An American rockstar who accidentally made one of ‘creepiest songs ever’ was once a cult figure back in the 60s.
Tiny Tim – real name Herbert Khaury – was born in 1932 and became interested in music when his father gave him a vintage wind-up gramophone when he was five years old.
Growing up in New York, he was the son of a textile worker from Beirut and his mum was a Polish-Jewish garment worker.
After landing a job in at the New York office of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, he became interested in the entertainment industry and decided to show off his unique voice during a talent show.
Tim quickly became known for his unique falsetto and got his big break in 1968 from his cover version of 1929’s ‘Tiptoe Through the Tulips’.
By using a playful, old-timey melody, the song is very much a surreal listening experience.
It reached number 17 on the US Billboard charts, and cemented himself as a cult hero.
Sadly, in September 1996, he was performing at a ukulele festival in Massachusetts when he suffered a heart attack on stage.
The singer was taken to hospital and was admitted under the precaution that he needed to look after his health.
At the time, he was suffering from various diabetic and heart conditions. Unfortunately, he ignored all advice and suffered another heart attack on stage while performing his hit song.
Despite CPR attempts, he was pronounced dead in the evening of 30 November, aged 64.
While older fans will remember him for giving us ‘Tiptoe Through the Tulips’, newer listeners will have heard the song in various horror movies, giving a completely different spin.
Such as its inclusion in Insidious (2010), marking one of the more terrifying scenes in the movie.
In the film, the song plays as Renai Lambert unpacks boxes in her home as the tune randomly starts playing on the record player.
As the music continues, she heads upstairs and catches a glimpse of the mysterious figure a young boy dancing and running through the house.
Commenting on the track, one viewer said: “This song scared the s**t out of me in the Insidious movie.”
“The song choice for this scene was beyond brilliant. Took a light hearted festive song into the creepiest song ever,” a second thought.
While a third added: “One of the creepi[e]st scenes in any movie for me. I don’t know why. It’s just really unsettling.”
