re-recorded his earlier hits for RCA Victor, which he had joined in 1960.
1970s breakthrough and chart comebacks
Frustrated after more than ten years without a top 25 hit record, Anka switched labels again, which marked a turning point in his career. This time he signed with United Artists and in 1974 teamed up with Odia Coates to record the No. 1 hit, "(You're) Having My Baby", exposing Anka to a new generation of fans and proving his staying power among his original fan base that was now maturing.
Anka also wrote five songs which were included on an album by Don Goodwin.
Anka and Coates recorded three more duets that made it into the Top 20: "One Man Woman/One Woman Man" (No. 7), "I Don't Like to Sleep Alone" (No. 8), and the No. 15 duet "(I Believe) There's Nothing Stronger Than Our Love". In 1975, he recorded a jingle for Kodak written by Bill Lane (lyrics) and Roger Nichols (melody) called "Times of Your Life". It became so popular Anka recorded it as a full song, which peaked at No. 7 in the US pop chart in 1976. The follow-up was another hit that Anka wrote for Sinatra, "Anytime (I'll Be There)", peaking at No. 33. Anka's last Top 40 hit in the US was in the summer of 1983: "Hold Me 'Til the Mornin' Comes", which included backing vocals from then-Chicago frontman Peter Cetera; it hit No. 2 on the Hot Adult Contemporary chart.
1990s comeback
Anka's 1998 album A Body of Work was his first new U.S. studio release since Walk a Fine Line in 1983; vocalists and performers included Celine Dion, Kenny G, Patti LaBelle, and Skyler Jett. The album included a new version of "Hold Me 'Til the Mornin' Comes", once again performed with Peter Cetera. In 2005, Anka released an album of big-band arrangements of contemporary Rock songs titled, Rock Swings; the album provided a mainstream comeback of sorts that saw Anka awarded a star on Canada's Walk of Fame in Toronto.
On October 12, 2009, Anka stated that Michael Jackson's new release titled "This Is It" was a collaborative effort between the two in 1980. According to Anka, after recording the song, Jackson decided not to use it and the tune was then recorded and released by Sa-Fire. After Anka threatened to sue for credit and a share of royalties, the administrators of Jackson's estate granted Anka 50% of the copyright. An additional song that Jackson co-wrote with Anka from this 1980 session, "Love Never Felt So Good", was discovered shortly thereafter. His album Songs of December charted at No. 58 in Canada in November 2011.
Italy
Anka collaborated with a number of Italian musicians, including composer/director Ennio Morricone, singer-songwriter Lucio Battisti, and lyricist Mogol. His official discography reports nine singles released by RCA Italiana, but the Italian charts list at least six other songs he interpreted or recorded in Italian. His top hit was "Ogni giorno" which scored No. 1 in 1962, followed by "Piangerò per te" and "Ogni volta", which reached both No. 2, in 1963 and 1964. "Ogni volta" ("Every Time") was sung by Anka during the Sanremo Music Festival 1964 and then sold more than one million copies in Italy alone; it was also awarded a gold disc.
Anka returned to Sanremo in 1968 with "La farfalla impazzita" by Battisti-Mogol. On that occasion, the same title was interpreted by Italian crooner Johnny Dorelli. The pair of singers, however, were eliminated before the final stage of the musical contest. In 2006, he recorded a duet with 1960s Italian hitmaker Adriano Celentano, a new cover of "Diana", with Italian lyrics by Celentano-Mogol and with singer-songwriter Alex Britti on the guitar. The song hit No. 3.
Finland
Anka has been popular in Finland since the beginning of his career. He performed in Helsinki's Linnanmäki in 1959, in Lappeenranta in 1989, at the Pori Jazz Festival in Pori on 19 July 2007 and in 2012, and in Tampere three times on 6 August 2008 and on 9 and 10 August 2009. He also appeared in the Las Vegas scene in the 1991 Finnish film Prince of the Hit Parade (Iskelmäprinssi), directed by Juha Tapaninen. At the end of the film there is an archive footage of Anka's performance in Linnanmäki. As background music, Anka performs his song "How Long" in the film.
Other countries
With less success than in Italy and Finland, Anka tried the French market as well, with his first song being "Comme Avant" with Mireille Mathieu. In 1964, he released an album titled Paul Anka à Paris; the six tracks on side B were sung in French. A single release in Japanese ("Kokoro no Sasae"/"Shiawase e no Tabiji") is also reported on his discography. In 1993, he recorded a duet with Filipino singer Regine Velasquez titled "It's Hard to Say Goodbye", included on her album Reason Enough. This song was re-recorded several years later by Anka and Celine Dion and was included on his album A Body of Work.
Anka has performed four times in Israel, and in 2019 rejected pleas that he boycott the country.
Acting career
Anka appeared in 1958's "Let's Rock", where he sang and appeared in a scene signing autographs. His first major-film acting role was in a cameo as an army private in The Longest Day (1962). He also composed the title song to the movie. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, he starred in such teen exploitation films as Girls Town (1959) and Look in Any Window (1961), in which he played a peeping Tom. He later played an Elvis-hating casino pit manager in 3000 Miles to Graceland (2001) and a yacht broker in Captain Ron (1992). He guest-starred as a murder suspect in one of the Perry Mason Made-for-TV movies, The Case of the Maligned Mobster (1991). He made guest appearances as himself in the episode "Red's Last Day" on That '70s Show and in "The Real Paul Anka" episode of Gilmore Girls. He made several appearances on the NBC TV series Las Vegas. In 2016, he made another guest appearance as himself in the "Spring" episode of Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, a revival of the original show.
Other film and television appearances
Anka was the subject of the 1962 NFB documentary Lonely Boy, considered a classic work of cinéma vérité. In 1976, Anka hosted a television special, Paul Anka's Superstars, a music showcase that eventually was repackaged as an episode of The Midnight Special. He wrote and performed songs in the 1985 Canadian children's Christmas cartoon George and the Christmas Star. He appeared on The Simpsons season 7 episode Treehouse of Horror VI, Attack of the 50 Ft Eyesore, singing a song with Lisa in October 1995. In American Idol's seasons 2 and 3, he made a special appearance and sang an adapted version of "My Way" that mocked the format of the show as well as participants, judges, and the host. The performance was praised as one of the best moments of the show. He also played the role of Buddy Maus in Season 2 Episode 14 "The Betrayal" of the TV show Kojak.
Anka appeared in an episode of The Morecambe & Wise Show in 1970, singing his own lyrics 'My Way'. The show was broadcast again on BBC2 on Christmas Day 2021, after the tape recording-believed lost - was found. Anka appeared as himself in the American sitcom That 70s Show in season 2, episode 2 "Red’s Last Day".
On Gilmore Girls, Lorelai Gilmore named her Polish Lowland Sheepdog after Anka. Series co-creator Daniel Palladino chose the name after hearing the Rock Swings album at a coffeehouse. Both Paul Ankas were featured in a dream sequence Lorelai describes to her daughter Rory in the cold open to "The Real Paul Anka", the eighteenth episode of Season 6. Anka competed in season four of The Masked Singer as "Broccoli". He finished in 7th place exiting during the Group C finals.
Personal life
Anka is the father of six children: daughters Alexandra, Amanda, Alicia, Anthea, and Amelia (all with ex-wife Anne de Zogheb), and son Ethan (with ex-wife Anna Åberg).
Anka was married to Anne de Zogheb, the half-English and half-Lebanese daughter of Lebanese diplomat Charles de Zogheb, from February 16, 1963, until October 2, 2000. The couple met in 1962 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where she was a fashion model on assignment and under contract to the Eileen Ford Agency. Zogheb, brought up in Egypt, is of Lebanese, English, Dutch, French, German, and Greek descent. The couple married the following year in a ceremony at Paris-Orly Airport. Through their daughter, Amanda, he is the father-in-law of Jason Bateman, an actor. On September 6, 1990, Anka became a naturalized citizen of the United States.
In 2008, Anka married his personal trainer, Anna Åberg, in Sardinia, Italy. They divorced in 2010, and he has full custody of their son. Anna was featured in the Swedish TV3 show Svenska Hollywoodfruar (Swedish Hollywood Wives). Paul Anka's autobiography, My Way, co-written with David Dalton, was published in 2013.
In October 2016, Anka and Lisa Pemberton married in Beverly Hills, California. They divorced in 2020.
Awards and honours
In 1972, a street in Ottawa was named Paul Anka Drive. In 1981, the Ottawa City Council named August 26 as "Paul Anka Day" to celebrate his quarter-century in show business.
In 2004, he was appointed an Officer Of The Order of Canada.
In popular culture
In the mid-1980s, Anka was secretly recorded while he launched a tirade against his crew and band members, berating them for behavior that he considered unprofessional. When asked about it on the interview program Fresh Air, he referred to the person who did the recording as a "snake we later fired". The recording became widely known after being uploaded to the internet around 2004, and a number of quotes from it became famous, including "The guys get shirts!"; "Don't make a maniac out of me!"; and "Slice like a __ hammer!" Some of the quotes were reproduced by Al Pacino's character in the 2007 film Ocean's Thirteen. In the TV show Gilmore Girls, Lorelai Gilmore names her dog Paul Anka.
Business ventures
In 2012, Anka co-founded the holographic tech startup, ARHT Media. He is a member of ARHT Media's Board of Advisors, alongside businessman Kevin O'Leary and former prime minister Brian Mulroney until Mulroney's death in February, 2024.
