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| Frank Scafuri |
Are you bored sitting in a doctor’s waiting room? You may no longer be, if you are fortunate enough to encounter Frank Scafuri. At 63, this voice and piano teacher from Rockville Centre defines uniqueness. Back in May, he stepped foot into the waiting room of Trylon Vet Care in Forest Hills, but not with pets awaiting treatment. Rather, he offered his singing, acting, and dancing skills, and transformed a visit into a production called “Frank’s Waiting! WFTD Radio.” When was the last time you spotted a 1920s crooner pitching his radio spot live in a Queens vet’s office?
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| Frank Scafuri Who's Got Rhythm |
Scafuri is perhaps the sole musical comedy
producer of doctor’s office videos. “I want to bring some joy and music into
the lives of people today,” he said. This summer, he will become a member of
IMDb, which is credited as the world’s most popular and authoritative source
for movie, TV, and celebrity content.
His
typical medical visit plays out with “laughter as life’s best medicine.” Upon entering,
hunched over a walker and wearing a tux and a bowtie, he takes his time sitting.
Then he strikes up a conversation with a patient. He explained, “I would ask, ‘How
are you doing?’ A woman replied, ‘I am feeling okay. How are you?’ I replied, ‘Not
so good, since I found another gray hair this morning.’” After commenting that
he looked great, he would respond, “I get through my day. Do you know how?” He
then jumps out of his seat, throws off his overcoat, places his walker aside,
and bursts into a song such as “I Got Rhythm.”
Thirty years ago, he began to limp and
doctors were clueless. That all changed in August 2013, after being referred to
a neurologist and experiencing an epiphany in the waiting area. He referred to
his motivation as “the patients awaiting an MRI, who were either in total
silence or looking at their phones.” It wasn’t long until he began formulating video
production proposals to practices for non-serious illnesses.
Scafuri cherishes his musical origins, which
he attributes to being raised in a typical Italian household in Lynbrook. He explained,
“On Sundays, we would go to church. Then my parents would spin records of
Italian and popular singers such as Al Jolson, Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, and
Jimmy Roselli, and at 3 PM, we would have our meatball and sausage feast.” Jerry
Lewis’ telethons were another inspiration. “I would think, someday I want to be
a background singer on one of these TV shows. Then I thought, ‘Why don’t I become
the singer?’”
During his high school years, he met his
first vocal teacher, Jane Robbin Longo and also drew inspiration from his chorus
music director, George Breakwell. He pumped gas until passing the audition for
Juilliard at age 17, where he pursued a voice major and a piano minor and graduated
in 1973. Scafuri said, “NYC was my campus. I got my first job as a tenor
soloist in a Presbyterian church near Hotel Ansonia. I would earn $20 and was
proud.” At St Helen’s Roman Catholic Church in Howard Beach, he worked as a
music director, organist, and choir director, and then landed positions in Lynbrook
and Glen Cove churches.
A pivotal moment transpired in 1980. Scafuri
sang at a country club and was discovered by pianist Gary Lawrence, who praised
his voice for its ideal qualities of a 1930s crooner. Lawrence developed a new
style of Big Band and applied a twist on modern favorites such as “Stayin’
Alive” and “Feelings” to resemble the 1930s. “I was proud to become the singer
and co-leader of the band, Gary Lawrence and the Sizzling Syncopators. We
performed at Manhattan’s Red Blazer Too,” said Scafuri. Their album was
produced by Columbia Masterworks Records.
Scafuri
reflected upon his career and family life and attributed much gratitude to his
supportive wife Mary Ann, his son Billy, and daughter Kristin, who join him in
looking into the future.
“I am extending an open invitation to
doctors who wish to contact me, so I can produce a 3 minute video in a light
patient waiting room,” said Scafuri. “It is entertainment to patients and won’t
disturb the mannerisms of the office. In exchange, doctors will receive free
advertising.” His first ten online videos are slated for completion in
September, which he will call his first season. “Like” Frank Scafuri’s Facebook
page, www.facebook.com/Frankswaitingroom
and discover him on YouTube.
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