Domenico Modugno Story
Domenico Modugno (9 January 1928 – 6 August 1994) was an Italian singer, songwriter, actor, guitarist, and later in life, a member of the Italian Parliament. He is known for his 1958 international hit song “Nel blu dipinto di blu“. He is considered the first Italian cantautore.
The youngest of four children, Modugno was born at Polignano a Mare, in the province of Bari (Apulia), on 9 January 1928. His father, Vito Cosimo Modugno, was a municipal police commander, while his mother, Pasqua Lorusso, was a housewife.
From a young age he wanted to become an actor and in 1951, after his military service, he enrolled in an acting school.
The turning point of his career came in that year, when he also participated in the Sanremo Music Festival, presenting, together with Johnny Dorelli, the song “Nel blu dipinto di blu.” Co-authored by Modugno and Franco Migliacci, the song won the contest and became an enormous success worldwide, including the United States. It received two Grammy Awards with sales above 22 million copies, and represented Italy in the 1958 Eurovision Song Contest, where it came in third.
In 1959, Modugno won the Sanremo Music Festival for the second time in a row, with “Piove” (also known as “Ciao, ciao bambina”), and received second place in 1960 with “Libero.”
In 1962, Modugno won the Sanremo Music Festival a third time with “Addio…, addio….” Four years later, he again represented Italy at Eurovision with “Dio, come ti amo.”
Modugno was an actor in 44 movies (such as Appuntamento a Ischia), and was a film producer of two (Tutto è musica of 1963 was his own biographical production).
