[1] In January 1957, Bob Cox, a talent scout for CBS, held auditions at the Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium; The Sparkletones took first prize at the event.
Convinced they would be a success, Cox quit CBS to manage the group and flew them out to New York City to sign with ABC-Paramount.
Around this time original guitarist Sparky Childress and drummer Jimmy Denton left and were replaced by Gene Brown and Donnie Seay, respectively.
[4] Howard "Sparky" Childress (born on April 21, 1943, in Spartanburg) died in Chesnee, South Carolina, on November 30, 2019, at age 76.
When Bernard and Miss Bianca enter Albatross Airlines, the character 'Wilbur' is dancing and singing to the tune on the stereo.