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Biography

Paul Vance

Overview

  • Born
    November 4, 1929 · Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA
  • Died
    May 30, 2022 · West Palm Beach, Florida, USA (natural causes)
  • Birth name
    Joseph Paul Florio

Mini bio

  • Prolific song writer whose first claim to fame was the number one song on the U.S Top 40 charts in 1960; Bryan Hyland's "Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" co-written with Lee Pockriss.

    Retired to Coral Springs, Florida.

    Was surprised when several papers and the entertainment industry erroneously reported that he had died in 2006. It seems a small time writer, salesman and most recently a painting contractor Paul Van Valkenburg who used the pen name of Paul Vance has fooled the public and his family for years claiming to have written the number one song from 1960. The Milford, Connecticut resident recently passed away at 68 and that's when the truth came out. The real Paul Vance was able to show CBS reporters his receipts from residuals that he has been receiving for the past 46 years.
    - IMDb mini biography by: wllmlos

Family

  • Spouse
      Margaret Curte(? - 2012) (her death, 4 children)

Trivia

  • He was an American songwriter and record producer.
  • In 1959, Vance and Lee Pockriss released a single for Columbia Records as 'Lee and Paul,' a novelty tune called "The Chick.".
  • His son, Philip, who sang the chorus of "Playground in my Mind" with Clint Holmes, died on December 11, 2009, at age 44.
  • His most successful song compositions, all written with Lee Pockriss, included "Catch a Falling Star", "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polkadot Bikini", and "Tracy".
  • In September 2014, after eight years in the making, Vance published his memoir, titled Catch a Falling Star.

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