Ron Hawking has been heard but not seen by millions as Charlie the Tuna for Starkist, Jimmy Durante for Kellogg’s Frosted Mini Wheats and Louis Armstrong for Citizen Watch. He can croon like Bing Crosby and whine like Carol Channing. He can sing with the Southern twang of Willie Nelson and put the devilish grin of Jack Nicholson in his voice.
The Barrington resident is a jingle singer, voiceover artist and impressionist with more than 100 celebrities he can pull out of his repertoire faster than you can say Rich Little. But even though he can be many people, Ron Hawking is true to himself.
And to really know Hawking is to know his latest work, “His Way: A Tribute to the Man and His Music,” a respectful tip of the hat to Frank Sinatra that has been extended for the fourth time at the Mercury Theater in Chicago.
“It shows my love for music, not that I’m trying to be Sinatra,” he said. “I’m a singer first, then an impressionist, songwriter and lover of music.”
The two-hour performance is also the fulfillment — and the beginning — of a promise that Hawking made to himself three years ago when he was diagnosed with Hodgkins lymphoma, a cancer of the lymph system. If he recovered, he vowed to never take time for granted. “His Way” is simply the expression of his renewed passion for life and music, a tribute to a legend who died earlier this year by someone who believes he was given a second chance to live.
“It’s my new beginning, not a swan song,” said Hawking, 45, who is now cancer-free.
The journey to “His Way” has been a long one. Ten years ago, Hawking decided to share his many voices by creating “The Lively Art of Impressionism,” a one-man show featuring more than 50 impresssions of stars and characters from his commercials. He has performed the show around the country, including last year at Carnegie Hall.
Though highly accomplished in his field, Hawking was still searching for a sound to hang his hat on. He experimented with Big Band music and recorded a few songs. But Hawking didn’t get serious about pursuing his own Big Band sound until Gene Kelly died in 1995.
“I remember thinking that the entertainment industry had lost a giant,” Hawking said. “I knew other icons would start to leave us, and what a horrible thought that was.”
An obvious icon would be Sinatra, who at the time performed infrequently. “Someone had to carry the ball and bring together Sinatra’s best-ever catalog of music,” Hawking said. “But it had to be sung right and with passion.”
He knew he could do it. But his idea took a detour on July 4, 1995, when Hawking found a golf-ball sized lump on his neck. He was diagnosed with Hodgkins lymphoma and underwent six months of intensive chemotherapy. About halfway into his treatment, Hawking took a turn for the worse, with doctors thinking he had a blood clot in his lung. “I was one inch from death,” he said.
It turned out that he was having an allergic reaction to the drugs, which limited the amount of oxygen in his blood. The medication was changed, but the illness had physically and mentally taken its toll. He slept most of the day, and he barely had enough energy to stand up. His wife, Amy, was taking care of their two children, Cole, now 5, and Dana, 3.
“I felt like a shell of my former self,” he said. “My ambition and aspiration had been taken away, and I was frightened that I wouldn’t get it back. I may live but not be able to do what I had always done.”
Little by little, he regained his strength, and he gives credit to his wife and children. “It was a blessing in disguise,” he said. “I appreciate life so much more. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t want to grab my wife and kids.”
“Family helped him get through this and he had his music to look forward to when we got better,” said Amy Hawking, who has been married to Ron for eight years. “The hardest part was he was diagnosed one month after our daughter was born. But we did what we needed to do and got through it. We’re a very upbeat couple.”
Soon after finishing his chemotherapy in February 1996, he began to focus on his musical aspirations, calling music arrangers to start putting together a catalog of Sinatra’s music. That summer, through a mutual friend, Hawking linked up with Bill Rogers, a Las Vegas-based conductor and arranger who performed as a bass trombonist with Sinatra in the 1960s. Over the phone, Hawking talked about his idea and sang a few lines. “I could tell just on the phone that he was a heavyweight singer,” Rogers said.
That’s all it took to convince Rogers, a heavyweight in his own right, having arranged music for Frank Sinatra Jr. since 1969 and for Sinatra himself since 1988. Over the next four months, Rogers got to work arranging the music; then they cut a recording.
“All the moons and stars in heaven lined up,” Hawking said. “Or you could say all the martinis, cigar bars and swing music lined up. They were all coming back. It was the perfect opportunity.” And Sinatra’s music was a part of this resurgence.
But he still had a difficult time finding a place that would welcome his Sinatra tribute. He approached Michael Cullen, owner of the Mercury Theater. Cullen wasn’t convinced about booking the show until Sinatra died this past May. But there was one condition: Hawking would need to produce the show himself. After talking with his wife, Hawking dug into his family’s savings.
“It took total persistence to make it happen,” he said. “I didn’t want to be a Frank Sinatra wannabe. That’s not in the spirit of what I was trying to do. I wanted a tribute to him in a respectful way, a salute.”
“I knew it was a very good idea, but I was concerned about doing the show so close to his (Sinatra’s) death,” said Cullen. “But Ron was so earnest in doing it, and it isn’t a parody of Sinatra. He isn’t an imitator. He brings a lot of warmth and love to the music.”
When it came time to put on the show, Hawking would have no one else be his conductor but Rogers, who has temporarily moved to Chicago to lead the 14-piece orchestra.
“I’m deeply impressed with Ron as a person and musician. You can’t find a better person,” Rogers said. “What you see on stage is what you get. I hope there’s a renaissance of this music, and may it forever be a respectful tribute, just like Ron is doing.”
On July 8 — just three years after Hawking first found out he had cancer — the curtains went up at the Mercury Theater, which is located between an Italian restaurant and an Irish pub. Being an Irish-Italian, Hawking knew he had found just the right place to perform what he says is his “calling.”
The show is in Hawking’s own voice, though it resembles the smooth, deep sounds of Sinatra. During the show, Hawking performs about 25 songs carefully selected from some of the 1,100 selections recorded during Sinatra’s seven-decade career. In only one song does Hawking impersonate Sinatra, complete with cigarette in hand and hat tipped at just the right angle. He does impersonations of other “Rat Pack” members, including Dean Martin, and also weaves in the likes of Johnny Mathis, Louis Armstrong, Carol Channing, Ray Charles and George Burns.
The soldout crowds of people from all generations are a testament to the appeal of Sinatra’s music — and Hawking’s performance. “In the audience, there’s seniors, Baby Boomers and Generation Xers all tapping their toes and mouthing the words,” he said. “There’s such romance in this music that society is craving. They want this music to be rekindled or be discovered for the first time.”
“I’m very proud that he’s in my theater,” Cullen said. “I thought the show would do very well, and it has had a great run. From the response we’ve had, I can see that the show would be very popular all over the country.”
Behind the scenes, Hawking’s energy and passion also motivate the musicians and crew. “We’re always so ready to do the show every night,” said David Krugh of Chicago, the show’s production manager. “We call ourselves FOR’s — Friends of Ron — and it’s so easy to understand why. With Ron, there’s no ego, just great music.”
Hawking’s new beginning has been a journey that began as a child growing up on Chicago’s Northwest Side. By the age of 4, he was performing on television talent shows. During car rides, his dad would entertain the family by impersonating Louis Armstrong, and Hawking would follow suit. His mother taught him songs and encouraged him to get on stage.
Hawking went on to attend Elgin Community College for a year and a half, majoring in business, and then transferred to Triton College in River Grove to study music. But he never finished college, trading the classroom to tour with a rock band.
“I didn’t want to find myself always singing in a club,” he said. “I thought I should try getting into the jingle and recording business. I had an eclectic taste in music and knew I could sing in different styles.”
So, after three years on the road, he took his talents to the studio and started singing jingles. As the voice behind hundreds of television and radio commercials, Hawking is now known by his peers in recording studio industry as the “chameleon” for his wide range of styles and sounds.
Dick Boyell, president of Nuance Productions in Chicago, writes music for commercials and always knows who he can call to sing an advertising jingle. “Ron is a natural artist, (one) who is really unbelievable in the flexibility of his voice,” said Boyell, who has worked with Hawking for more than 10 years. “He is a credit to everyone he works with and has really built up a name for himself.”
Earlier this year, Hawking released “His Way,” a CD tribute to Sinatra that features many of the tunes from the show.
“He’s really one of the most versatile and gifted studio performers,” said Hank Neuberger, general manager of Chicago Recording Co. in Chicago, who has known Hawking for 20 years. “He’s a double threat in that he both sings brilliantly, plus does a variety of character voices. He is highly valued.” “His Way” was recorded at Chicago Recording Co.
Hawking is now looking to take the show on the road and has found interested producers in New York. “I’m just crossing each bridge when I get there,” he said. “The Ron Hawking stock has risen in Chicago, and now it’s time to make a national name and make even more people happy.”
In the meantime, he’s juggling his jingle assignments, including a Nintendo commercial with a rendition of the old “Smile, You’re on Candid Camera” tune. In September, he wrote the music and lyrics for “Go Go Sammy Sosa” as a salute to the Cubs’ home-run hitter. The song made its Wrigley Field debut during the season’s last home game and has received airtime on radio and television stations across the country.
“It’s great to do what you love and reap the rewards,” he said. “This is just the beginning, and it makes me feel good that others feel good when they hear the music.”
And how would Ol’ Blue Eyes himself feel? “I think Frank would approve heartily and feel flattered,” said Rogers, who has been associated with the Sinatra family for the past 30 years. “He would give his fondest blessing.”
