Operatic career:
Born Alfredo Arnold Cocozza in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he was exposed to opera and singing at a young age, and by the age of 16 his vocal talent became apparent. Starting out in local operatic productions in Philadelphia, he later came to the attention of conductor Serge Koussevitzky, who provided young Cocozza with a full student scholarship to the Berkshire Music Festival at Tanglewood in Massachusetts. Koussevitzky would later tell Lanza that, "Yours is a voice such as is heard once in a hundred years."
His operatic debut, as Fenton in Otto Nicolai's The Merry Wives of Windsor, was at Tanglewood on August 7, 1942, after just six weeks of study with conductors Boris Goldovsky and Leonard Bernstein. It was here that Cocozza adopted his stage name from his mother Maria's maiden name of Lanza. His performances at Tanglewood won him critical acclaim, with Noel Straus of The New York Times hailing the 21-year-old tenor as having "few equals among tenors of the day in terms of quality, warmth, and power."
His operatic career was interrupted by World War II, when he was assigned to Special Services in the U.S. Army Air Corps. He appeared on the wartime shows On the Beam and Winged Victory while in the Air Corps.
He resumed his singing career in October 1945 on the CBS radio program Great Moments in Music, where he made six appearances singing various operatic selections. He later studied under Enrico Rosati for fifteen months, then embarked on an 86-concert tour of the United States, Canada and Mexico between July 1947 and May 1948 with George London and Frances Yeend. In April 1948, he sang Pinkerton in the New Orleans Opera's Madama Butterfly. A concert at the Hollywood Bowl brought Lanza to the attention of MGM's Louis B. Mayer, who signed Lanza to a seven-year film contract with Metro Goldwyn Mayer. This would prove to be a turning point in the young singer's career.
Film career:
MGM's contract with Lanza required him to commit to the studio for six months, and at first Lanza was able to combine his film career with his operatic one, singing two acclaimed performances as Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly for the New Orleans Opera Association in April 1948. He also continued to perform in concert, both in solo appearances and as part of the Bel Canto Trio with George London and Frances Yeend. In May 1949, he made his first commercial recordings with RCA Victor. However, his first two films, That Midnight Kiss and The Toast of New Orleans, were very successful, as was his recording career, and Lanza's fame increased dramatically.
In 1951, Lanza portrayed Enrico Caruso in The Great Caruso, which proved to be an astonishing success. At the same time, his popularity exposed Lanza to intense criticism by music critics, including those who had praised his work years earlier.
In 1954, Lanza was dismissed by MGM after he had pre-recorded the songs for The Student Prince. The film was subsequently made with actor Edmund Purdom miming to Lanza's vocals. During this period Lanza came very close to bankruptcy as a result of poor investment decisions made by his former manager. Owing about $250,000 in back taxes to the IRS, Lanza withdrew from the public eye for a time.
Mario Lanza at home.He returned to an active film career in 1956 in Serenade; despite its strong musical content, it was not as successful as his previous films. Lanza then moved to Rome, Italy in May 1957, where he worked on the film Seven Hills of Rome and returned to live performing in a series of acclaimed concerts throughout Britain, Ireland and the European Continent. In early 1958, he auditioned for the management of La Scala in Milan, and was immediately offered a minimum two-year contract to sing at that theatre. The opera initially discussed was Puccini's Tosca. Later that year, Lanza also agreed to open the 1960/61 season at the Rome Opera as Canio in Pagliacci. At the same time, however, his health began to decline, with the tenor suffering from a variety of ailments, including phlebitis and acute high blood pressure. The following year, in April 1959, Lanza suffered a minor heart attack, followed by double pneumonia in August. He died in Rome in October of that year at the age of 38 from a pulmonary embolism. His widow moved back to Hollywood with their four children and died of a drug overdose five months later; the younger of their two sons died of a heart attack at the age of 37. When Lanza died rumors spread that the notorious mob boss Lucky Luciano (Salvatore Luciano) had had him killed after he refused to perform for him but those rumors quickly died down because they simply were not true. Soprano Maria Callas would later say of him, "My biggest regret is not to have had the opportunity to sing with the greatest tenor voice I've ever heard."
Lanza's short career covered opera, radio, concerts, recordings, and motion pictures. He was the first artist for RCA Victor Red Seal to receive a gold disc. He was also the first artist to sell two and half million albums. A highly influential artist, Lanza has been credited with inspiring the careers of successive generations of opera singers, including Plácido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti, Leo Nucci and Jose Carreras, as well as those of singers with seemingly different backgrounds, and influences, his RCA Victor label-mate Elvis Presley being the most notable example. In 1994, tenor José Carreras paid tribute to Lanza in a worldwide concert tour, saying of him, "If I'm an opera singer, it's thanks to Mario Lanza."
I've Told Every Little Star
Mario Lanza Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On my way to you I find things to say
I can write poems, too, when you're far away
When you're far away, I write poems, too
But when you are near, my throat goes dry
When you are near, I only sigh, oh dear
I've told ev'ry little star
Just how sweet I think you are
Why haven't I told you
I've told ripples in a brook
Made my heart an open book
Why haven't I told you
Friends ask me am I in love
I always answer "Yes"
Might as well confess
If I don't, they guess
Maybe you may know it, too
Oh, my darling, if you do
Why haven't you told me, dear
Why haven't you told me
But when you are near, my throat goes dry
When you are near, I only sigh, oh dear
I've told ev'ry little star
Just how sweet I think you are
Why haven't I told you
Why haven't, why haven't I told you
I've told ripples in a brook
Made my heart an open book
Why haven't I told you
Each time I hold you
Friends ask me if I'm in love
I always answer "Yes"
Might as well confess
For if I don't, they guess
Maybe you may know it too
But oh, my darling, if you do
Why haven't you told me
Ooh aah
The lyrics to "I've Told Every Little Star" tells the story of someone who is in love but is struggling to express their feelings to the person they love. Along the way to their loved one, the person makes up things to say and can even write poetry when they are far away, but when they are near, their throat goes dry and they only sigh. The person has expressed their love to everything else around them, from the little stars to the ripples in a brook, but they still haven't been able to tell the person they are in love with. The song ends with a plea for the loved one to tell them if they feel the same.
The lyrics are quite expressive and create a sense of longing and yearning, and they also highlight the struggle that many people have when trying to express their deep feelings of love. The idea of telling "ev'ry little star" and "ripples in a brook" shows how the person has been trying to find a way to express their love, even if it means telling it to things in nature rather than directly to the person they love. The lyrics also suggest that expressing love can be difficult and that it takes courage to reveal your true feelings to someone else.
Line by Line Meaning
I make up things to say on my way to you
I come up with things to say on my journey to see you
I can write poems, too, when you're far away
When you're not nearby, I can express myself in the form of poetry
But when you are near, my throat goes dry
However, when you are close to me, I become nervous and can't speak
I've told ev'ry little star, Just how sweet I think you are
I've confided in the stars about my admiration for you
Why haven't I told you
But why haven't I told you directly?
I've told ripples in a brook, Made my heart an open book
I've shared my feelings with the ripples in a stream and made my emotions clear
Friends ask me am I in love, I always answer "Yes"
My friends ask me if I'm in love, and I usually admit that I am
Might as well confess, If I don't, they guess
It's better to admit it than to avoid the question, since they'll figure it out anyway
Maybe you may know it, too, Oh, my darling, if you do
Perhaps you already know how I feel towards you, my love
Why haven't you told me, dear
So why haven't you told me that you love me?
Each time I hold you
Whenever I embrace you
Why haven't I told you
Why haven't I expressed my love to you?
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
sugarbist
The simplicity and beauty of Lanza's voice along with his ability to be intimate with his listeners made him unforgettable
MegaMusiclover1234
Mario had a beautiful voice, it is true, but he had more than that. He sang from his heart and so he touches our own. That is what makes us feel so deeply what he sang and makes us cry. Mario may have died young and much too soon but he has left us an incredible legacy of recordings and films to remember him by. We older generation remember his T.V. appearances and going to his films, newer generations can share his legacy via CDs, YouTube and Turner Classic Movies. Thank you again. Sandra
isaac moses
Applaud you for choosing this endearing song to create an enchanting video that truly delights and entertains. All credit is due to you and so say all of us!
MegaMusiclover1234
@hunlandsMom Thank you so much for your kind comment. I really like to hear that viewers enjoy my videos with Mario Lanza. He had such an incredible voice. He really was the best. It is my pleasure to compose these videos of him. Did you read my attached story about Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein in the comments section? It is such a touching story. No wonder those two wrote such wonderful songs. What good fortune that they had Mario to sing their songs. Will we ever see their like again?
catty cass
Thank you again, what a beautiful voice why did he have to die so young. I cry when I hear him singing. That is a beautiful song for a beautiful man.
philip rostek
wonderful video and story... birdsong has a strange and wonderful power to engage memory and deep feelings, to be sure... and Mario Lanza is so great - an 'original' without parallel. Thank you!
hunlandsMom
Your video is wonderful and very quality like always. It sounds awesome. It`s worthy to a great singer. Thank you for experience and sharing.
Надежда Афанасьева
МариоЛанца! Россыть мыслей, чувств, поэзии для слуха и зрительного восприятия!!!
Colin Green
Gifted voice !
Ruth Nofchissey
My Father, Arthur Warren Thomas often played Mario Lanza giving me the opportunity to learn to love this wonderful male vocalist with enduring enchantment and quality to be enjoyed by many generations.