Also known as: Wilde, Marty
Origin: London, England
Marty Wilde was born Reginald Leonard Smith in the Blackheath area of London on April 15, 1939. At age 18, he was performing under the name Reg Patterson at London's Condor Club in 1957 when he was spotted by impresario Larry Parnes who gave him his long-lasting stage name. Wilde was one of the first British pop stars in the late 1950s to emulate U.S. early rock and roll, scoring several hit singles throughout the late 50s and early 60s as a celebrated teen idol. In the late 1960s, Wilde dabbled a bit in psychedelic pop with the release of his spring of 1969 LP Diversions , which contains the …