January 16th, 1972 - David Seville, singer (Alvin & Chipmunks), dies at 52

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In 1951, Ross and his cousin William Saroyan wrote a number one hit for Rosemary Clooney, "Come On-A My House." In 1958, he recorded "Witch Doctor," in which for the first time he employed sped-up vocals. He would record his voice at 1/2 speed and play it back at normal speed. Of course, "The Chipmunk Song" (released on December 8, 1958) was his big smash. That record became one of the all-time great Christmas records. He based Alvin on his own son, Adam. The Chipmunks (Alvin, Simon and Theodore) were named after the two heads of Liberty Records, Al Bennett and Si Warnoker, and the engineer for the session, Ted Keep. "The Chipmunk Song" won two Grammy Awards. The Three Chipmunks starred in a Dell comic book, in 1959; and, in 1961, made their animated debut in The Alvin Show, on CBS in prime-time. After his death from a heart attack, on January 16, 1972, the Chipmunks passed into the hands of his son, Ross, Jr. With his wife Janice Karman, he produced a new cartoon series, Alvin and the Chipmunks, in 1983. (Two years before, he brought his father's creations back in an NBC Christmas TV special, assisted by legendary animator Chuck Jones.)