Is NKOTB still hangin'?

The Virginian-Pilot
© June 5, 2009

By Carrie White

Correspondent

The New Kids on the Block are back, and the boy band’s tour brings them to Virginia Beach today, June 5. Does any part of the band’s name still hold true?

'NEW'
Not really. Their debut album was released in 1986, and their second album, “Hangin’ Tough,” shot them to stardom in 1988. They had nine consecutive top 10 hits and four albums that went platinum many times over. They also became a merchandising machine. In 1991, they were the highest-paid entertainers of the year, beating Michael Jackson, Madonna and Prince. They disbanded in 1994 and, after several attempts, regrouped successfully and released a single, “Summertime,” last year. The subsequent album, “The Block,” still qualifies as new.

'KIDS'
Well, if you mean that four of the five band members have their own kids, then yes. When they released their first album, their ages ranged from Joey McIntyre’s 13 to Jonathan Knight’s 17. Today, Joey is 36 and Jonathan is aging out at 40. Even if 40 is the new 30, you can’t say any of the Boston-area natives are kids.

'ON THE BLOCK'
It would be more accurate to say they’ve been “around the block.” Since disbanding, Jonathan went into real estate, Donnie Wahlberg went into acting, Jordan Knight began a successful solo career, Joey went into acting and continued to sing, and Danny Wood produced and performed. With their financial success – the group has sold more than 70 million albums – they could have bought the block.

'THE BLOCKHEADS'
The teenyboppers who once covered their bedroom walls with NKOTB posters and argued over which one was dreamiest have changed a bit, too, but somehow they still love the band.

About 2,100 women, most in their 20s and 30s, paid more than $1,000 each for a sold-out, three-day Carnival Cruise Lines trip with the band that left Miami for the Bahamas last month.
Fans squealed and giggled as they boarded the boat, angling for a glimpse of the New Kids. Some wore buttons and T-shirts with their favorite band members’ names and photos. Others kissed cardboard cutouts.

Emily Vance of Dayton, Ohio, took the cruise with her mother, Debbie Kingham, and friend Jenny Duncan. They wore matching black tour-branded tank tops and gushed about their favorite member – Wahlberg, who was known as the “bad boy” of the group.

Kingham and Vance remembered their first concert in July 1990. When Vance went to the band’s reunion concert this October, she cried.

Vance and Duncan said their husbands think they’re crazy, but they don’t care. “We’re the only ones who understand,” Duncan said.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

Carrie White, caramine2@aol.com

http://hamptonroads.com/2009/06/nkotb-still-hangin

*nkotbgirl.from.peru*