Johnny O’Keefe in a Radio 4TO interview, Townsville. Photo: CityLibraries Townsville, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
“Weeeeeell, come on everybody it’s six o’clock.” If you had a TV set in 1959 that yelp probably still rings in your ears. It was Johnny O’Keefe kicking off another episode of Six O’Clock Rock, and a lot of Australian kids had never seen anything like him.
JOK wasn’t the finest voice of his day and I doubt he’d have argued the point. He had nerve instead, plus a stage act that could make visiting American stars look a bit tame. For a few years there he pretty much was Australian rock ‘n’ roll.
Johnny O’Keefe quick facts
- Born: 19 January 1935, Bondi Junction, New South Wales
- Died: 6 October 1978, Sydney, aged 43
- Nicknames: JOK and the Wild One
- Band: the Dee Jays, formed September 1956
- Honours: ARIA Hall of Fame, 1988
A Bondi boy who saw Blackboard jungle
His dad ran a furniture business in Pitt Street and young John was supposed to be studying economics. Then he saw the 1955 film Blackboard jungle, heard Bill Haley’s ‘Rock around the clock’ come thundering out of the cinema speakers, and that was the end of economics (Australian Dictionary of Biography).
In September 1956 he and Dave Owens put together the Dee Jays, often called the country’s first rock ‘n’ roll band. Promoter Lee Gordon booked them onto his Big Show tours in 1957 alongside Little Richard, Gene Vincent and Eddie Cochran. More than once the locals upstaged the imports. JOK’s gold lamé jackets and suits trimmed with fake fur didn’t hurt (Wikipedia). The biographers sum up his thinking neatly. It didn’t matter so much how you sang the song as what you did while singing it.
‘Wild one’ and a run of number ones
‘Wild one’ came out in 1958, written by O’Keefe with Johnny Greenan, Dave Owens and Tony Withers. It only climbed to number 20 on the Sydney chart, yet it’s remembered as the first Australian rock record to crack the national charts (‘Wild one’ history). Almost 30 years later Iggy Pop recorded it as ‘Real wild child (Wild one)’ and took it into the UK Top 10 in January 1987.
The big years were 1959 to 1963. ‘She’s my baby’, recorded in Los Angeles in November 1959, went to number one. So did ‘Don’t you know’ in 1960, ‘I’m counting on you’ in 1961, ‘Sing (and tell the blues so long)’ in 1962 and ‘Move baby move’ in 1963. His go at the Isley Brothers’ ‘Shout’ made number two in 1959 and is probably the one most people hum when you mention his name. He was still on the radio in 1974, when ‘Mockingbird’, a duet with Margaret McLaren, reached number eight.
Six O’Clock Rock, Bandstand and the telly years
Six O’Clock Rock went to air on ABC Television on 28 February 1959, modelled on the BBC’s Six-Five Special. Ricki Merriman hosted the first six shows before O’Keefe took the chair (Six O’Clock Rock). The Dee Jays were the house band, and young hopefuls like Lonnie Lee, Warren Williams and the Delltones got their first real exposure there.
He left in mid-1961 and in October moved to ATN-7 to front The Johnny O’Keefe Show, which later became Sing, Sing, Sing and ran until 1965. Where the Action Is followed in 1967. He also crossed over to TCN-9, where Brian Henderson’s Bandstand featured the former Six O’Clock Rock host among its guests (Bandstand history). For a feel of how Aussie pop looked on the box back then, our Best of Bandstand volume 1 covers the early Bandstand years.
The crash, America and the family
He tried his luck in the United States in 1960, billed as ‘The Boomerang Boy’, and it didn’t really come off. Worse was to come. On 27 June 1960, north of Kempsey, the Plymouth he was travelling in ploughed into a gravel truck. He had fractures to his head and face, lost four teeth and needed around 90 stitches (ADB). He was back performing within months.
Plenty of people search for Johnny O’Keefe’s wife and kids, so here’s the public record. He married Marianne Renate Willimzik on 2 August 1958 and they had three children, John, Vicky and Peter. They divorced in 1966, and he married Maureen Joan Maricic on 14 February 1975. Vicky has kept her dad’s songs alive with tribute shows and an album marking what would have been his 80th birthday in January 2015 (St George & Sutherland Shire Leader).
Where the Wild One sits today
Johnny O’Keefe died in Sydney on 6 October 1978. He was 43. You’ll find him near the top of our Rock n Roll Heaven page. He went into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 1988, Terry Serio played him in the 1986 film Shout! The story of Johnny O’Keefe, and a monument was unveiled at Coolangatta–Tweed Heads on 10 June 2004. Every loud Aussie band that came after, Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs included, owed him something.
Were you in the audience for Six O’Clock Rock, or did you catch JOK at the Stadium? Tell us about it in the comments.
Frequently asked questions
Who was Johnny O’Keefe?
John Michael O’Keefe was a rock ‘n’ roll singer and TV host, born in Bondi Junction on 19 January 1935. Known as JOK or the Wild One, he had a string of Australian number ones between 1959 and 1963 and went into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 1988.
Why was Johnny O’Keefe called the Wild One?
The nickname came from ‘Wild one’, the 1958 song he wrote with Johnny Greenan, Dave Owens and Tony Withers. It was the first Australian rock record to reach the national charts, and the title stuck to him for the rest of his career.
What was Six O’Clock Rock?
It was Australia’s first TV show aimed squarely at teenagers, launched on ABC Television on 28 February 1959. O’Keefe took over as host after six episodes, with the Dee Jays as house band, and opened each show with a drawn-out cry of “Weeeeeell, come on everybody it’s six o’clock”.
Did Johnny O’Keefe appear on Bandstand?
Yes. Channel Nine’s Bandstand, hosted by Brian Henderson from 1958 to 1972, featured the former Six O’Clock Rock host among its guests, according to the show’s history.
Who was Johnny O’Keefe’s wife?
He married twice. His first wife was Marianne Renate Willimzik, whom he married on 2 August 1958. They divorced in 1966. He married Maureen Joan Maricic on 14 February 1975 and they were still married when he died in 1978.
Who are Johnny O’Keefe’s children?
Johnny and Marianne had three children, John, Vicky and Peter. Vicky O’Keefe has performed her father’s songs in tribute shows and on a tribute album released around what would have been his 80th birthday in 2015. We’ll leave the rest of the family’s private lives to them.
Did Johnny O’Keefe write ‘Shout’?
No. The Isley Brothers wrote and first recorded ‘Shout’ in 1959. JOK’s version got to number two here the same year and became so linked with him that the 1986 film about his life was called Shout! The story of Johnny O’Keefe.
How did Johnny O’Keefe die?
He died in Sydney on 6 October 1978, aged 43, from an accidental overdose of prescription medication. The Australian Dictionary of Biography records the cause as barbiturate poisoning.
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Disclaimer: The information provided is for educational and entertainment purposes only. While we strive for accuracy, music history is often based on available documentation and interpretation.
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