Bobby Rydell, a pompadoured heartthrob of early rock ’n roll who was a star of radio, television and the movie musical “Bye Bye Birdie,” died Tuesday. Rydell died of complications from pneumonia at a hospital in a suburb of his hometown of Philadelphia, according to a statement posted by his marketing and event coordinator Maria…
Rydell, along with James Darren, Fabian and Frankie Avalon, was part of a wave of wholesome teen idols who emerged after Elvis Presley and before the rise of the Beatles.