Williams brought with him a song, "Earth Angel", on which he had worked with Gaynel Hodge, another member of the Hollywood Flames.
[1] The Penguins were one of a number of doo-wop groups of the period named after birds (such as The Orioles, The Flamingos, and The Crows).
One of the members smoked Kool cigarettes, which, at the time, had "Willie the Penguin" as its cartoon advertising character.
"[5] The Penguins performed for the eleventh famed Cavalcade of Jazz concert held at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles which was produced by Leon Hefflin, Sr. on July 24, 1955.
[7] El Monte, a city near Los Angeles, had spawned such popular performers as Tony Allan, Marvin & Johnny, and The Shields as well as the Penguins.
The songwriting genesis for "Earth Angel" was a matter of some dispute, eventually ending up in a split credit between Penguins bass-baritone Curtis Williams, Gaynel Hodge, and Jesse Belvin.
Ram's primary interest was in managing The Platters, who at that point had no hit singles, but were a profitable touring group.
During the summer of 1956, Jones and Tisby were briefly out of the group, and were replaced by Ray Brewster and Teddy Harper, respectively.
Cleveland Duncan continued recording as "The Penguins", with new member Walter Saulsberry and a backing group, the Viceroys.
By the late 1960s, the group was being billed as the "Fabulous Penguins", and featured Duncan, Walker, and new member Rudy Wilson.
[9] It was planned for Jones to appear with the Penguins the following year but he suffered a stroke while rehearsing with the group and died shortly thereafter.