A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame honoring the Grammy-winning animated singing group Alvin and the Chipmunks is another entry on a long list of awards and recognition for the beloved group.
Ross Bagdasarian Jr., the president and CEO Bagdasarian Productions, which produces the Chipmunks projects, and his wife, Janice Karman, the company’s co-president, are the stewards of the legendary characters who helped define a generation.
Bagdasarian supplies the voices of Alvin and fellow Chipmunk, Simon, and their manager and human adoptive father, Dave. Karman supplies the voice for the third Chipmunk, Theodore, and The Chipettes, Brittany, Jeanette, and Eleanor.
The Chipmunks made their debut with the 1958 novelty Christmas song, “The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late)” written and sung by Bagdasarian’s late father, also named Ross. The song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles chart and won Grammys for best comedy performance and best recording for children at the inaugural Grammy ceremony in 1959.
“The Chipmunk Song” was also nominated for record of the year in a field that also included Frank Sinatra’s “Witchcraft”; Perry Como’s “Catch A Falling Star” and Peggy Lee’s “Fever.” The winner was “Volare,” sung by Domenico Modugno.
Alvin and the Chipmunks are best known for their various television and movie projects. “The Alvin Show” ran in prime-time on CBS in the 1961-62 season. A prime-time special “A Chipmunk Christmas” aired on NBC in 1981. The series “Alvin & The Chipmunks” ran Saturday mornings on NBC from 1983-90 and introduced The Chipettes.
A CGI-animated series “ALVINNN!!! and the Chipmunks” has aired on Nickelodeon since 2015.
Alvin and the Chipmunks also starred in five theatrical films — 1987’s “The Chipmunk Adventure”; 2007’s “Alvin and the Chipmunks”; 2009’s “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel”; 2011’s “Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked”; and 2015’s “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip”; and three direct-to-video films, 1999’s “Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein”; 2000’s “Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman”; and 2003’s “Little Alvin and the Mini-Munks.”
