The pop legend talks about how he's managed to stay relevant after his time as a teen idol, the composition of "My Way" and the "Tonight Show" theme song, a planned Broadway musical, and what still motivates him to keep touring.
“I’m so young and you’re so old,” Paul Anka sang in the opening line of his first big hit, “Diana,” in 1958. It’s the kind of lyric that seemingly can only be sung at age 15, as Anka was then, and perhaps not a minute later, or at least not long after the goddess he’s singing to has outgrown adolescence. Surprisingly, Anka still includes that debut hit in his concerts today, and it’s a singalong moment for the audience, not one of embarrassment, perhaps partly out of irony, but also because, at 84, the singer truly seems young at heart, to paraphrase his most legendary friend.
Director: John Maggio
Writer: John Maggio
Stars: Alicia Anka, Paul Anka, Frankie Avalon
This week, an original documentary, “Paul Anka: His Way,” premieres on HBO, acquired by the network after its run at several festivals, including those in Toronto and Palm Springs. It’s a well-deserved look back at a life that included becoming a teen idol at 15, an unofficial initiation into the junior Rat Pack before turning 20, and a dual career not only as a performer but also as a songwriter for others, from Buddy Holly (“It Doesn’t Matter Anymore”) to, of course, Frank Sinatra, with “My Way,” and Johnny Carson, with the instrumental theme for the “Tonight Show.” Anka may not be the last of his generation of hitmakers from the late 50s and early 60s, but he is almost certainly the last to remain so active and successful on tour, as evidenced by the performance footage in the documentary (and his performance of “My Way” on Jimmy Kimmel’s show earlier this week).
Anka has more projects on his agenda, including a new album due out February 13, “Inspirations of Life and Love” (preceded by the singles “Let Me Try Again” and “Anytime”). He’s planning his tour dates for 2026, and in the meantime, he’ll be honored by the Los Angeles Press Club with the organization’s Legend Award, which will be presented this Sunday at the National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards. We’ll see if that audience of seasoned journalists succumbs to “Puppy Love” and leaning on each other’s shoulders, as a younger generation has been doing lately in TikTok videos with his old hits.
That’s right, that’s right. Let me simplify, and I know exactly where you’re going. When I started with the Rat Pack, I was the youngest guy who had ever worked in Las Vegas. I learned things, what to do and what not to do, and I’m young, and I admire these guys. These guys weren’t rivals. They were guys that (Bobby) Darin, (Frankie) Avalon, and I looked up to, and then we looked at our lives and said, “Shit, we might not last. What do we do now? We want to be like those guys.”
So when I finally got there and I was working with them, I was like a sponge, and I was watching these cool guys and the way they dressed, and they smoked and they drank, and there were women… Who am I giving the money back to, right? But I made some decisions back then: I was going to hone my craft and learn to be comfortable on stage. And I wasn’t going to become a drinker or a smoker, because I wanted to maintain what I had. They already had it.
They were twice my age, and they had already made it, but I said, “If I want this to continue, I have to stay healthy.” And I’ve lived my life that way to this day. When I go to my doctors and my checkups, they say, “You’re a 45 or 50-year-old man.” But it’s not by chance. You have to make an effort, protect your voice, and logically do certain things that benefit your health, because you pay later in life for how you mistreated yourself before. Now, that's just my choice; I don't judge people. And people come up to me and say, "What strange thing are you eating?" And I just tell them it's very simple. I have to take care of my voice.
I'm not going to go on stage, and I never have, and perform without enthusiasm. I have to respect my audience and the consumers who watch us, who pay so much money, whether it's us or basketball players, and you have to be in shape to give them the night they expect. I see some, I'm not going to mention names, who lip-sync, who can barely walk, who perform without enthusiasm. Where is their dignity? Where is the respect for that audience that pays to see them, to give them what they expect and not disappoint them? And that has been my motto my whole life. And when this ends, whenever that may be, I'll be ready. Look, I'll retire with dignity, and if I can't sing or continue performing, I won't. I've been doing this for 70 years. I mean, I'm already playing with house money.
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