Tony’s big break came in 1949 when comedian Bob Hope noticed him working with Pearl Bailey in Greenwich Village. As he recalls, “Bob Hope came down to check out my act. He liked my singing so much that after the show he came back to see me in my dressing room and said, ‘Come on kid, you’re going to come to the Paramount and sing with me.’ But first he told me he didn’t care for my stage name (Joe Bari) and asked me what my real name was. I told him, ‘My name is Anthony Dominick Benedetto,’ and he said, ‘We’ll call you Tony Bennett.’ And that’s how it happened. A new Americanized name, the start of a wonderful career and a glorious adventure that has continued for over sixty years.”

His initial fame came via a string of Columbia singles in the early 1950s, including such chart-toppers as “Because of You,” “Rags To Riches” and a cover of Hank Williams’ “Cold, Cold Heart.” He has placed two-dozen songs in the Top 40, including “I Wanna Be Around,” “The Good Life,” “Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)” and his signature hit, “I Left My Heart In San Francisco,” which earned him two Grammy Awards.

Tony Bennett is one of a handful of artists to have new albums chart in the 1950s, ’60s, ’70s, ’80s, ’90s, and to this day. He has toured the world to sold out audiences, winning rave reviews whenever he performs. In 2006, Tony’s NBC prime-time special, “Tony Bennett: An American Classic” received 7 Emmy Awards making it the most honored program of that year. With worldwide record sales in the millions, dozens of platinum and gold albums to his credit, fifteen Grammy Awards including the prestigious Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, Tony Bennett will surely give you a night to remember …only at the Sunrise Theatre.