Anthony Steel, Anita Ekberg and Mario Riva

Il Musichiere was an Italian game show based upon

Name That Tune ''Name That Tune'' is an American television music game show. Originally created and produced by orchestra conductor Harry Salter and his wife Roberta Semple Salter, the series features contestants competing to correctly identify songs being p ...

. It ran from 1957 to 1960 and ended with untimely death of its host

Mario Riva Mario Riva (26 January 1913 – 1 September 1960) was an Italian television presenter and actor. He appeared in 51 films between 1941 and 1960. Life and career Born in Rome as Mariuccio Bonavolontà, the son of a composer, Giuseppe (Joseph) ...

. It ran for 90 episodes, airing on Saturday evenings during prime-time. It was directed by Antonello Falqui. It had a one-hour format, generally with the same form as the US show of naming tunes to win money but with a weekly guest star who was required to sing. The orchestra was led by

Gorni Kramer Gorni Kramer (22 July 1913 – 26 October 1995) was an Italian songwriter, musician and band leader. Biography He was born Francesco Kramer Gorni at Rivarolo Mantovano (Lombardy). Despite the exotic sound of Gorni Kramer in the Italian lang ...

who sang the theme tune to the programme, "Domenica è sempre domenica" (Sunday is always Sunday). Riva's assistant on the show was

Marilù Tolo Marilù Tolo (born Maria Lucia Tolo; 16 January 1944) is an Italian film actress. She appeared in more than 60 films between 1960 and 1985. Life and career Born in Rome, Tolo, at a very young age, worked as an assistant of Mario Riva in the ...

who later rose to fame in her own right. Regular singers included and

Johnny Dorelli Johnny Dorelli (real name Giorgio Guidi; born 20 February 1937) is an Italian actor, singer and television host. Early life Dorelli was born in Meda, Italy. In 1946 he moved to New York City with his family, where his father, Nino D'Aurelio ...

.1001 TV Series You Must Watch Before You Die, Paul Conron, Famous guests included: Mina,

Lorella De Luca Lorella De Luca (17 September 1940 – 9 January 2014) was an Italian film, television, and voice actress. One of the most recognized ingenues of Italian cinema during the mid-to-late 1950s, she is best known for having played naive young girls ...

Totò Antonio Griffo Focas Flavio Angelo Ducas Comneno Porfirogenito Gagliardi de Curtis di Bisanzio (15 February 1898 – 15 April 1967), best known by his stage name Totò (), or simply as Antonio de Curtis, and nicknamed ''il Principe della risata ...

Marcello Mastroianni Marcello Vincenzo Domenico Mastroianni (28 September 1924 – 19 December 1996) was an Italian film actor, regarded as one of his country's most iconic male performers of the 20th century. He played leading roles for many of Italy's top di ...

Fausto Coppi Angelo Fausto Coppi (; 15 September 1919 – 2 January 1960) was an Italian cyclist, the dominant international cyclist of the years after the World War II, Second World War. His successes earned him the title ''Il Campionissimo'' ("Champio ...

Dalida Iolanda Cristina Gigliotti (; 17 January 1933 – 3 May 1987), professionally known as Dalida, was an Italian-French singer and actress born in Egypt. She sang in eleven languages and sold millions of records internationally. Her best known son ...

Adriano Celentano Adriano Celentano (; born 6 January 1938) is an Italian musician, singer, composer, actor, and filmmaker. He is dubbed "''il Molleggiato''" (the springy one) because of his dancing. Celentano's many albums frequently enjoyed both commercial and ...

and

Gino Bartali Gino Bartali (; 18 July 1914 – 5 May 2000), nicknamed Gino the Pious and (in Italy) Ginettaccio, was a champion road cyclist. He was the most renowned Italian cyclist before the Second World War, having won the Giro d'Italia twice, in 19 ...

. International guests included

Gary Cooper Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, a ...

(in his first televised appearance in Europe),

Jayne Mansfield Jayne Mansfield (born Vera Jayne Palmer; April 19, 1933 – June 29, 1967) was an American actress, singer, nightclub entertainer, and ''Playboy'' Playmate. A sex symbol of the 1950s and early 1960s while under contract at 20th Century Fox, Man ...

Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signing ...

Jacques Tati Jacques Tati (; born Jacques Tatischeff, ; 9 October 1907 – 5 November 1982) was a French mime, film-maker, actor and screenwriter. In an ''Entertainment Weekly'' poll of the Greatest Movie Directors, he was voted the 46th greatest of all time ...

and

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

. A spin-off magazine "Il Musichiere" (published by

Mondadori Arnoldo Mondadori Editore () is the biggest publishing company in Italy. History The company was founded in 1907 in Ostiglia by 18-year-old Arnoldo Mondadori who began his publishing career with the publication of the magazine ''Luce!''. In 1 ...

) stemmed from the programme and inlduded a then-novel free flexi-disc of music with each issue. The show also led to two "Il Festival Del Musichiere" in both 1959 and 1960 and a film based on the programme named "Domenica è sempre domenica".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Musichiere 1950s Italian television series Italian game shows Italian-language television shows RAI original programming 1957 Italian television series debuts