Luis Mariano Eusebio González García (13 August 1914 – 14 July 1970), also known as Luis Mariano, was a popular tenor of Spanish origin who achieved celebrity in 1946 with "La belle de Cadix" ("The Beautiful Lady of Cadix") an operetta by

Francis Lopez Francis Lopez may refer to: * Francis Lopez (basketball) (born 2003), Filipino basketball player * Francis Lopez (composer) Francis Lopez (1916–1995) was a French composer of film scores.Powrie & Cadalanu p.113 He also wrote a number of operet ...

. He appeared in the 1954 film ''

Adventures of the Barber of Seville ''Adventures of the Barber of Seville'' (French: ''L'aventurier de Séville'', Spanish: ''Aventuras del barbero de Sevilla'') is a 1954 French-Spanish comedy film directed by Ladislao Vajda and starring Luis Mariano, Lolita Sevilla and Daniell ...

'' and '' Le Chanteur de Mexico'' (1957) and became popular in France as well as his native Spain.

Biography

Luis Mariano was born in

Irun Irun (, ) is a town of the Bidasoaldea region in the province of Gipuzkoa in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. History It lies on the foundations of the ancient Oiasso, cited as a Roman- Vasconic town. During the Spanish Civil War, ...

, Spain on 13 August 1914, the son of a garagiste and taxi-driver and showed interest in singing as a child. His family moved to France at the start of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

and settled in Bordeaux where he studied at the Conservatoire, and also sang in cabarets.Gänzl K. ''The Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre.'' Blackwell, Oxford, 1994. Jeanne Lagiscarde, who was in charge of the classical department of a record store in Bordeaux, took Mariano under her wing, and gave up her job to nurture his talent in Paris. To earn a living, he sang in stage shows and appeared in films, starting with 'L'escalier sans fin' in 1943. That year he auditioned for the role of Ernesto in ''

Don Pasquale ''Don Pasquale'' () is a Gaetano Donizetti opera buffa, or comic opera, in three acts, with an Italian libretto completed largely by Giovanni Ruffini as well as the composer. It was based on a libretto by Angelo Anelli for Stefano Pavesi's oper ...

'', and sang in the opera at the

Palais de Chaillot The Palais de Chaillot () is a building at the top of the in the Trocadéro area in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France. Design The building was designed in classicising " moderne" style by architects Louis-Hippolyte Boileau, Jacques ...

and later at the

Théâtre des Variétés The Théâtre des Variétés () is a theatre and "salle de spectacles" at 7–8, boulevard Montmartre, 2nd arrondissement, in Paris. It was declared a monument historique in 1974. History The theatre owed its creation to Mademoiselle Montans ...

, with

Vina Bovy Vina Bovy (Malvina Bovi Van Overberghe) born in Ghent on 22 May 1900, died in the same city on 16 May 1983 was a Belgian operatic soprano.Harold Rosenthal, Rosenthal H., "Vina Bovy". In: ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera''. Macmillan, London & Ne ...

, recording excerpts from the opera. He also left many recordings of popular song and operetta. He continued to appear in other films from 1946, including a singing role in ''

Napoléon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led a series of mi ...

'' and a film adaptation of Lehar's ''

Der Zarewitsch ''Der Zarewitsch'' (''The Tsarevich'') is an operetta in three acts by Franz Lehár. The German libretto by and Bela Jenbach is based on the play of the same name by Polish author Gabriela Zapolska. Lehár composed the work, one of his later op ...

''. In his encyclopedia Gänzl describes Mariano as a "svelte singing idol of French operetta of the post-war stage and screen". Mariano died in Paris in 1970. His music is featured prominently in the 1996

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct language ...

film ''

Le huitième jour ''The Eighth Day'' () is a 1996 Franco-Belgian comedy-drama film that tells the story of the friendship that develops between two men who meet by chance. Harry (Daniel Auteuil), a divorced businessman who feels alienated from his children, meets ...

'' in which he is played by Laszlo Harmati during scenes employing

magical realism Magical realism, magic realism, or marvelous realism is a style or genre of fiction and art that presents a realistic view of the world while incorporating magical elements, often blurring the lines between speculation and reality. ''Magical rea ...

. In 2014, French baritone David Serero recorded an album with Mariano classics performed in a Jazz version for the 100th anniversary of his birth: ''David Serero chante Luis Mariano – jazz version.''

Filmography

References

External links

Official web site
* 1914 births 1970 deaths Basque musicians French people of Spanish descent Exiles of the Spanish Civil War in France People from Irun Pathé-Marconi artists Conservatoire de Bordeaux alumni 20th-century French male singers {{Spain-singer-stub