Skip to content 
Rosalie’s role in Susan’s childhood extended beyond taking her to a television studio. Historical profiles of the Beltrante sisters describe Rosalie as the oldest daughter and an important caretaker within the household. Their mother worked as a waitress, reportedly on a shift running from approximately 3 p.m. until midnight. That schedule meant Rosalie frequently helped look after her younger sisters and brother. Susan was therefore following someone who was not simply an older sibling but a person who had taken on considerable responsibility within the family.
There were three Beltrante sisters associated with the Bandstand world: Rosalie, Mary, and Susan. Contemporary memories and later histories of the program identify all three as recognizable regulars. Mary, the middle sister, was born in 1943 and attended South Philadelphia High School. Historical accounts identify Steve Colanero as Mary’s regular dancing partner and date during part of her time on the program. Rosalie was also sufficiently well known among viewers that other Bandstand participants later remembered her decades after those broadcasts had ended.
The sisters entered television at an extraordinary moment in the development of American youth culture. Bandstand had begun as a Philadelphia television program on WFIL-TV in 1952 with radio personality Bob Horn as its host. Dick Clark replaced Horn in 1956. Clark did not create the original program, but his arrival would become crucial to its transformation. Under Clark, the program developed the carefully controlled, clean-cut presentation that millions of viewers would eventually associate with American Bandstand.