Meeting Frankie Goes to Hollywood

Note: This article may have affiliate links, and purchases may earn us a commission at no extra cost to you. Read more here.

When: 1985

Where: Kaiser Convention Center in Oakland & The Clift Hotel in San Francisco

And: I first caught Mark outside the venue on his way in or out of the soundcheck. The next day, my friends and I showed up at the hotel, just in time to catch the guys checking out. FGTH were riding very high at that point in time, and new bands with a lot of fame are sort of like new money vs old money — a little more ego, a little more showy, a little less interest in the fans who helped get them there. We did meet Nash, and I have a photo of him somewhere. Holly, though, was not there or was lagging behind — the only time we saw him was onstage during the concert the night before.

 

Mark O’Toole at the venue
fgth-mark2.jpg

Mark O’Toole
fgth2.jpg

Paul, Mark, Ped and a mystery man
frankie-goes-to-the-hotel.jpg

Me (looking about 10 years old) with an oblivious Mark
fgth-np.jpg

Paul Rutherford
fgth-paul-rutherford.jpg

 


And for more from this artist…

Bang!...The Greatest Hits of Frankie Goes to Hollywood

Facebook
Pinterest
Twitter
Email
LinkedIn
Pocket
Reddit

You might also like...

Comments on this story

7 Responses

  1. Mark O’Toole is one of my best friends ever. I am very lucky to have him as my friend. His wife is also awesome and beautiful. His son Cairo is also going to be a super rock star. I’m proud to say that I spend every Christmas with him as I didn’t have any family in Florida. Also, he recorded and mixed all of my songs for free in his studio. ( myspace.com/jipsiharris Check out what he did for me. I hate to sound braggy but I’m missing him so much and decided to do a search on google and found this. I love your story by the way. Peace.

    Jipsi Harris
    Super Mark O’Toole fan forever.

    1. That’s so cool! Mark is my influence/inspiration for pursuing music and picking up bass. I learned all of his bass lines from FGTH’s songs along with the keyboard/synth parts. I might pick up guitar too in the future. Anyway, are you still friends with Mark and if so how’s he doing? Unfortunately I can’t find any recent information about him or his band Trapped By Mormons since 2003 and I was curious on how he’s doing and if he still plays bass. Does he look the same? I miss Mark and wish he and FGTH can get back together as they made amazing music!

Leave a comment here!

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *