Acclaimed Singer, Entertainer. Robert Walden Cassotto was born to a poor, working-class family in the Bronx, New York, and his father died a few months before he was born. His English mother had been a professional entertainer for many years. After her husbands death, she was forced to raise Bobby, and his sister Nina, on welfare payments. Darin was a sickly child and at 8 had rheumatic fever. This disease left him with a weakened heart, a condition that he would suffer from the rest of his life. After high school, Darin attended college on a scholarship. Wanting a career in the New York theater, he left college to play small nightclubs around the city with a musical combo. As was common with ethnic minorities at the time, he changed his Italian name selecting the name out of the phone book, picking the first one that sounded usable. After three mediocre recordings, his career took off in 1958 when he released his unique rock song "Splish Splash" that became an instant hit, selling more than a million copies (originally released under the name of Dickie Do and the Don'ts). This was followed by more hits recorded in the same successful style. In 1959, Bobby Darin recorded "Dream Lover," song that would become a multi-million seller and one that he is still remembered for to this day. Darin's next song "Mack the Knife" relied heavily on the stylized vocal inflections developed by Frank Sinatra. the song sold two million copies and topped the charts for months. "Mack the Knife' won a Grammy Award as Record of the Year and Darin was voted Best New Artist. Darin made several movies, beginning in 1960 with Come September. He would later marry Sandra Dee. Darin received an Oscar nomination for his work in the 1963 film Capt. Newman M.D. He appeared in another eight films including State Fair (1962). In 1968, Darin discovered his "sister" Nina was really his mother, and his "mother" Polly was actually his Grandmother. The identity of his true father was never publicly disclosed. This painful revelation altered him for the rest of his life.In 1973, Darin died during heart surgery to repair a faulty heart valve. His body was donated to the UCLA medical school.