Tino Rossi
Constantin "Tino" Rossi (29 April 1907 – 26 September 1983) was a French singer and film actor of Corsican origin. Born in Ajaccio, Corsica, Rossi was gifted with a voice well suited for opera. He became a tenor in the French cabaret style. Later, he appeared in various movies. During his career it is reported he recorded over 2000 songs and he appeared in more than 25 films, the most notable of which was the 1954 production, Si Versailles m'était conté... directed by Sacha Guitry. His romantic ballads had especially women swooning and his art songs by Jules Massenet (1842–1912), Reynaldo Hahn (1875–1947), and other composers, sold out theaters wherever he performed. Among his most famous hits, Petit Papa Noel sold over 30 million copies worldwide. Over the course of his 50-year singing career, Tino Rossi recorded over 2000 songs and sold over 200 million albums making him one of the best selling (and mostly forgotten) artists of all time. As a young man, Rossi played guitar and sang in many places of his hometown of Ajaccio, but later he went to perform in Marseille and at resort clubs along the French Riviera. In the early 1930s he went to Paris and within a few years achieved enormous success, joining a Columbia Records roster that included the biggest stars of that time such as Lucienne Boyer, Damia, Pills et Tabet, Mireille, and Jean Sablon. Rossi's success was greatly aided by songwriter Vincent Scotto (1876–1952), who wrote his first hits and collaborated with him for many years, composing and arranging many of Rossi's songs. Prior to World War II, Rossi was a major box office attraction in the French-speaking world, and expanded his audience in 1938 to the U.S. and Canada during a first visit there. Rossi began his film career with a role in Les Nuits Moscovites (1934); his first real success came with Marinella (1936). During the Occupation of France by Nazi Germany Rossi's film career reached its peak, notably with Fièvres (1942), Le Soleil a toujours raison (1943), Mon amour est près de toi (1943) and L'Île d'amour (1944). Like many celebrities, Tino Rossi was arrested on 7 October 1944 by several police officers in search of information on his close Corsican friend, Etienne Leandri, suspected of active collaborationism. Following three months' detention in the prison of Fresnes, near Paris, during which he stubbornly refused the assistance of a lawyer, he was freed from further detention by a judge, who deemed the charge leveled against him void of substance. Tino Rossi who, in October 1943, had loaned his personal car to a resistance network to transport weapons and enable several escapes (including that of a general), accepted—an extremely rare action at the time—exceptional official apologies. In 1946 he recorded his song Petit Papa Noël for a movie. The song remained classic for the family and sold several million copies after being released on CD in 1992. He is the recipient of the prestigious musical award Grand Prix du Disque. Rossi died of pancreatic cancer in 1983 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. His body was transported to Ajaccio for burial in the family grave. His wife died in 2003 aged 79. ... Source: Article "Tino Rossi" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.
Known For
Credits
- 2022 · Sheila, toutes ces vies-là as Self (archive footage)
- 2019 · Les Trésors de Marcel Pagnol as Franz Schubert (archive footage)
- 1982 · Champs-Elysées as Self
- 1982 · Champs-Elysées as Self (archive footage)
- 1977 · Fan School as Self
- 1976 · 30 millions d'amis as Self
- 1975 · Numéro un as Self - Host
- 1975 · Numéro un as Self
- 1975 · Système 2 as Self
- 1975 · Les Rendez-vous du dimanche as Self
- 1975 · Midi Première as Self
- 1972 · Midi trente as Self
- 1972 · Le Grand Échiquier as Self
- 1972 · Le Grand Échiquier as Self - Main Guest
- 1972 · Le Grand Échiquier as Self (archive footage)
- 1971 · Cadet Rousselle as Self
- 1971 · The Donkey of Zigliara as Tino Rossi
- 1971 · Samedi soir as Self
- 1963 · Till the End of the World as
- 1959 · Discorama as Self
- 1954 · Tourments as Jacques Duffot
- 1954 · Royal Affairs in Versailles as Un gondolier
- 1952 · Her Last Christmas as Marc Damiani
- 1951 · In the Land of the Sun as Titin Olivieri
- 1951 · Paris Still Sings! as Self
- 1950 · Sending of Flowers as Paul Delmet
- 1949 · Marlène as Manuel Ceccaldi
- 1949 · Two Loves as Sylvain Vincent / Désiré Vincent
- 1948 · The Pretty Miller Girl as Franz Schubert
- 1947 · The Unknown Singer as
- 1946 · Destiny as André Cartier / Fred Cartier
- 1946 · Le gardian as Renaud
- 1946 · Song of the Clouds as Sylvio
- 1944 · The Island of Love as Orsani aka Bicchi
- 1943 · My Love is Near You as Jacques Marton
- 1943 · Le Chant de l'exilé as Ramon Etcheverry
- 1943 · Le soleil a toujours raison as Tonio
- 1942 · Fièvres as le ténor Jean Dupray
- 1938 · Lights of Paris as Carlo Ferrari
- 1937 · Naples Under the Kiss of Fire as Mario Esposito
- 1936 · To the Sound of Guitars as Jeannot
- 1936 · Marinella as Tino Pirelli
- 1935 · Moscow Nights as Le chanteur napolitain
- 1935 · Justin de Marseille as Le chanteur
- 1935 · L'affaire Coquelet as
- 1935 · Adémaï au Moyen Âge as
- 1934 · Moscow Nights as