Welcome to Lanza Legend

Hosts Bob and Damon

We are deeply honored to have the accomplished Ms. Kathryn Grayson as our Honorary President.

Mr. Al Martino is our Honorary President of The Lanza Legend and is still very active in concert appearances and recordings.

Ms Grayson has many fond memories of Mario that she will be sharing with us. Our humble thanks for her love and support in making this official Mario Lanza web site the very best possible.

Ms. Grayson now teaches select students and gives master classes all over the United States."Mario had a very playful personality and he loved to tease me. He was like a brother to me and Betty was like my very own sister. We did two movies together and he was a delight to work with. I can say unequivocally that Mario possessed one of the greatest natural talents that I have ever heard or worked with. I miss Mario and Betty. I love that Mario still has so many fans around the world. He was a wonderful, brilliantly talented man, and we still mourn the loss of this great voice."

To this day he tells of how his first big hit record, "Here In My Heart," is owed to Mario Lanza in part.

A humble giant of a man who has never forgotten his roots in Philadelphia. "Mario is still an inspiration to me as I tour and perform. I included several Mario songs on my recordings and performances, such as 'Loveliest Night of The Year' and 'Granada.' I still tell my audiences, when performing 'Here In My Heart,' of the kind generosity of the great man who was my inspiration - Mario Lanza.

"Footnote: It was Al Martino's daughter Alison who was the producer for E! Entertainment's program on Mario that reached over 135 million homes worldwide, over 18 times to date.

See Bob's Message below.

A Message From Bob Dolfi

There is not enough space here to write about the many accomplishments that Mario Lanza enjoyed. In his brief 11-year span on the Stage, Television and Radio, he accomplished more than any other singer did in the same time period. Mario Lanza was born in 1921 and died in 1959 of a third heart attack at the tragically young age of 38 in Rome, Italy, where he was living happily with his wife Betty and his 4 children; Colleen, Elissa, Damon and Marc. Mario has been described as temperamental, loving, abusive, caring, charismatic, wonderful and sexy. Maybe he was all the above or some of the above but one thing is certain, he sure could sing. I personally think of Mario as maybe a lovable rogue who was brought down by some of those who were closest to him.

Today, over 40 years later, there are fan clubs all over the world. There is a Mario Lanza Museum in his hometown of South Philadelphia, Pa. There are 'Get-togethers' every year for the fans, a Mario Lanza Institute where they give scholarships to winners of the Mario Lanza Auditions and a Mario Lanza Annual Ball that attracts hundreds of fans from all over the world to Philadelphia. There have been more tributes and honors given to Mario Lanza than to any other singer today. 'Mario set the standards for all to follow!'

More books have been written about Mario than any other singer. A movie about his life is being discussed. Broadway shows and concerts are in the making. And E! Entertainment television has completed a documentary on Mario that went to over 120 million homes and 14 countries, 11 times to date! Many rumors surrounded Mario's early death, including the ridiculous Mafia theory, but it has since been proven that Mario died of a fatal heart attack, the third and final one he suffered in 1959. Mario's wife Betty died just 6 months later in her Beverly Hills home in California, some say of a broken heart. The Los Angeles Superior Court awarded the 4 children to Mario's parents, Antonio and Maria Cocozza, the very same year.

The Lanza Legend continues to grow with each passing year. His voice will never be forgotten, we shall see to that. This site is dedicated to a man and his voice. It was built with honesty and love for a man who took no short cuts along the way and never cheated his fans by prostituting his voice. Mario sang with his heart and it was his heart that finally gave out. Now, come join the legions of fans here and see why Mario is still considered to be the singer who 'set the standards for all to follow'.

The LanzaLegend Team (Bob, Damon & Marlene) who own this web site, The Lanza Legend Newsletter and Mario's only living son, Damon Lanza, wish to thank all of you who help perpetuate Mario's dreams and memory.

In closing I'd like to draw your attention to a body of work called "I Am Music" written beautifully by Allan C. Inman. It has always been a favorite of mine. You may consider this to be prose or poetry or even words to a song but whatever the genre, the work encompasses my feelings about music, emotion and human nature. Click on Mario's Canio icon below and enjoy the sentiment.

"Mario Lanza brings good people together." - Bob Dolfi