Mark Hudson and His Brothers, Before “The One”
Reading about the terrible ratings failure of The One, the American Idol-ish reality show on ABC hosted by George Strombo, took me back to my pre-teen days at the mention of one of the show’s judges, Mark Hudson. Tell me please, why does every talent competition have to have one white guy, one black guy, and one woman? But I digress. Anyway, when I was 12, The Hudson Brothers were my Saturday morning TV heroes via the year-long run of their Razzle Dazzle Show.
Bill, the eldest Hudson, was married to Goldie Hawn for four years and is the father of both Kate and Oliver Hudson. Bill wasn’t involved in Oliver or Kate’s childhood and they are estranged. Kate refers to Goldie’s long-time partner Kurt Russell as “Dad”. Bill later married Cindy “Shirley” Williams and they divorced after 18 years together. He has dabbled in real estate and produced movies including the “Father of the Bride” series.
Brett is the youngest of the three brothers and was thought of by 12 year old girls everywhere as the “cute one”. He makes his living as a TV writer and producer and he has sung background on several projects.
Mark is the middle child. Recording artist Sarah Hudson is his daughter. He produced hit albums for Alice Cooper and Aerosmith and co-wrote the latter’s “Livin’ On The Edge”. He’s Ringo Starr’s partner in a production company, as well as Ringo’s record producer. He has also inexplicably dyed his goatee a bright turquoise. And there are several stories floating around about his inappropriate behaviour around young, aspiring female singers, including a couple that progressed to sexual harassment claims.
The Hudson Brothers’ Razzle Dazzle Show was taped in Toronto, and featured a fresh new comic named Emo Phillips. The brothers sang (they hit the pop charts in 1974 with “So You Are A Star”) and performed in wonderfully absurd skits. One that stands out for me is the tour of the little island of Peegy-Peegy. The brothers crash on this island that’s barely big enough for them, a tree, and the island’s sole resident, who proceeds to give them a detailed tour as they link arms facing the tree and shuffle in a circle a little at a time. It may not be a knee-slapper now but to a 12 year old female in the throes of a celebrity crush, it was comic genius!
The Hudsons would have been in their 20’s when the Razzle Dazzle Show was on the air. It must have been an absolute blast, even if it didn’t last very long. Each of them spun the experience into a long and successful career, although it appears The One will have an even shorter life than Razzle Dazzle, for the middle boy.
