Toni Dalli (born Antonio D'Alessandro; 28 November 1933 – 28 April 2021) was an Italian musician and restaurant owner.

Early life

Dalli was born in Pescara,

Abruzzo Abruzzo (, , ; nap, label=Neapolitan language, Abruzzese Neapolitan, Abbrùzze , ''Abbrìzze'' or ''Abbrèzze'' ; nap, label=Sabino dialect, Aquilano, Abbrùzzu; #History, historically Abruzzi) is a Regions of Italy, region of Southern Italy wi ...

, in central Italy. After singing at local functions there as a boy, he moved to Yorkshire, England at the age of sixteen. He became a British resident by working in the coal mines and

steel mill A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel. It may be an integrated steel works carrying out all steps of steelmaking from smelting iron ore to rolled product, but may also be a plant where steel semi-finish ...

s for four years.

Musical career

Whilst a miner he performed at local Working Men's Clubs and appeared in several TV amateur shows, such as ''Top Down'', ''Bid For Fame'', ''What Makes A Star'' and ''The Carroll Levis Discovery Show''. He could not take up professional singing until he had completed the necessary four years residency pre-requisite of working in the steelworks. Dalli was soon booked at the Cecil Cinema in Hull. Here, he was spotted by Percy Livingstone and Rob Goldstein (from

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

), who told him that he must leave Yorkshire and go to London. By May 1957, Dalli was studying under singing teacher Dino Borgiole, and in October 1957, he performed at the Embassy Club. It was here that he was discovered by the comedian Max Bygraves, whose agent, Jock Jacobsen, also signed Dalli on. By this time, Dalli was appearing in numerous major TV shows. In February 1958, he made his first appearance on ''The'' ''Ed Sullivan Show'' in New York, following by major performances at the Moulin Rouge, Hollywood and the

Desert Inn The Desert Inn, also known as the D.I., was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, which operated from April 24, 1950, to August 28, 2000. Designed by architect Hugh Taylor and interior design by Jac Lessman, it was the ...

in Las Vegas. Upon Dalli's return to England, a contract was waiting for him with

EMI Records EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company of the same name in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succ ...

and his first of five albums was recorded, including the hit song " Come Prima" ("More Than Ever"). Later, he recorded with

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

and Decca, appearing in theatres throughout the world. These included two one-man-shows at the

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

and

Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in America by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018. The Hollywood Bowl is known for its distin ...

. When Mario Lanza died in 1959, Dalli was signed up to do a motion picture based on his life, ''The Mario Lanza Story''. The film was never released, for legal reasons. Dalli also sang in the US, where he had his own TV show on

KCOP KCOP-TV (channel 13) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of MyNetworkTV. It is owned and operated by Fox Television Stations alongside Fox outlet KTTV (channel 11). Both stations ...

in Los Angeles for 13 weeks. He also worked in Australia, South Africa and Hong Kong.

Personal and later life

In 1960, he married Valerie, an English woman, in London and they had four children. After twenty-five years of constant travelling, Dalli opened a restaurant in Marbella, southern Spain. Dalli died in April 2021, aged 87.

Sources

References

External links

*
YouTube Video
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dalli, Toni 1933 births 2021 deaths People from Pescara Italian musicians Italian male singers Italian restaurateurs Italian expatriates in the United Kingdom