The Festival Opera Association, Walnut Creek, CA has only existed since 1991, and is in Walnut Creek, CA. This engagement (if it happened) between Mario Lanza and the woman is supposed to have happened in San Rafael, California. I could not find any opera houses in that town. The nearest ones are in San Francisco or Sausalito.

Rob, "....as long as his recordings and films remain available" that's exactly the point. For many years many people have been asking for boxed sets of recordings and a boxed set of his movies. Now, finally there is a boxed set of recordings - how long did it take? Why after fifty years are only three movies of his "official" DVDs available?
Time is running out. It takes energy and dedication to continually try to bring Mario Lanza into the foreground instead of leaving him way back somewhere. Who is going to do that? Who has the "clout" to get companies to listen? Certainly not me. I'm a nobody, no one has ever heard of.
How about someone with a high profile setting up a Mario Lanza website or even adding to an existing website a facility where people can write down their request for CDs, DVDs etc to be released. Other "fans"/admirers can add their vote. In this way when there are enough votes they can be forwarded to the relevant companies to show that there is a demand for such a product. I think everyone interested in ML needs to get more pro-active in this special year, think outside the square and push for what we want.

Your concern might well be warranted Anita. But, I am hopeful that younger fans, people in terested in music generally, will create the demand to which record and video (or whatever other formats there may be to provide his films) manufacturers eventually, if sluggishly respond. I note with hope that in the other example I gave of Richard Tauber (1891-1948) his recordings and now DVDs of some of his films sell in larger numbers apparently than they have for the past sixty years, and that has been since the death in the 1980s of Tauber's widow. The Taubers had no children to urge companies to re-issue records and films, and yet those re-issues have happened.

I see no reason for pessimism about the future, despite dire, Henny Penny predictions that the musical sky is falling. In fact, the outlook looks quite bright for continued appreciation of the great voices. The influence of Youtube, in particular, has stimulated increasing interest and surely has added to the market demands for more releases. Be of good cheer Anita!

Fred Day:
I attempted to contact Eddie Fisher a few months ago by way of Elizabeth Taylor and was informed that he had been seriously ill with pneumonia after suffering a suspected stroke. How he is right now I don't know, save that he is savagely protected by his daughter, Carrie, who dotes on him and no longer speaks about his career, claiming that he has said enough already in his two autobiographies.

Edited by author 11-19-2009 09:13 AM
simply put there is no mystery.rise stevens said i never sang a concert with mario lanza..its not i dont recollect it was never sang a concert with..i agree her statement most certainly should be taken as fact.and i also agree that why is this topic sooo important to 2 or 3 people.did lanza ever meet bogart gene kelly dan daley spencer tracy yogi berra jimmy foxx jack dempsey etc etc.who cares for its realy not important nor a major part or influencial part of lanzas life or any of the names mentioned.on a studio lot or the studio cafeteria many said hello to each other or maybe had a chat of small talk.did elvis ever meet gene autry roy rogers slim pickens ronald reagon..again ditto.not important to the point that it consumes some folks.

To Dan and Thelma: Fred asks and comments a great deal on this site and personally I find much of what he has to say interesting and informative. Perhaps its of no interest to you whether ML met/sung with someone or not but obviously it was to Fred. I am sure it is not your intention but I have now read several comments questioning why he is curious about these things. We should phrase our comments a little differently.

Kirsten

It's Kirsten

Another photo

David Bret, keeping in mind that you plan to retract your statement about Marc Lanza being H.I.V. positive when he died in future reprints of your book, I'd like to point out another retract for you in 'Sublime Serenade', one that relates indirectly to me. On page 10 of 'Sublime Serenade' you state that Joe Siciliano told Derek Mannering that Mario and Joe met Jussi Bjoerling at the Met in December 1940. That is incorrect. The person who gave Derek his personal account of that meeting was Phil Sciscione, another boyhood friend of Mario’s who also happened to be a personal friend of mine, one of my father’s boyhood friend who he introduced to Freddy. I was the one who introduced Phil to Derek while he was researching 'Singing to the Gods' (released in July 2005). You also state that Bjorling did not sing 'Trovatore' at the Met on December 12, 1940 as Phil Sciscione (not Joe) stated. That too is incorrect. If you check the Met database online you will see that Jussi did perform in that opera on December 12 and not the following year as you claim. I concede that mistakes are made in books all the time, but if you're going to make a point of using and then correcting a previous biography you might want to check your facts more carefully.

Edited by author 11-19-2009 02:32 PM
john at 19 mario met jussi backstage at the met with phil and martinelli another time also backstage at an opera.lanza was taking some singing lessons then but the questions id like to ask you are..1.was your dad phil or joe opera fans or did they just go to the opera cause mario was a fan 2.lanza could charm at a early age but how did thoses guys young in age actualy get themselves back stage to talk to thoses greats.3.you may know more about the young lanza than anyone alive via of your dad..did mario ever talk about the singers he liked and disliked with your father and did he give any reasons why if they did disguss that.4. mario acording to your father also got up close when tony galento was training and got on galentos case.im sure your dad wanted to lol shoot him.5.do you remember if lanza asked jussi any questions at all..6.what other opera singers did lanza meet at that early age and were there any questions to your knowledge...these meetings are factual and witnessed by young friends of lanza that you knew. there your dads friends so any info you have would be most interesting...since your dad liked to box where there any other well known fighters lanza and your father meet and talked with..

 Anita, I've been rereading some of the recent posts and agree entirely with your comment on establishment of a website where people might list their hoped for recording and film releases. If such a website could be provided - and closely monitored to ensure that there remains a tight focus upon such listings - it could be a useful tool for helping record and film companies to gauge and respond to the market demand for further releases.

Both Bob Z. and Teal posted last night, but I don't remember you ever posting before. Please, would you let us know who you are and introduce yourselves.

Yes, Fred, you are a very valued member here and I was not my usual lovely self last night, and I should have watched the way I phrased my remarks to you last night. I tried to help you though by looking up and thinking about your very good questions seriously. Keep asking questions, Fred, and we will all learn something.

Now that I have seen the picture agAin of the woman with Mario Lanza, it does look like Dorothy Kirsten, and we know she knew Lanza at that time, and again at Great Caruso filming, so I think it was her with Mario singing in 1948 in San Raphael, California. Exactly where or what theater did this concert take place in, Derek Mannering? What was the date, please?

Thelma: No problem. Ciao.

David Bret: Thanks for the info on Eddie Fisher. I am sorry to hear of his illness. I hope he recovers. I wonder where could I write to him, or to his daughter, Carrie?? Do you have an address?? Thanks. Ciao.