Tino Rossi - J'aime les femmes, c'est ma folie, 1936

Tino ROSSI avec Orch. Marcel Cariven - J’aime les femmes, c’est ma folie [I Love Women, That’s My Craze] Valse du film “Marinella” (Musique V. Scotto) Columbia 1936 (France) NOTE: Constantin (“Tino”) ROSSI (b. 1907 in Ajaccio, Corsica – d. 1983 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France) was a popular French singer gifted with a voice well suited for opera. However, he became a tenor in the French cabaret, later he appeared also in the movies. During his career he recorded over 2000 songs and 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 popular hits as well as romantic ballads and art songs sold out theaters wherever he performed in the 1930s through 1940s. All his films were musicals and capitalised on his success as a singer. It is during the Occupation of France by the Germans that his film career reached its peak, notably with “Mon amour est près de toi” (1943) and “L'île d'amour” (1944). After the war, the French authorities reproached him for associating with the French Gestapo, but most importantly for actively supporting the LVF (Légion des Volontaires Français) who sent French volunteers to work in German factories. He was arrested in Oct 1944 and spent 3 weeks in Fresnes prison near Paris. Brought to trial in 1945, his sentence was relatively light (unlike his fellow actors Arletty, Danielle Darrieux, Mireille Balin, Josseline Gaël or Robert Le Vigan). He only received a symbolic work suspension, after which Tino Rossi appeared sporadically in films concentrating on his singing career.