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Tony Martin

Actor | * 12/25/1913 († 98, 07/27/2012) | San Francisco, California (United States of America (USA))
Alvin Morris (December 25, 1913 – July 27, 2012), known professionally as Tony Martin, was an American actor and popular singer. His career spanned over seven decades, and he scored dozens of hits between the late-1930s and mid-1950s with songs such as "Walk Hand in Hand", "I Love Paris", "Stranger in Paradise" and "I Get Ideas". He was married to actress and dancer Cyd Charisse for 60 years, from 1948 until her death in 2008. ()

Alvin Morris, known professionally as Tony Martin, was an American actor and popular singer. His career spanned over seven decades, and he scored dozens of hits between the late-1930s and mid-1950s with songs such as "Walk Hand in Hand", "Stranger in Paradise" and "I Get Ideas". He was married to actress and dancer Cyd Charisse for 60 years, from 1948 until her death in 2008.In his grammar school glee club, he became an instrumentalist and singer. He formed his first band, named "The Red Peppers," when he was in high school. After college, he went to Hollywood to try films. It was at that time that he adopted the stage name of Tony Martin.On radio, Martin sang and was master of ceremonies on Tune-Up Time, with Andre Kostelanetz, on CBS in the early 1940s. NBC broadcast The Tony Martin Show, a 15-minute variety program. One of his guests was Dinah Shore. He was also a featured vocalist on the George Burns and Gracie Allen radio program.In films, Martin was first cast in a number of bit parts, including a role as a sailor in Follow the Fleet. He eventually signed with 20th Century-Fox and then Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in which he starred in a number of musicals. Between 1938 and 1942, he made a number of hit records for Decca. In 1941, Martin received equal billing with the Marx Brothers in their final film for MGM, The Big Store.Martin joined the United States Navy in 1942 as a chief specialist, the equivalent of a chief petty officer. He was dismissed from the service that year for "unfitness" after he testified at the court martial of a Naval procurement officer. He enlisted as a specialist after the officer twice failed to obtain a commission for him. Martin said that he had given the officer an auto worth $950 to "facilitate" his enlistment. At the time of his dismissal, the Navy said that removal for unfitness was not equivalent to a dishonorable discharge and "does not carry degradation."After the war, Martin signed with Mercury Records, then a small independent label run out of Chicago, Illinois. He cut 25 records in 1946 and 1947 for Mercury, including a 1946 recording of "To Each His Own," which became a million-seller. It was awarded a gold disc by the RIAA. This prompted RCA Victor to offer him a record contract, which he signed in 1947 after satisfying his contract obligations to Mercury. He continued to appear in film musicals during the 1940s and 1950s. His rendition of "Lover Come Back to Me" with Joan Weldon in Deep in My Heart – based on the music of Sigmund Romberg and starring José Ferrer - was one of the highlights of that film. He also starred as Gaylord Ravenal in the Show Boat segment from the 1946 film Till the Clouds Roll By. In 1958, he became the highest paid performer in Las Vegas, signing a five-year deal at the Desert Inn, earning $25,000 a week. In an unlikely pairing, Martin recorded for the Motown Records label in the mid-1960s, scoring a minor hit with the record "Talkin' To Your Picture."Martin was a stockholder in the Parvin-Dohrmann Corporation, a hotel and casino company that owned the Flamingo Las Vegas.

Photo of Tony Martin
Most frequent genres for this person: Comedies | Music | Romance / Love

Known for these Movies & Shows

Awards & Nominations for Tony Martin

Star On Hollywood Walk of Fame
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Movies with Tony Martin as Actor(35)

as (archive footage)1994 That's Entertainment! III
as himself1982 Dear Mr. Wonderful
as (archive footage)1974 That's Entertainment!
as Stanley Smith1957 Let's Be Happy
as Linus Quincannon1956 Quincannon, Frontier Scout
as Tony Martin (uncredited)1956 Meet Me in Las Vegas
as Chief Boatswain's Mate Wm. F. Clark1955 Hit the Deck
as Performer in New Moon1954 Deep in My Heart
as Barry Gordon1953 Easy to Love
as Allen Trent1953 Here Come the Girls
as Singer of 'I Hear a Rhapsody' (voice)1952 Clash by Night
as Dan Carter1951 Two Tickets to Broadway
as Pepe Le Moko1948 Casbah
as Gaylord Ravenal / Tony Martin1946 Till the Clouds Roll By
as Tommy Rogers1941 The Big Store
as Frank Merton1941 Ziegfeld Girl
as Robert Gregory1940 Music in My Heart
as Steve Bishop1939 Winner Take All
as Tommy Grant1938 Up the River
as Jerry Wade1938 Kentucky Moonshine
as Tommy Reynolds1938 Sally, Irene and Mary
as Tommy Davis1938 Thanks for Everything
as Danny Walker1937 The Holy Terror
as Yusuf/Tony Martin1937 Ali Baba Goes to Town
as Band Leader1937 Life Begins in College
as Bobby Walker1937 You Can't Have Everything
as Buzz Mason1937 Sing and Be Happy
as Tom Williams1936 Back to Nature
as Radio Baritone Soloist (uncredited)1936 Poor Little Rich Girl
as Chick Bean1936 Banjo on My Knee
as Tony Renaldo1936 Sing, Baby, Sing
as Tommy Barker1936 Pigskin Parade
as Sailor (uncredited)1936 Follow the Fleet
as Singer1935 Foolish Hearts

TV Shows/Series with Tony Martin as Actor(13)

as himself1976 Donny & Marie
as Self - Singer1964 The Hollywood Palace
as himself1962 The Merv Griffin Show
as Self - Singer1956 The Steve Allen Show
as himself1954 The Tony Martin Show
as Self - Mystery Guest1950 What's My Line?
as Self - Guest Host1948 The Ed Sullivan Show
as himself1948 The Ed Sullivan Show
as Self - Singer1948 The Ed Sullivan Show

Full Name: Tony Alvin Morris
Born: Thursday, 12/25 1913 (December) in San Francisco, California (United States of America (USA))
Died: Friday, 07/27 2012 (July) in West Los Angeles (aged: 98)
Zodiac sign: Capricorn (Chinese zodiac sign: Ox)
Languages: English (EN, native language)
Educated at: Saint Mary's College of California, Oakland Technical High School
Record Label: Decca
Spouses (current/former): Alice Faye, Cyd Charisse
Other names for Tony Martin (nicknames, foreign languages etc.):
"Anthony Martin"
"Tony Martin (American singer)"
"Tony Martin (Schauspieler, 1913)"
Tony Martin frequently works together with these people:
Mickey Rooney (12x, Actor)
Charlton Heston (11x, Actor)
Jerry Lewis (11x, Actor)
Polly Bergen (11x, Actress)
Peggy Lee (10x, Actress)
Bob Hope (10x, Actor)
Buddy Hackett (10x, Actor)
Red Buttons (10x, Actor)
Shelley Berman (10x, Actor)
Johnny Carson (10x, Actor)
Count Basie (10x, Actor)
Cedric Gibbons (7x, Crew)

Other people with this name: Tony Martin (AU)

WatchPlayStream ID: PEOPLE:30855, Added: 05/09/2018, Last updated: 03/13/2024