by Moe Zilla

Created on: February 18, 2008

"Alvin and the Chipmunks" are a fifty-year phenomenon. But more than that - they're just fun!

And behind the fun was a man with a real commitment to entertaining novelty. The Chipmunks really were "discovered" by a struggling song-writer - an ambitious Armenian man named Ross Bagdadsarian (who even played the struggling song-writer in Alfred Hitchcock's movie "Rear Window.") He'd co-authored Rosemary Clooney's strange 1951 hit record, "Come On-A My House," and in 1958 he had a #1 hit record of his own with the song "Witch Doctor." That song featured a high-pitched version of Bagdadsarian's own voice singing its nonsense chorus - "Oo Ee, Oo Ah Ah." Desperate for a followup record, Bagdadsarian got the idea of creating a harmonizing chorus of high-pitched singers, and with their banter between the verses, the Chipmunks were born!

Everyone loved the Chipmunks, right from the start. Their first single, "The Chrirstmas Song," became another #1 hit for Bagdadsarian, selling an astounding four million copies in just 7 weeks. It proved so popular that his record company ran out of colored labels for the vinyl, and eventually started shipping them with plain white labels. (As demand continued, they later even ran out of ink!) Other imitators tried the same trick, with a group called "The Nutty Squirrels" even recording high-pitched jazz! The Squirrels' ultimately had the first syndicated television cartoon, but Bagdadsarian had more success, landing a deal to broadcast his own Chipmunks in prime time on CBS. Though for their earliest appearances he'd used hand puppets to recreate the group, the cartoon gave them the appearance they'd enjoy for the next 46 years.

The Chipmunks sang songs aimed at young audiences, possibly influenced by the failure of "The Nutty Squirrels." And for the next 11 years, Bagdadsarian always proudly signed his name "David Seville," even composing a personal note for their first album playing up his new personna. ("I am proud and relieved to present you with this album. Proud because I think it's good, relieved because Alvin almost drove me crazy before it was finished!") He died suddenly in 1972, but a part of him remained behind with his fans, since slowing down any Chipmunk track reveals "the man behind the curtain." (Bagdadsarian himself was supplying most of the Chipmunks' vocals!) The 2007 Chipmunks movie pays homage to Bagdadsarian before the film's closing credits.

In the 80s his son brought the Chipmunks out of retirement, releasing an unlikely collection of surprisingly hip songs that he called "Chipmunk Punk." (Ten years later even Nirvana's Kurt Cobain would acknowledge that he remembered the album.) This led the group to a new Saturday morning, and in 1987 they appeared in "The Chipmunk Adventure." Though Bagdadsarian's son scrambled to meet a tight deadline for the film's production, the final film was surprisingly good. One of its highlights showed the Chipmunks enjoying a balloon ride around the globe, singing a haunting song called "We're Off to See the World."

The Chipmunks continued releasing albums, including country songs, club tracks, and even an album of science fiction-themed songs. Over the decades they've left behind their own kid-friendly takes on the trends of popular music - everything from "The Chipmunks sing the Beatles" to "The Chipmunks a Go-Go." Along the way the Chipmunks won themselves five Grammy awards.

But more importantly, they made a lot of children happy.

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