Bobby Rydell's Wife Kept Him 'Alive' for Years & Was by His Deathbed - Stepmom to Singer's Kids Carries on His Legacy Today

• Bobby Rydell was once a heartthrob and teen idol back in the 1960s.
• After his first wife died of breast cancer, he struggled to cope until one woman came into his life to change that.
• His second wife took care of him and made sure to shower him with all the love and support he needed, proving her love was true until the very end.

Born Robert Louis Ridarelli on April 26, 1942, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Bobby Rydell rose to fame as a teen idol. He rose up the ranks as one of America's teen idols alongside Frankie Avalon, who was also from Pennsylvania.

Rydell's hits included "Volare," "Forget Him," and "Wild One." After his string of hits, he starred alongside Ann-Margaret in the 1963 film "Bye Bye Birdie," which remained his one and only film.

Although he was a popular celebrity at the time, his career began to fizzle down. He moved to the nightclub scene, where he continued to perform.

In 1985, he toured with fellow 1950s idols, calling themselves "The Golden Boys of American Bandstand." At the time, he had been married for over twenty years to his wife, Camille Quattrone.

Rydell married Quattrone five years after "Bye Bye Birdie's" success. Together, they shared two children, a son named Robert and a daughter named Jennifer.

In the 1990s, Rydell tried to revive his career by performing at the Atlantic City casino. The thought of performing there delighted the former teen idol, as it was a short drive away from their Philadelphia home.

Looking back at his career, Rydell is grateful for the opportunities it brought upon him. While it was relatively short-lived, it still allowed him to experience things not everyone can. He once reminisced:

"It was a marvelous feeling – 17 years old and I'm going to Tokyo, Australia, Europe. Some of my friends hadn't even been to New Jersey."

In 2003, Rydell suffered a huge blow when he lost his wife to breast cancer. It was one of the darkest times in his life, and he had a difficult time coping with the loss.

He realized how difficult it was to live a normal life without his wife, to whom he was married for over three decades. He no longer had someone beside him in bed every night, no one to talk to, no one to laugh with, and no one to cry with.

As a means of coping, the former teen star turned to alcohol. It became an addiction, and it took a while for him to throw away his bad habits.

Years after his wife's death, another woman came into his life and changed it for the better. This woman would end up becoming his second wife, a woman who stayed devoted to him even after his death.

Bobby Rydell Married Linda J. Hoffman

In 2009, after years of suffering through a downward spiral, Rydell married Linda J. Hoffman, a nurse and X-ray technician. By then, his health had been deteriorating, and it was due to his decades of drinking.

In his memoir, "Teen Idol," he wrote about these struggles. He said his alcoholism began in 1992 when his first wife was diagnosed with cancer, and it heightened after her death.

"Decades of drinking had ravaged my body and wrecked my liver and kidneys. I had no one to blame but yours truly," he wrote. By 2012, Rydell underwent a double transplant to replace his liver and kidney.

The following year, the former teen idol went through another health crisis and had a heart bypass surgery. Still, he carried through them and even continued performing after his recovery period.

Through it all, he had Hoffman by his side. She remembered watching Rydell on TV as a kid, but she never thought anything greatly of it.

It turned out Hoffman's name was exactly the same as that of Rydell's fan club president. People mistook her for that same woman, but it was all a case of having the wrong person on their phone book.

When Hoffman moved to a new apartment after her divorce, people began to call her about things related to Rydell. One fan even called to order cassette tapes of his songs.

The other Linda Hoffman lived close by, but they never crossed paths. Until one day, the jewelry store in town accidentally gave her the wrong package. When she began telling the clerk about the other Linda Hoffman, the clerk just so happened to have been a schoolmate of that woman.

At the time, Hoffman asked the clerk to connect her with her fellow Linda Hoffman so she could forward any calls she'd receive on her line. The calls weren't frequent, but they were there – hence she realized having her namesake's number could come in handy.

Years later, a stranger fixed her up on a blind date with none other than Bobby Rydell himself. She told the woman she had encountered his name many times in the past, but they'd never met.

After a brief phone call with Rydell, Hoffman agreed to meet up. She didn't know what she was getting herself into because she didn't even know how the teen idol looked in the present time.

She began using the internet to research him so she could come to their date prepared. Their first date was on Halloween when they dined with 14 other people because they didn't know each other well then.

At first, Rydell bombarded Hoffman with medical questions relating to insurance. It wasn't something she was expecting to hear from him just because she worked in the industry.

After falling in love with one another, Hoffman quickly adjusted to being a celebrity's partner. While people always recognized Rydell, they didn't go out of their way to bother him.

It was when she accompanied him to shows that she'd realize how much of a star her husband was. "I opened the door for us to get out and it was like... oh my god, all these women," she recalled about a show Rydell had in Delaware.

As they got married later on, Rydell and Hoffman didn't share any children together. Instead, they took care of rescue dogs on their Pennsylvania property.

Regardless, Rydell's kids from his first marriage accepted Hoffman as their stepmom. She even took part in their special family tradition during holidays, where his daughter Jennifer would prepare a themed dinner for them.

Their home was like any other American home – it was spacious, homey, and filled with wooden furniture. They had a wooden kitchen where they enjoyed lounging, a vast, hooded patio, that overlooked a garden featuring uniquely-styled brick flooring.

Even on mundane days, life was simple for the lovely couple. While Rydell was outgoing when meeting fans, he was laid back at home.

The teen star enjoyed watching sports and music shows, both of which were his two passions, according to Hoffman. It was their simple days at home that Hoffman cherished most, as she admittedly "had to keep him alive."

Throughout their marriage, Rydell was in and out of the hospital. She even used to tease him that he only married her so he had "built-in health care."

They never got through an entire year without taking Rydell to the hospital. Sometimes, it was for something as trivial as a finger infection, while sometimes, it was for bigger things.

"Oh, here we go," she'd say every time Rydell would complain about something in the middle of the night. She'd drive him to the hospital, or she'd call an ambulance to assist them.

Ultimately, Hoffman believed the thought of performing on-stage motivated Rydell to recover quickly every time he was in the hospital. Being a celebrity was the only job he ever knew, and it was something he was very passionate about.

Unlike many celebrity spouses, Hoffman didn't go with her husband wherever he went. She likened Rydell's shows to him going to the office.

"Do you go to the office with your husband?" she'd reply to those who ask her if she accompanies Rydell on his travels. After all, whenever Rydell had no shows, he was at home, just sitting on the couch and watching TV.

Hoffman liked to keep their home in order. In fact, she always kept herself busy that Rydell once told her: "What are you doing out there? You know they have people we can hire to do that."

She'd shake her head and tell him that she loved being outside. She also told him that she didn't enjoy just sitting around.

Ultimately, Hoffman was proud of how thoughtful and sharp her husband was. One particular thing she found impressive was his ability to remember what he had to eat 30 years ago.

On April 5, 2022, Bobby Rydell passed away at the age of 72 due to pneumonia complications. Hoffman was by his side at the hospital at the time of his passing.

Aside from his wife, he is survived by daughter Jennifer, son Robert, and five grandchildren. Their family has made an active effort to keep his legacy alive by constantly updating his official Facebook page for his fans to enjoy.

Although they don't have as big of a following as their father, his children also share snippets of their life on social media for fans to see. Rydell's only daughter Jennifer would share photos of her family on her Instagram profile, which is set to public.

Jennifer, who goes by the last name "Dulin," has been married for 23 years. Not much is known about her brother Robert, as he's remained out of the spotlight through the years.

When he passed, Hoffman called a friend of his to let her know the news. She was his first wife's best friend, but also a friend of Rydell since kindergarten.

Hoffman was struck when the woman said the thing she remembered most about Rydell was that when they were children, while everyone else was playing ball, he'd be in a corner, performing in front of other children.

Rydell would imitate people he'd see on TV, and looking back, his friend believed his life was full circle. He was able to do what he loved from the beginning, and he lived a full life.

Linda Hoffman Proved Her Love Was Real

Even after Rydell's death, Hoffman was still speaking fondly of him. She hoped for his fans to remember him as a "nice guy" and as your average American man who just so happened to have a great talent.

Through it all, Hoffman wanted to simply be with Rydell – she didn't want his fame, nor his fortune. In fact, after getting married, she chose to keep her last name.

Rydell was quite stunned that his new wife didn't want to take his last name. However, Hoffman felt this was for the better, as she didn't want people to like her simply because of her husband.

Despite choosing not to take his name, Hoffman was devoted to being Mrs. Rydell. She took care of him and made sure he lived the rest of his life happily.

Rydell is remembered fondly by his fans who continue to shower his Facebook page with comments. They may also continue to feel close to the late idol through his book, "Teen Idol."

The completion of "Teen Idol" was something Hoffman herself rallied for. She pushed him into getting serious about writing the book so his fans could have something to hold on to.

In the same way that Bobby Rydell had a loyal wife by his side throughout his last years, his fellow teen idol Frankie Avalon continues to be in a loving relationship with his wife, Kathryn Diebel. After getting married in 1963, 2023 marks their 60th year as a married couple!