I recently found myself perusing (as one does) the Sept/Oct 1979 issue of In Touch For Men Magazine. Featured on the cover and centerfold is Tim Kramer, an All-American boy who would go on to become one of the top gay porn stars of the 1980’s.
There is also this two page spread about a similar corn-fed wholesome fellow: the guy who played Disco Danny in a popular Trident commercial.
The Disco Danny profile was written by Charles Herschberg, a year after the writer himself had been featured in the buff as “Damien Charles: The New York Man” in issue #69 of Gay Times.
Unfortunately Disco Danny does not reveal nearly as much, posing for just one shirtless photo. He’s here flirting with the gay press strictly for promotional purposes: trying to arouse the interest of a gay audience for his recently released debut single “Dancin’.”
The Disco Danny character was a takeoff on John Travolta’s iconic role in the film Saturday Night Fever. Following in Travolta’s platform-shoed footsteps, he was signed to the same record label – Midsong Records. As the In Touch article notes, “Vocal ability was not primarily what won him his contract.”
He appeared on the early Nickelodeon show America Goes Bananaz with host Randy Hamilton conducting the interview and introducing two performances: “Dancin'” and “High School Honey,” a track from the LP that was never released.
Unfortunately, all the PR attempts to cross him over to a successful career outside of teen discos proved futile. There was no follow-up single and the Dancin’ LP was shelved, although he continued to find lucrative work in national commercials alongside some familiar faces:
So what happened then?
Like rainbow suspenders, satin pants and the dance that spawned his name, Disco Danny fell out of fashion. He eventually gave up show biz and found work as a salesman. He married several times and like many a New Yorker, eventually migrated south. According to an acquaintance, he has become a Florida Man, with all the political leanings that go with the territory, adding with a sigh “he’s no longer the sweet, talented kid I knew.”
Ah well. We’ll always have Trident. And In Touch.
See Also:
Revisiting Bette Midler’s Thighs & Whispers (1979)
Kurt Bieber: From Little Me to Colt Model
Costello Presley & 80’s Gay Porn Guilty Pleasures
Kenn Duncan After Dark
Gay Times #69 (1978)
Blueboy 1980: Gays of NYC
John Waters in Blueboy Magazine (1977)
New York City: In Touch For Men (1979)
San Francisco: In Touch For Men (1979)
Revisiting Blueboy Magazine (1980)
Armistead Maupin in Blueboy Magazine (1980)
George Platt Lynes: In Touch Magazine (1982)
Brian Ferrari's Blog 