Julius La Rosa (January 2, 1930 - May 12, 2016) was an Italian-American tra… Read Full Bio ↴Julius La Rosa (January 2, 1930 - May 12, 2016) was an Italian-American traditional popular music singer, who worked in both radio and television beginning in the 1950s.
La Rosa was born in Brooklyn, New York. In 1947, at age 17, he joined the United States Navy after finishing high school, becoming a radioman. He sang in a Navy choir, at the officers club, and at bars to pay for his drinks.
The young sailor's Navy buddies managed to promote him to Arthur Godfrey - at the time one of America's leading radio and television personalities, and himself a Naval Reserve officer, whom the Navy often accommodated as a nod to the good publicity he gave the service. The Navy buddy most instrumental in this was George "Bud" Andrews, from Omaha, Nebraska, the seaman mechanic on Godfrey's airplane. While working on Godfrey's plane, Andrews struck up a conversation with Godfrey and told him that he really should hear his buddy sing. They arranged a time for LaRosa to audition in Pensacola, Florida, where LaRosa was stationed. Godfrey was impressed, offering La Rosa a job. Godfrey had LaRosa flown to New York to appear on his television show, with Godfrey ending the spot by saying, "When Julie gets out of the Navy he'll come back to see us."
Discharged from the Navy on a Friday, La Rosa went to Godfrey on the following Monday, and a week later, in November 1951, he appeared on Godfrey's variety show. He was a regular on both the morning Arthur Godfrey Time (broadcast on both the CBS radio and television networks) and the Wednesday night variety show Arthur Godfrey and His Friends.
LaRosa was joining a show that was extremely profitable for the new CBS television network. CBS owner William S. Paley disliked much of the show, in which a Time magazine article found Godfrey to be vulgar and "scatological". Hearing that William Paley thought the Godfrey TV show 'lacked movement,' Godfrey brought on a line of hula dancers and leered into the TV camera: 'Is that enough movement for you, Bill?'" But CBS management supported the show, which was extremely successful and inexpensive to produce.
La Rosa was on Godfrey's shows from November 19, 1951 to October 19, 1953. When Archie Bleyer, Godfrey's bandleader, formed Cadence Records in 1952, the first performer signed was La Rosa. Cadence's first single, which was also La Rosa's first recording, was "Anywhere I Wander". It reached the top 30 on the charts, and his next recording, "My Lady Loves To Dance", was a moderate success. As with the other "Little Godfreys", as the cast members were known, Godfrey had discouraged La Rosa from hiring a manager or booking agent, preferring to have his staff coordinate and negotiate on La Rosa's behalf. Godfrey's contracts with his artists, however, did not preclude them from doing so. After La Rosa's third recording, and a dispute with Godfrey over his failure to attend a Godfrey-mandated dance class required of all cast members (the singer claimed a family emergency), La Rosa hired his own agent and manager: Tommy Rockwell.
With hit recordings and his appearances on Godfrey's shows, La Rosa's popularity grew exponentially. At one point, La Rosa's fan mail eclipsed Godfrey's. A year after La Rosa was hired, he was receiving 7,000 fan letters a week. Godfrey did not react well to receiving a formal notification that LaRosa had hired Rockwell as his manager. After consulting with CBS President Frank Stanton, on the morning of October 19, 1953 (in a segment of the show broadcast on radio only), after La Rosa finished singing "Manhattan" on Arthur Godfrey Time, Godfrey fired La Rosa on the air, announcing, "that was Julie's swan song with us." La Rosa tearfully met with Godfrey after the broadcast and thanked him for giving him his "break". La Rosa was then met at Godfrey's offices by his lawyer, manager and some reporters. Tommy Rockwell was highly critical of Godfrey's behavior, angrily citing La Rosa's public humiliation.
The "humility" comment backfired badly on Godfrey. Stanton himself later admitted "maybe (the on-air firing) was a mistake." Comedians began working the phrase "no humility" into their routines. Singer Ruth Wallis, known for her raunchy double entendre novelties, recorded "Dear Mr. Godfrey", a biting satire on the matter, which made it to #25 on the Billboard charts in November 1953. Days after firing La Rosa, Godfrey also fired bandleader Archie Bleyer, owner of La Rosa's label Cadence Records, for producing spoken word records for Cadence featuring Chicago-based talk host Don McNeill, whose Don McNeill's Breakfast Club on ABC Radio opposite Godfrey's morning show was considered a direct competitor, even though McNeill's success was nowhere on a par with Godfrey's.
The firing did not hurt La Rosa's career in the short run. Ed Sullivan immediately signed La Rosa for appearances on his CBS Toast of the Town TV variety show, which sparked a feud between him and Godfrey. La Rosa's first appearance on Toast of the Town following the firing got a 47.9 Trendex rating,[citation needed] and La Rosa would appear 12 more times on Sullivan's show that year.
Shortly after he left Godfrey, La Rosa's third recording, "Eh, Cumpari", hit #1 on the Cash Box chart and #2 on the Billboard chart, and La Rosa got an award as the best new male vocalist of 1953. "Eh, Cumpari" was followed by another major hit, "Domani". For thirteen weeks during the summer of 1955, La Rosa had a three-times-a-week television series, The Julius La Rosa Show, featuring Russ Case and his Orchestra. The Julius La Rosa Show aired in an hour-long format in the summers of 1956 and 1957 at 8 p.m. Eastern on Saturdays on NBC as a seasonal replacement for The Perry Como Show.
In 1981, Peter Kelley, who handled Godfrey's commercial bookings, suggested the host reunite with cast members from his morning show and record a reunion album. Though Godfrey initially balked, recalling his disputes with LaRosa and other cast members, he agreed to a meeting, and was amenable to having LaRosa participate. LaRosa, feeling sufficient time had passed, was also amenable. At the meeting, held at Godfrey's Manhattan office, Godfrey brought up the firing and asked LaRosa why he didn't tell the 'truth' as Godfrey saw it: that LaRosa had asked to be released from his contract and Godfrey had obliged. When LaRosa started to respond by reminding him of the dance class dispute, Godfrey exploded in anger. LaRosa left, and any talk of the reunion show ended forever.
La Rosa tired of revisiting the Godfrey affair, in part because it had been rehashed so many times, but he was also known to declare publicly Godfrey was in fact the one individual who made his career, but La Rosa always added, "He wasn't a very nice man (to me)."La Rosa appeared on a range of television shows including The Honeymooners in 1953, What's My Line?, The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom, The Polly Bergen Show (two episodes, including the 1957 premiere), The Merv Griffin Show and Laverne and Shirley in 1980. He starred in the 1958 film Let's Rock. In 1977 he hosted an unsold game show pilot for NBC called "Noot's Game".
In the 1980s, La Rosa received a non-contract, recurring role in the NBC soap opera Another World, for which he was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor in the Daytime Emmy Award.
La Rosa eventually moved on to a long-time disk jockey position at New York's WNEW and continued to sing and occasionally record. As late as 1999, LaRosa was a disc jockey on WNSW hosting "Make Believe Ballroom Time". La Rosa, profiled by jazz critic and composer Gene Lees, has continued to work clubs and release records and compact discs. New York Times film critic Stephen Holden says: "His singing is very direct and unpretentious - he can wrap his voice tenaciously around a melody line and bring out the best in it." He has also been a frequent contributor to comedian Jerry Lewis's marathon annual Labor Day telethon programs for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, often hosting the New York outpost of the shows.
In 2008, LaRosa said "Music is 'a very egotistical thing.' 'It makes me feel good' and fortunately, I have the capacity to make people feel good who hear me feeling good.'"
LaRosa lived in Westchester County, New York.
La Rosa's name was used in a joke by Coach in the sitcom Cheers, in the episode "Friends, Romans, And Accountants".
La Rosa was born in Brooklyn, New York. In 1947, at age 17, he joined the United States Navy after finishing high school, becoming a radioman. He sang in a Navy choir, at the officers club, and at bars to pay for his drinks.
The young sailor's Navy buddies managed to promote him to Arthur Godfrey - at the time one of America's leading radio and television personalities, and himself a Naval Reserve officer, whom the Navy often accommodated as a nod to the good publicity he gave the service. The Navy buddy most instrumental in this was George "Bud" Andrews, from Omaha, Nebraska, the seaman mechanic on Godfrey's airplane. While working on Godfrey's plane, Andrews struck up a conversation with Godfrey and told him that he really should hear his buddy sing. They arranged a time for LaRosa to audition in Pensacola, Florida, where LaRosa was stationed. Godfrey was impressed, offering La Rosa a job. Godfrey had LaRosa flown to New York to appear on his television show, with Godfrey ending the spot by saying, "When Julie gets out of the Navy he'll come back to see us."
Discharged from the Navy on a Friday, La Rosa went to Godfrey on the following Monday, and a week later, in November 1951, he appeared on Godfrey's variety show. He was a regular on both the morning Arthur Godfrey Time (broadcast on both the CBS radio and television networks) and the Wednesday night variety show Arthur Godfrey and His Friends.
LaRosa was joining a show that was extremely profitable for the new CBS television network. CBS owner William S. Paley disliked much of the show, in which a Time magazine article found Godfrey to be vulgar and "scatological". Hearing that William Paley thought the Godfrey TV show 'lacked movement,' Godfrey brought on a line of hula dancers and leered into the TV camera: 'Is that enough movement for you, Bill?'" But CBS management supported the show, which was extremely successful and inexpensive to produce.
La Rosa was on Godfrey's shows from November 19, 1951 to October 19, 1953. When Archie Bleyer, Godfrey's bandleader, formed Cadence Records in 1952, the first performer signed was La Rosa. Cadence's first single, which was also La Rosa's first recording, was "Anywhere I Wander". It reached the top 30 on the charts, and his next recording, "My Lady Loves To Dance", was a moderate success. As with the other "Little Godfreys", as the cast members were known, Godfrey had discouraged La Rosa from hiring a manager or booking agent, preferring to have his staff coordinate and negotiate on La Rosa's behalf. Godfrey's contracts with his artists, however, did not preclude them from doing so. After La Rosa's third recording, and a dispute with Godfrey over his failure to attend a Godfrey-mandated dance class required of all cast members (the singer claimed a family emergency), La Rosa hired his own agent and manager: Tommy Rockwell.
With hit recordings and his appearances on Godfrey's shows, La Rosa's popularity grew exponentially. At one point, La Rosa's fan mail eclipsed Godfrey's. A year after La Rosa was hired, he was receiving 7,000 fan letters a week. Godfrey did not react well to receiving a formal notification that LaRosa had hired Rockwell as his manager. After consulting with CBS President Frank Stanton, on the morning of October 19, 1953 (in a segment of the show broadcast on radio only), after La Rosa finished singing "Manhattan" on Arthur Godfrey Time, Godfrey fired La Rosa on the air, announcing, "that was Julie's swan song with us." La Rosa tearfully met with Godfrey after the broadcast and thanked him for giving him his "break". La Rosa was then met at Godfrey's offices by his lawyer, manager and some reporters. Tommy Rockwell was highly critical of Godfrey's behavior, angrily citing La Rosa's public humiliation.
The "humility" comment backfired badly on Godfrey. Stanton himself later admitted "maybe (the on-air firing) was a mistake." Comedians began working the phrase "no humility" into their routines. Singer Ruth Wallis, known for her raunchy double entendre novelties, recorded "Dear Mr. Godfrey", a biting satire on the matter, which made it to #25 on the Billboard charts in November 1953. Days after firing La Rosa, Godfrey also fired bandleader Archie Bleyer, owner of La Rosa's label Cadence Records, for producing spoken word records for Cadence featuring Chicago-based talk host Don McNeill, whose Don McNeill's Breakfast Club on ABC Radio opposite Godfrey's morning show was considered a direct competitor, even though McNeill's success was nowhere on a par with Godfrey's.
The firing did not hurt La Rosa's career in the short run. Ed Sullivan immediately signed La Rosa for appearances on his CBS Toast of the Town TV variety show, which sparked a feud between him and Godfrey. La Rosa's first appearance on Toast of the Town following the firing got a 47.9 Trendex rating,[citation needed] and La Rosa would appear 12 more times on Sullivan's show that year.
Shortly after he left Godfrey, La Rosa's third recording, "Eh, Cumpari", hit #1 on the Cash Box chart and #2 on the Billboard chart, and La Rosa got an award as the best new male vocalist of 1953. "Eh, Cumpari" was followed by another major hit, "Domani". For thirteen weeks during the summer of 1955, La Rosa had a three-times-a-week television series, The Julius La Rosa Show, featuring Russ Case and his Orchestra. The Julius La Rosa Show aired in an hour-long format in the summers of 1956 and 1957 at 8 p.m. Eastern on Saturdays on NBC as a seasonal replacement for The Perry Como Show.
In 1981, Peter Kelley, who handled Godfrey's commercial bookings, suggested the host reunite with cast members from his morning show and record a reunion album. Though Godfrey initially balked, recalling his disputes with LaRosa and other cast members, he agreed to a meeting, and was amenable to having LaRosa participate. LaRosa, feeling sufficient time had passed, was also amenable. At the meeting, held at Godfrey's Manhattan office, Godfrey brought up the firing and asked LaRosa why he didn't tell the 'truth' as Godfrey saw it: that LaRosa had asked to be released from his contract and Godfrey had obliged. When LaRosa started to respond by reminding him of the dance class dispute, Godfrey exploded in anger. LaRosa left, and any talk of the reunion show ended forever.
La Rosa tired of revisiting the Godfrey affair, in part because it had been rehashed so many times, but he was also known to declare publicly Godfrey was in fact the one individual who made his career, but La Rosa always added, "He wasn't a very nice man (to me)."La Rosa appeared on a range of television shows including The Honeymooners in 1953, What's My Line?, The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom, The Polly Bergen Show (two episodes, including the 1957 premiere), The Merv Griffin Show and Laverne and Shirley in 1980. He starred in the 1958 film Let's Rock. In 1977 he hosted an unsold game show pilot for NBC called "Noot's Game".
In the 1980s, La Rosa received a non-contract, recurring role in the NBC soap opera Another World, for which he was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor in the Daytime Emmy Award.
La Rosa eventually moved on to a long-time disk jockey position at New York's WNEW and continued to sing and occasionally record. As late as 1999, LaRosa was a disc jockey on WNSW hosting "Make Believe Ballroom Time". La Rosa, profiled by jazz critic and composer Gene Lees, has continued to work clubs and release records and compact discs. New York Times film critic Stephen Holden says: "His singing is very direct and unpretentious - he can wrap his voice tenaciously around a melody line and bring out the best in it." He has also been a frequent contributor to comedian Jerry Lewis's marathon annual Labor Day telethon programs for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, often hosting the New York outpost of the shows.
In 2008, LaRosa said "Music is 'a very egotistical thing.' 'It makes me feel good' and fortunately, I have the capacity to make people feel good who hear me feeling good.'"
LaRosa lived in Westchester County, New York.
La Rosa's name was used in a joke by Coach in the sitcom Cheers, in the episode "Friends, Romans, And Accountants".
Domani
Julius La Rosa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Maybe you'll fall in love with me domani
Maybe tomorrow night the sun will shine
I'll change my name from Johnny to Giavonni
If you will say domani, you'll be mine
Come to me, Senorina from Italy,
Hear my plea and I'll hire the hall
All your uncles and aunts and ma and pa and your paisani
They all agree that we should wed domani
You are so super duper bravissimo
Don't say no or my poor heart you'll break
'Cause your uncles and aunts and your ma and pa and your paisani
They all agree that we should wed, domani
Maybe tomorrow night the sun will shine
I'll change my name from Johnny to Giavonni
If you will say domani, you'll be mine
Come to me, Senorina from Italy,
Hear my plea and I'll hire the hall
All your uncles and aunts and ma and pa and your paisani
You are so super duper bravissimo
Don't say no or my poor heart you'll break
'Cause your uncles and aunts and your ma and pa and your paisani
They all agree that we should wed, domani
These lyrics are essentially a sweet and hopeful love song. The singer, Johnny, is expressing his love and desire for a woman from Italy, referred to as Senorina. He suggests that maybe, tomorrow she will fall in love with him, and if she does, he will change his name to Giavonni. He then goes on to invite her to a hall where her family and relatives can come and see that they are meant to be together, with everyone agreeing that they should wed tomorrow.
The lyrics use a lot of Italian language and references, which add to the romantic and charming feel of the song. The singer compliments the woman, calling her "super duper bravissimo," and pleads with her not to break his heart. Overall, the song has a nostalgic and sentimental feel, capturing the spirit of young love and expressing the hopefulness and anticipation of a possible romance.
Line by Line Meaning
Maybe you'll fall in love with me domani
Perhaps tomorrow you will discover your feelings for me and fall deeply in love
Maybe tomorrow night the sun will shine
It's possible that tomorrow will bring a brighter and more hopeful day for us
I'll change my name from Johnny to Giavonni
I am willing to make significant changes in my life to be with you, even if it means adopting a new name
If you will say domani, you'll be mine
If you agree to be with me tomorrow, I will cherish you and love you forever
Come to me, Senorina from Italy,
Oh, beautiful lady from Italy, please come to me and listen to my plea
Hear my plea and I'll hire the hall
If you will only listen to me, I will do everything in my power to make your dreams come true
All your uncles and aunts and ma and pa and your paisani
Everyone who loves and cares for you, including your family and friends, believes that we should be together
They all agree that we should wed domani
Everyone believes that tomorrow is the perfect day for us to start our life together
You are so super duper bravissimo
You are incredibly talented and amazing, and I am in awe of you
Don't say no or my poor heart you'll break
Please do not reject me, as it would cause me great sadness and heartbreak
Cause your uncles and aunts and your ma and pa and your paisani
Everyone who loves and cares for you, including your family and friends, wants to see us together
They all agree that we should wed, domani
Everyone believes that tomorrow is the perfect day for us to start our life together
Lyrics ยฉ Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., PRINCESS MUSIC PUBLISHING CORP
Written by: DANIELE CORO, FEDERICA FRATONI
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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@perpetual61
Lyrics:
Maybe you'll fall in love with me domani
Maybe tomorrow night the sun will shine
I'll change my name from Johnny to Giavonni
If you will say domani, you'll be mine
Come to me, Senorina from Italy,
Hear my plea and I'll hire the hall
All your uncles and aunts and ma and pa and your paisani
They all agree that we should wed domani
Interlude
You are so super duper bravissimo
Don't say no or my poor heart you'll break
'Cause your uncles and aunts and your ma and pa and your paisani
They all agree that we should wed, domani
@cynthiahawkins2389
My grandmother played this over and over at home until she warped the record. I was 7 in 1955..my what a memory.
@robertconti4937
great song, right, I was 27 and only was recently I remembered this song. even the lyrics except I didn't what Domani meant. Ciao from California.
@kishoredafansofficial
No matter Dada took this tune but after that what an amazing song " Thandi hawa ye chandani suhani......at extraordinary yoddling โค
@perpetual61
Lyrics:
Maybe you'll fall in love with me domani
Maybe tomorrow night the sun will shine
I'll change my name from Johnny to Giavonni
If you will say domani, you'll be mine
Come to me, Senorina from Italy,
Hear my plea and I'll hire the hall
All your uncles and aunts and ma and pa and your paisani
They all agree that we should wed domani
Interlude
You are so super duper bravissimo
Don't say no or my poor heart you'll break
'Cause your uncles and aunts and your ma and pa and your paisani
They all agree that we should wed, domani
@enzocaramico1204
Era il 1955 e questa canzone era molto diffusa tra noi ragazzi.Avevo 16 anni,in prima liceo. Il mio compagno di banco,Pasquale,volle insegnarmi la chitarra e questi sono I primi accordi che ho imparato a strimpellare.Quanti sogni,col cuore che andava a vento per quella biondina del primo banco.
@sleepylagoon1310
I remember him from my teen years -ย a marvelous voice!ย Brings back fond memories.ย Rest Well, Julius!
@hoomanbeing9075
this song has been adapted into hindi.....the hindi singer kishore who was the greatest singer ever.....hes sung this really really well....thandi hawa yeh chandni suhani.....check it out.....you'll love it even if you don't understand the lyrics
@imanim4844
Beautiful song! Just hearing about Julius today, but his music is love at first listen 3.21.19 ๐๐ถ
OMG I just realized "Domani" sounds like my name ๐ someone sing this to me ๐
@edmundpower1250
No probs
@siano3400
one of the finest renditions of a fabulous song ever and only Julius larosa could have performed it