Walden Robert Cassotto, “Bobby Darin”, was born in the East Harlem neighborhood in New York City. He was raised by his grandmother, who he thought for much of his life was his mother. His birth mother became pregnant with him in the summer of 1935 when she was 17. Because of the scandalous nature of out-of-wedlock pregnancies in that era, a decision was made that the boy would be passed off as his mother’s younger brother. The identity of Bobby’s biological father is still unknown to this day.

By the time Bobby was a teenager, he was able to play many instruments including the piano, drums, and the guitar. He eventually moved to the Bronx and graduated from the prestigious Bronx High School of Science. He later attributed his arrogance to his experiences there, where he was surrounded by brighter students who teased him.

After graduating high school, he enrolled College and soon gravitated to the drama department. After only two semesters, he dropped out to pursue an acting career.

Bobby’s career took off with a songwriting partnership, formed in 1955 with Don Kirshner. They wrote songs and jingles. His agent then negotiated a record deal with Decca Records. The songs he made with Decca had little success.

Bobby then left Decca to sign with Atlantic Records' Atco subsidiary.

Bobby’s career finally took off in 1958 when he recorded “Splish Splash”. Bobby had written “Splish Splash” in one hour. The single sold more than a million copies.

In 1959, Bobby recorded “Dream Lover”, a single that became a multi-million seller. With it came financial success and he meant for his That’s All album to show that he could sing more than rock and roll. His next single, “Mack the Knife”, was given a jazz-pop interpretation. Although Bobby was initially opposed to releasing it as a single, the song went to No. 1 on the charts for nine weeks, sold two million copies, and won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1960. Bobby was also voted the Grammy Award for Best New Artist that year, and “Mack The Knife” has since been honored with a Grammy Hall of Fame Award.

Bobby continued to write songs and had many hits on the Billboard later in his life and also was acting in movies and television shows at the same time. While doing music as well, he acted in movies and was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for “Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama”, and an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, and won the French Film Critics Award for Best Actor.

As the 1960’s progressed, he began to be more and more politically active and was a supporter of both John F. Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy. The assassination of the young President John F. Kennedy in 1963 made Bobby much more politically active than he was previously. As he began to become more politically active, he was beginning to decide if he wished to campaign for the 1968 Presidential Election. At this time his biological mother, Nina, fearing the secret could cause a great political scandal if it was revealed to the public if it was to be used against him by an political opponent, told Bobby the secret about his maternity. Bobby traveled with Robert F. Kennedy and worked on the politician’s 1968 presidential campaign. He was with Kennedy the day he traveled to Los Angeles on June 4, 1968, for the California primary, and was at the Ambassador Hotel later that night when Kennedy was assassinated. This event, had a deep effect on Bobby, who spent most of the next year living in seclusion in a trailer in California.

Bobby returned to Los Angeles in 1969 and began to sing folk songs and later had his own TV show in the early 1970s.

Bobby developed an infection.This further weakened his body and affected one of his heart valves. On December 11, for another round of open-heart surgery. On December 19, worked to repair his heart. Shortly after the surgery ended on December 20, 1973, Bobby died in the recovery room without regaining consciousness. He was 37 years old.