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. He appeared in the 1954 film Adventures of the Barber of Seville and Le Chanteur de Mexico (1957) and became popular in France as well as his native Spain.
Biography
Luis Mariano was born in Irún, Guipúzcoa, 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 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 The Stairs Without End (L'escalier sans fin) in 1943. That year he auditioned for the role of Ernesto in Don Pasquale, and sang in the opera at the Palais de Chaillot and later at the Théâtre des Variétés, with Vina Bovy, 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 and a film adaptation of Lehar's Der Zarewitsch.
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 film Le huitième jour in which he is played by Laszlo Harmati during scenes employing magical realism.
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
Year Title Role Notes1938 Ramuntcho 1943 The Exile's Song Un jeune basque 1943 The Stairs Without End Le chanteur 1947 Something to Sing About Gino Fabretti 1947 Secret Cargo José 1948 Fandango José 1949 I Like Only You Don Renaldo 1950 Not Any Weekend for Our Love Franck Reno 1951 The Dream of Andalusia Juanito Var 1951 Rendezvous in Grenada Marco Da Costa 1951 Paris Still Sings Luis Mariano 1952 Imperial Violets Juan de Ayala 1953 Saluti e baci Luis Mariano 1953 The Beauty of Cadiz Carlos 1954 Adventures of the Barber of Seville Fígaro 1954 The Little Czar Luis Mariano / Aljoscha 1955 Napoléon Le chanteur Garat 1955 Four Days in Paris Mario 1956 The Singer from Mexico Miguel Morano / Vincent Etchebar 1957 Printemps à Paris Uncredited1957 Love in Jamaica Manoël Martinez 1958 Serenade of Texas Jacques Gardel 1960 Candide ou l'optimisme au XXe siècle Un dictateur sud américain / South American Dictator 1965 Les pieds dans le plâtre L'agriculteur 1967 Le Prince de Madrid Francisco Goya (final film role)
References
External links
Official web site