Dean Martin

Dean Martin

Steubenville-born crooner, comic partner of Jerry Lewis, Rat Pack member and television host.

Born June 7, 1917, Steubenville (above his father's barber shop at 319 South Sixth Street)
Died December 25, 1995, Beverly Hills, CA

Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

At a glance

Born: June 7, 1917, Steubenville (above his father's barber shop at 319 South Sixth Street) (Jefferson County) source
Died: December 25, 1995, Beverly Hills, CA source
Buried: Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park, Los Angeles (Sanctuary of Love) source
Also known as: Dean Martin, Dino, Kid Crochet, Dino Martini
Known as: Entertainment
Organizations: Capitol Records

Life story

Dino Paul Crocetti was born in Steubenville in 1917 to an Italian barber and an Italian-American mother. As a teen he boxed as Kid Crochet and worked in illegal casinos before music.

He took the stage name Dean Martin and teamed with Jerry Lewis in 1946. They worked nightclubs, radio, television and film until a bitter split in 1956.

He then worked as a solo singer and dramatic actor, became a Las Vegas fixture and a Rat Pack member with Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr.

His TV variety show ran 1965 to 1974 and he hosted celebrity roasts afterward. He died in 1995 and is buried at Westwood Village Memorial Park in Los Angeles.

Ohio ties

Steubenville (1917-early 1940s)
birthplace and family home at a series of addresses, from 319 South Sixth Street to 1210 Riverview Avenue Jefferson County · source
Steubenville High School (1930s)
left in the tenth grade Jefferson County · source
Rex Cigar Store, Market Street, Steubenville (1930s)
clerk, then dealer and croupier in the illegal gambling room at the back Jefferson County · source
Cleveland (1940-1943)
singer with Sammy Watkins's orchestra, who suggested the name Dean Martin Cuyahoga County · source
St. Anne's Church, Cleveland Heights (1941)
married Elizabeth McDonald Cuyahoga County · source
St. John Hospital, Steubenville (after 1966)
paid for a cobalt radiation unit for cancer treatment after his mother's death Jefferson County · source

Timeline

1914 His parents, Gaetano 'Guy' Crocetti and Angela Barra, married and were living at 443 South Sixth Street, Steubenville. source
1917 Born Dino Paul Crocetti at 11:55 p.m. on 7 June in the family's home above his father's barber shop at 319 South Sixth Street. source
1932 At 15 began prizefighting as 'Kid Crochet'. source
1933 By this year the family lived at 1210 Riverview Avenue, after moves to Slack Street, North Fifth Street, Brady Avenue and Grandview Avenue. source
1936 The Steubenville city directory listed him as working at Weirton Steel. source
1940 By late 1940 was singing for Cleveland bandleader Sammy Watkins, who suggested the name Dean Martin; he stayed with Watkins until at least May 1943. source
1941 Married Elizabeth McDonald at St. Anne's Church in Cleveland Heights. source
1943 By the fall was performing in New York. source
1946 Debuted with Jerry Lewis at the 500 Club in Atlantic City on 24 July. source
1947 Rode in Steubenville's centennial parade. source
1950 Steubenville declared 6 October 'Dean Martin Day' and gave Martin and Lewis a hero's welcome. source
1956 The Martin and Lewis partnership ended on 25 July when their contract expired. source
1965 The Dean Martin Show began its run on NBC, lasting to 1974. source
1966 His mother Angela died; he later paid for a complete cobalt radiation unit at St. John's Hospital in Steubenville. source
1995 Died on 25 December at his Beverly Hills home of acute respiratory failure from emphysema, aged 78. source
1996 Steubenville singer-songwriter Rose Angelica co-founded the annual Dean Martin Hometown Celebration. source
1997 Ohio Route 7 through Steubenville was rededicated as Dean Martin Boulevard, with signs bearing an Al Hirschfeld caricature. source
2022 A committee chaired by Gerald Ravasio began raising $80,000 for a life-size bronze statue in Fort Steuben Park beside the state historical marker. source

What Dean is known for

Martin and Lewis comedy duo (1946-1956)
Rat Pack member
Host of The Dean Martin Show, 1965-1974
The Dean Martin Show (1965-74)
Martin and Lewis films

Stories

The back room at the Rex Cigar Store

As a teenager Dino Crocetti delivered bootleg liquor until his parents made him stop, and he fought as 'Kid Crochet'. He then got a job at the Rex Cigar Store on Market Street, which ran illegal gambling in the back, and worked his way up to dealer and croupier. His wife later put his pay there at $125 a week. The 1936 city directory lists him at Weirton Steel, where he was reportedly nearly hit by a four-ton steel coil swinging from a crane, and he also worked for a time as a bricklayer's helper. Meanwhile he sang Italian songs in amateur contests, usually on the stage of the Capitol Theater, until bandleader Sammy Watkins heard him.

Source

Dean Martin Day, 1950

After the war Martin was seen in Steubenville's 1947 centennial parade, and on 6 October 1950 the city declared a Dean Martin Day, welcoming him and Jerry Lewis as heroes at the height of their fame. After 1950 he was rarely seen in public in his hometown, and any visits were private. He kept other ties: he gave money every year to the cobalt cancer-treatment division at St. John Hospital. Local historian Paul Zuros notes that the only one of the family's many Steubenville homes still standing is 313 North Seventh Street.

Source

A festival that started with a cassette tape

Steubenville's June Dean Martin festival grew out of a small group of fans singing his songs along with a cassette tape. Jojo Dialbert, owner of the Spot Bar, helped get it going nearly three decades before 2024. It now draws thousands for Martin impersonators, trolley rides past sites from his childhood and a 'Dino Dash' 5K, and it once hosted the mayor of the Crocetti family's hometown in Italy. Dialbert became a true fan after seeing Martin perform at the Riviera in Las Vegas with friends from Steubenville, and he recalled Martin saying, 'You can take the kid out of Steubenville, but you can't take Steubenville out of the kids.'

Source

Honors and things named for them

Dean Martin Boulevard, Steubenville (1997)

Named for Dean Martin

Dean Martin Boulevard (Ohio Route 7 through Steubenville) (Steubenville, Jefferson County) source
Dean Martin Hometown Celebration (annual festival) (Steubenville, Jefferson County) source

Family

wife: Betty McDonald
wife: Jeanne Biegger
wife: Catherine Hawn
son: Dean Paul Martin

Sites to know

Homes, graves, markers, museums and monuments; the numbered ones are on the map.

1 Ohio Historical Marker 2-41: Steubenville's Dean Martin
120 South Third Street, in front of the Historic Fort Steuben visitor center, Steubenville Jefferson County · source
Birthplace, above Guy Crocetti's barber shop (demolished)
319 South Sixth Street, Steubenville Jefferson County · source
Crocetti family house, the only one of their Steubenville homes still standing (private)
313 North Seventh Street, Steubenville Jefferson County · source
Dean Martin mural, Kroger store, Hollywood City Center
Steubenville Jefferson County · source
Dean Martin Boulevard (Ohio Route 7)
Steubenville Jefferson County · source
Rex Cigar Store (site), where he dealt cards (unknown)
Market Street, Steubenville Jefferson County · source

Places in Ohio to see

Dean Martin Boulevard (marker)
Steubenville, Jefferson County ZIP 43952 (approximate) · Steubenville · Jefferson County

Ohio places

Where Dean Martin was born, lived, worked and is remembered, with the ZIP code, town and county pages for each.

Born: Steubenville, Jefferson County ZIP 43952 · Steubenville · Jefferson County
School: Steubenville (Grant Elementary, Steubenville High School), Jefferson County ZIP 43952 · Steubenville · Jefferson County

Myths and corrections

Things often said about Dean Martin, and what the record shows.

Often said Martin was born to Italian immigrant parents (the wording of Ohio marker 2-41 and several news features).

The record Only his father was an immigrant. Gaetano Crocetti came from Montesilvano in Abruzzo; his mother, Angela Barra, was born in Fernwood, Ohio, the daughter of an immigrant from Bergamo province. source

Often said Martin left Steubenville at 17.

The record WOSU and ABC6 features say so, but the 1936 Steubenville city directory lists him working at Weirton Steel at 19, and after his 1941 marriage he moved back to Steubenville with his parents for a time before his singing career took off. source

Often said As 'Kid Crochet' he won 11 of his 12 professional fights.

The record The record comes only from Martin's own joke that he 'won all but 11' of 12 bouts, which some local retellings turned into 11 wins. Another feature says he had 36 professional bouts. No fight record has been documented. source

Often said The Dean Martin Show ran from 1964 to 1970 (the dates on the state marker).

The record The NBC variety series ran from 1965 to 1974. source

Pictures

Free to use with the credit shown. Select a picture for the original and its license.

Cropped screenshot of Dean Martin from the trailer for the film Rio Bravo (1959).
Public domain
Cropped screenshot of Dean Martin from the trailer for the film Rio Bravo
Public domain
Cropped screenshot of Dean Martin and John Wayne from the trailer for the film Rio Bravo
Public domain
Cropped screenshot of Dean Martin from the trailer for the film Rio Bravo
Public domain
Cropped screenshot of Dean Martin from the trailer for the film Rio Bravo
Public domain
Screenshot of Dean Martin and Susan Hayward from the trailer for the film Ada
Public domain
Screenshot of Dean Martin and Susan Hayward from the trailer for the film Ada
Public domain
Airport Drive-In Theater advertisement for the American comedy film At War with the Army (1950) - 26 Apr. 1951...
Public domain
Photo of Dean Martin and Raquel Welch from the 1968 film Bandolero!.
Public domain
Photo from the 1968 film Bandelero! with Dean Martin and Raquel Welch.
Public domain
Poster for the film Bells Are Ringing (film)
Public domain
Confidential Magazine cover November 1956
Public domain