Although he was a huge star by now, he might have felt the changes occurring in pop music because he began to stretch himself by recording some quirky, playful tunes. A good example is "Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom)", which might sound strange to us but was number one on the pop charts. The public loved Perry's oddly-named songs, and a few of them, including "Ko Ko Mo" and "Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Doo", ended up being some of his biggest hits. (See the video at the bottom for a very young Perry performing another silly song with Martha Stewart... no, not that Martha Stewart.)
Perry wasn't crazy about doing novelty songs, but they kept him popular and as his career progressed he was smart enough to intersperse some tunes he liked a little better. He had hits on "Round and Round" and the Grammy-winning "Catch A Falling Star", but by the close of the decade his star still began to fade. Although beloved by his fans, and known as a true gentleman throughout the industry, times were changing and Perry was not exactly the type to be a teen idol.
However, he continued to flourish for many years, selling countless millions of records and continuing to appear on his own and other TV shows. He even made a comeback of sorts in 1970 with a best-seller on "It's Impossible", and kept his legion of fans entertained with guest shots and specials.
He continued making occasional appearances in later years but eventually retired to Florida, where he died in 2001. The singing barber from Pennsylvania will always be remembered as one of the greats, and as a star who successfully spanned several decades.
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