Early life Rossi was born in
Ajaccio, Corsica, and was gifted with a voice well suited for
opera. He became a
tenor in the French
cabaret style. Later, he appeared in various films. During his career it is reported he recorded over 2000 songs. 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 Noël" 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 artists of all time.
Career 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. ==Personal life and honours==