 His father was a "gemeentesecretaris", formerly the head of a municipality's civil servants, and later became mayor of Blokker.In 1956, he was a law student and the president of the local Catholic youth club; to raise money for the club he got the Dutch Swing College Band, at the time the best-known Dixieland band in the country, to play in "Op Hoop van Zegen", Blokker's auction hall—his father was the president of the auction.In years following, other major acts to play there included Benny Goodman, Victor Silvester, and Cliff Richard.