Rick Springfield - Rockin' in Vegas

At one time he was Australia ’s teen heartthrob.  He has soared to the top of American music charts, acted in a famous soap opera, and been featured in a Saturday morning cartoon.

The multi-talented singer, songwriter, guitarist and TV star, Rick Springfield, started life as an Army brat.  He was born in Sydney , Australia in 1949 with the name Richard Springthorpe.  His father, Norman James Springthorpe, was in the Australian Army and, as was the case with many military families, moving house was common.  The Springthorpes traveled from country to country forcing Springfield "the new kid" to stand up for himself.  This usually meant that the young Springfield would be at the wrong end of the fists.

On his thirteenth birthday, something happened that would change his life-he was given his first the guitar.  Springfield took music with a thirst that typifies a star in the making.  Already schooled in piano by his father, he learned the guitar and several other instruments by a ear.  Music gave Springfield fuel to burn off his boundless energy and a tool to fight the depression that haunted him in his early years.

He dropped out of high school when he was in his teens enjoyed a number of Melbourne bands.  The most notable was Rock House (later named MPD. Ltd.).  The band spent three months in the late 1960s playing for a American troops in Vietnam .  Soon after leaving Rock House, Springfield joined the 1960s/1970s pop band Zoot.  Like today's Backstreet Boys and ‘NSYNC, Zoot gained a huge teen following. The band also helped Springfield earn awards for best Australian guitarist and composer.  His next step was to go solo.  Springfield 's song "Speak to the Sky" quickly rose to number one on the Australian charts, and would ignite his quest for stardom.  It would also lead to one of the darkest times in the singer/songwriter's life.  America was calling.

When Springfield moved to America he adopted the pseudonym Rick Springfield (which didn't help him much, at least in the beginning).  After a number of musical flops, folding record companies and a bizarre Saturday morning cartoon called "Mission Magic," the penniless Springfield almost returned to his homeland, but pride and a lot of ingenuity brought him back from the brink.  He and a friend rented a theater and put on a play for friends and family.  The play turned out to be a hit.  Universal Studios sent out a representative to see the performance and Springfield was quickly signed to a two-year acting contract.  This stroke of luck helped Springfield to land rolls all on "The Six Million Man," "The Incredible Hulk," "Battlstar Galactica," and "General Hospital".

Now, only his music career was stuck in first the gear.  In 1981, Springfield would remedy that with his "Working Class Dog" album.  Then, after a number of successful hits, including arguably his most famous song "Jessie's Girl," he finally broke the stratosphere of musical stardom.

Today, Springfield is a father, a devoted husband, and the headliner for the special affects musical extravaganza EFX at the MGM Grand in Vegas.  He arrived on the set with a guitar in one hand and a dozen roses and the other, ready to add his own special flair to the show.  In many ways he fits right into the colorful special affects of EFX.  "At times, I feel like Luke Skywalker and a Star Wars movie," he said.

Always ready to put on a show for his fans, Springfield is Rockin' in Vegas and loving every second of it.