Here is a look at the life of award-winning singer, songwriter and pianist Fats Domino.
Personal:
Birth date: February 26, 1928
Death date: October 24, 2017
Birth place: New Orleans, Louisiana
Birth name: Antoine Domino Jr.
Father: Antoine Calice Domino
Mother: Donatile (Gros) Domino
Marriage: Rosemary Domino (August 6, 1947-March 10, 2008, her death)
Children: Antoinette, Antoine III, Andrea, Andre, Anatole, Anola, Adonica and Antonio
Other Facts:
Sold over 65 million albums.
“Blueberry Hill,” “Ain’t That a Shame” and “I’m Walkin'” were some of his biggest hits.
The singer Chubby Checker’s stage name was a word play on Fats Domino.
Recordings inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame (by year):
2019 – “I’m Walkin'”
2016 – “The Fat Man”
2011 – “Walking to New Orleans”
2002 – “Ain’t It a Shame”
1987 – “Blueberry Hill”
Timeline:
1949 – His album, “The Fat Man,” is released. The single “The Fat Man” reaches #2 on the R&B charts and sells a million copies.
1986 – Inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
1987 – Receives theGrammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
1995 – Receives the Pioneer Award from the Rhythm & Blues Foundation.
1998 – Wins the National Medal for the Arts from the National Endowment for the Arts.
August 29, 2006 – President George W. Bush presents Domino with a new National Medal of the Arts. His first one was lost during Hurricane Katrina.
January 27, 2007 – Receives a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Best of the Beat Music Awards in New Orleans. Mayor Ray Nagin declares January 27, 2007, as Fats Domino Day.
November 22, 2008 – “Fats Domino: Walkin’ Back to New Orleans,” a documentary of his life, premieres on Louisiana Public Broadcast television.
May 30, 2009 – Is inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. The ceremony is held in conjunction with a fundraiser, The Domino Effect, to rebuild schools and playgrounds. Little Richardaccepts the plaque as Domino watches from a private suite nearby.
February 26, 2016 – PBS airs “The Big Beat: Fats Domino and the Birth of Rock ‘n’ Roll,” a documentary film from director Joe Lauro.
October 24, 2017 – Passes away due to natural causes at the age of 89.
