Clint Holmes facts for kids

Clint Holmes (born 9 May 1946) is a talented singer, songwriter, and entertainer. He was born in England and later became famous in Las Vegas. He is best known for his big hit song in the US called "Playground in My Mind".

Early Life and Career

Clint Holmes was born in Bournemouth, England. His father was an African-American jazz musician, and his mother was an English opera singer. He grew up in Farnham, New York, a small village near Buffalo.

Clint first studied music at Fredonia State College. However, he left school to join the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War. For three years (1967–1969), he sang with the United States Army Chorus. After leaving the Army, he stayed in the Washington, D.C. area and began his career singing in nightclubs.

Music Success

In June 1972, Clint Holmes released his most famous song, "Playground in My Mind". It became a huge hit in 1973, reaching number 2 on the charts. It was one of the biggest songs of that year around the world. Another song he released later, Shiddle-ee-dee, also did well in Canada.

A radio personality named Johnny Holliday shared how "Playground in My Mind" became popular:

Clint Holmes was a great talent. He was already singing in nightclubs in Washington, D.C. When his song was brought to the radio station WWDC, we loved it right away. It became a hit very quickly. Clint is a friendly person, and we often played tennis and basketball together. I am very proud of what Clint has achieved in his career. After "Playground" became a hit, he worked on TV shows.

Television and Las Vegas Shows

Clint Holmes has had a busy career in television and as a live performer. He was the announcer for The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers from 1986 to 1988. This was one of the first shows on the new Fox Broadcasting Company network. In 1991, he hosted his own talk show called "New York at Night" in New York City. It ran for a year and won a local Emmy award.

Clint Holmes has been a popular performer in Las Vegas since the 1970s. In 2006, he finished his long-running show at Harrah's Las Vegas Casino. The main showroom there was even named after him!

From 1990 to 1995, he hosted the Honda Campus All-Star Challenge on the BET network. This was a quiz competition for college students. He continued to host the final matches until 2008.

Since the Smith Center for the Performing Arts opened in 2012, Clint Holmes performs there every month in the Cabaret Jazz Theater. He also performed "Auld Lang Syne" at the Smith Center on January 1, 2016, after the New Year's fireworks show.

See also

• List of 1970s one-hit wonders in the United States