Bobby Darin Bobby Darin was born Walden Robert Cassotto on May 14th 1936 and was one of the most popular rock and roll American teen idols of the late 1950s. However, he is widely respected for being a multi-talented, versatile performer, who challenged and successfully conquered many music genres, including, folk, country, pop, and jazz. He was also an accomplished actor and his wish for a legacy was "to be remembered as a great entertainer and a human being" He had a long string of memorable hits, but is best remembered for "Mack the Knife” and “Things” with the former winning him Grammy award in the same year he also won the Grammy award for Best New Artist. Brash, outspoken, and ambitious (he said he wanted to be "bigger than Sinatra"), Darin was a man in a hurry. He suggested the reason was he was certain he would die at an early age from a congenital heart defect. Darin made several movies and was married to his leading lady Sandra Dee through most of the 1960s Darin died during heart surgery to repair a faulty heart valve on December 20th 1973 and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.