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Johnny Dorelli | |
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 Dorelli in 1958 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Giorgio Guidi |
| Also known as | D.Johnny, Dorellik |
| Born | 20 February 1937 Meda, Milan, Italy |
| Genres | Easy listening, jazz, swing, pop |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, singer, presenter |
| Years active | 1951–present |
| Spouse(s) | |
Giorgio Guidi (born 20 February 1937), known professionally as Johnny Dorelli, is an Italian actor, singer and television host.
Dorelli was born in Meda, Italy. In 1946 he moved to New York City with his family, where his father, Nino D'Aurelio (born Aurelio Guidi), found work as opera singer. Dorelli studied double bass and piano at the High School of Music and Art in New York. He took the stage name Dorelli in imitation of how the surname D'Aurelio was pronounced in English.
His show business career began when he was discovered by bandleader Percy Faith, who brought him on The Ken Murray Show. He later appears on the show By Popular Demand conducted by Robert Alda, accompanied by Paul Whiteman. He receive a great success, in fact some American newspapers described Dorelli as a "phenomenal Italian boy". However he returned to Italy in 1955 due to the expiry of his residence permit.
He debuted as singer and pianist in the late 1950s for CGD label with cover of American standards; Lover, What is this thing called love, Love me or leave me and many others.
His first success was an easy listening Latin song, Calypso melody in 1957. In 1958 and in 1959 he won the Sanremo Festival in duo with Domenico Modugno, with the songs "Nel blu dipinto di blu" (also known as "Volare") and "Piove (Ciao ciao bambina)". His most famous songs of the period are : Julia (1958), Boccuccia Di Rosa (Pink Lips) (1958), Love in Portofino (1959), Lettera A Pinocchio (1959), Monte Carlo (1961).
In 1962 he appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show and sang his smooth ballad Love In Portofino and You're the Top with Connie Francis and Johnny Hallyday.
As a (popular and jazz) crooner, he sang numerous songs live on television shows (mainly in the 1960s), in Italian and in English.
In 1967 "L'immensità" earned Dorelli a ninth place at the 1967 edition of the Sanremo Song Festival. [1] In the same year he was the lead actor on the movie How to Kill 400 Duponts , a parody of the comic series Diabolik. With this role, Dorelli had a great success and he inspired the character of Paperinik. Some songs of this periods are Speedy Gonzales (1962), Era Settembre (1964), Probabilmente (1965), Al Buio Sto Sognando (1966), Solo Più Che Mai (Strangers In The Night) (1966), Arriva La Bomba (1967), I Think of You (1972).
His greatest success was the musical Aggiungi un posto a tavola , which was also performed at the Adelphi Theatre in London's West End in an English version entitled Beyond the Rainbow in 1978.
After a period of absence, he returned to success in the 1980s. In 1983, he played St. Philip Neri in Luigi Magni's TV film State buoni se potete . Dorelli's latest feature film role is in Pupi Avati's Ma quando arrivano le ragazze (2004).
In 2007 he returned after 38 years to the stage of Sanremo as a participant with the song "Meglio così", written by Gianni Ferrio and Giorgio Calabrese, and accompanied by jazz pianist Stefano Bollani and the orchestra conducted by Ferrio.
Dorelli had a long relationship with actress Lauretta Masiero, which produced a son, Gianluca Guidi. He then married (1972–1979) actress Catherine Spaak, with whom he had another son, Gabriele, and (1991) Gloria Guida, a former model and actress in Italian comedy movies of the 1970s, with whom he had a daughter, Guendalina.
His eyes have two different colors, a condition called heterochromia iridum .
Albums
Domenico Modugno was an Italian singer, actor and, later in life, a member of the Italian Parliament. He is known for his 1958 international hit song "Nel blu dipinto di blu", for which he received Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Song of the Year. He is considered the first Italian cantautore.
Nicola Di Bari is an Italian singer-songwriter and actor. He is considered one of the "sacred monsters" of Italian pop music.
"Nel blu, dipinto di blu", popularly known as "Volare", is a song originally recorded by Italian singer-songwriter Domenico Modugno. Written by Modugno and Franco Migliacci, it was released as a single on 1 February 1958.
Catherine Spaak was a French-Italian actress, singer, model, and media personality. A member of the Spaak family, she was known as an iconic "It girl" in Italy during the 1960s, becoming a star of commedia all'italiana films, before later becoming prominent as a talk show host and media personality.
"Love in Portofino" is a 1958 song by Italian writing duo Chiosso-Buscaglione, first sung by the latter one. Picked up by French singer Dalida the next year, she recorded it with additional lyrics written by Jacques Larue. Her version achieved sales success in the European market, spawning dozens of covers. Embraced by musical intellectuals as masterpiece of Dalida's early repertoire of 1950s, it eventually became the symbolic song for Portofino, to which it is referring.
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"L'immensità" is an Italian song, which was first performed by Johnny Dorelli and Don Backy in 1967 and became 9th at the Sanremo Song Contest. This is one Johnny Dorelli's signature songs, entering for several weeks in the Italian charts.
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