Petersen achieved fame in the 1960s, at an early age, by playing Donna Reed's son, Jeff Stone, on The Donna Reed Show. In the early 1980s, he also had a recurring role as a police officer on Matt Houston, and in the late 1990s, he played the author Paul Conway in the film Mother's Day.
Petersen started out in show business at the age of ten when he became a "Mouseketeer" on the Mickey Mouse Club. He was fired within two weeks for disorderly conduct. He was later quoted as saying, "I didn't know a kid actor shouldn't act like a kid." However, he achieved stardom as a teenage heartthrob on The Donna Reed Show, an ABC family sitcom that ran from 1958 to 1966. He played son Jeff Stone from the time he was twelve until he was twenty. In addition, he learned a great deal from Reed while he was growing up on the television set. Above all, he realized that Donna was his favorite actress to date in his business. Petersen sang his sentimental hit song My Dad to costar Carl Betz, who portrayed Dr. Alex Stone, in a 1962 episode of the series. His other costars were Shelley Fabares and his sister Patty Petersen as well as Bob Crane.
He went on to act in many guest-roles, including one as a military officer in the short-lived 1967 ABC western series Custer, with Wayne Maunder in the title role. As the years passed, the television appearances grew increasingly infrequent. Petersen said that too many casting directors do not permit bubblegum stars to grow into adult actors.
Petersen's fame brought recording offers and although his singing voice was limited, he had hit record singles with songs "She Can't Find Her Keys", "Amy", and "Lollipops and Roses", as well as "My Dad" that made #6 on the Billboard Hot 100. He also recorded during the 1960s for Motown, including the singles "Chained" (later a hit for Marvin Gaye) and "A Little Bit For Sandy."
Difficult times followed his disappearance from the Hollywood spotlight. As a result, Petersen returned to the university and obtained a degree in literature that helped him to write sixteen adventure novels.
Petersen's authorship began after he met David Oliphant, a New York publisher visiting Los Angeles. His first novel concerned car racing. Thereafter, he created a Matt Helm-type hero, Eric Saveman, also known as "The Smuggler." In one year, Pocket Books published eight of his Smuggler novels, earning Petersen $75,000.
In 1977 Petersen's autobiography, Walt, Mickey and Me: Confessions of the First Ex-Mouseketeer, was published.
Petersen has been married 3 times: In 1967, Peterson married actress Brenda Benet; the couple divorced in 1970. In 1974, Petersen married Hallie Littman; they had two children, then were divorced in 1988. Petersen married Rana Jo Platz in 1992.
In 1990, he founded the child-actor support group called A Minor Consideration to improve working conditions for child actors and to assist in the transition between working as a child actor and adult life, whether in acting or in other professions.
He is currently the board member of the Donna Reed Foundation, and works for the Donna Reed Festival, which takes place on the third week of June, every year, in his mentor's hometown of Denison, Iowa.
Lollipops and Roses
Paul Petersen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
(Lollipops and roses)
(Lollipops and roses)
(Lollipops and roses)
(Lollipops and roses)
Tell her you care
Each time you speak
Each day of the week
Bring her nice things
Sugar and spice things
Roses and lollipops
And lollipops and roses
One day she'll smile
Next day she'll cry
Minute to minute
You'll never know why
Coax her, pet her
Better yet, get her
Roses and lollipops
And lollipops and roses
We try acting grown up
But as a rule
We're all little children
Fresh from school
So carry her books
That's how it starts
Fourteen or forty
They're kids in their heart
Keep them handy
Flowers and candy
Roses and lollipops
And lollipops and roses
(And lollipops and roses)
(And lollipops and roses)
(And lollipops and roses)
(And lollipops and roses)
The lyrics of "Lollipops and Roses" by Paul Petersen embodies the idea of love and affection at its purest form. The song emphasizes the significance of expressing affection to those we love through the simplest of gestures, such as talking to them each day and bringing them nice things. It portrays that affection is not only demonstrated through grand acts but also through daily little things like carrying their books or bringing them flowers and candy. Petersen also emphasizes the unpredictable nature of human emotions, explaining that they can change in seconds, and that one must always try to understand the reasons behind the change.
The song's perspective is that we may have grown up physically, but we are still children at heart, yearning for love and care. The verse "fourteen or forty, they're kids in their heart," embodies the idea that age is just a number, and everyone needs, wants, and deserves love and care, no matter how old they are. The lines "We try acting grown-up, but as a rule, We're all little children fresh from school," convey a sense of vulnerability that is innate in us all, no matter how much we try to seem self-reliant.
Line by Line Meaning
Lollipops and roses
As sweet and beautiful as lollipops and roses
Tell her you care
Express your love and care for her
Each time you speak
Say it every time you talk to her
Make it her birthday
Treat every day like a special day for her
Each day of the week
Every day, without exception
Bring her nice things
Give her pleasant gifts
Sugar and spice things
Things that are sweet and nice
Roses and lollipops
Beautiful flowers and delicious candies
And lollipops and roses
And the other way around as well
One day she'll smile
She'll be happy one day
Next day she'll cry
She'll be sad the next day
Minute to minute
Her emotions change frequently
You'll never know why
It's hard to understand why she feels that way
Coax her, pet her
Comfort and help her feel better
Better yet, get her
Do something special for her
We try acting grown up
We pretend to be mature
But as a rule
In general
We're all little children
We're all still kids at heart
Fresh from school
New to the world
So carry her books
Help her with things she needs carrying
That's how it starts
That's how a relationship begins
Fourteen or forty
Regardless of age
They're kids in their heart
Their inner child is still alive
Keep them handy
Have them ready when you need them
Flowers and candy
Gifts that bring happiness
Contributed by Jordan F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
De Dion-Bouton
Sounds lovely
Richard Ortiz
2021
Joe Charrette
Sandwiched between "She Can't Find Her Keys" and this one, Paul had another mid charting hit with "Keep Your Love Locked". Hopefully we'll be seeing that one posted soon.
Jim Hilliker
Back when we were all much younger. Never heard this by Paul, but it sounds pretty much like I thought it would.
C Es
I like it. A “doo-wopped” cover of a great song.
Steveo Musicman
Yeah, its got the Beatle Beat!
Jerry Priessen
On the Sequel label cd it is in stereo 🤗
Chris Mulwee
I thought Petersen implied that he recorded this song BEFORE Jack Jones. I believe this was the flip side of My Dad/
The45Prof
The Jones version was released in October 1961 and Petersen in August 1962. "My Dad" was his follow-up single with the flip side "Little Boy Sad."
James Fox
@The45Prof I much prefer the Jack Jones version!!