OBITUARY
OBITUARY
at the number of 12, 10, 8 etc., points the two top countries had received, Sweden’s Carola was declared the winner with Fångad Av En Stormvind ( Captured By A Lovestorm ), while Amina, who had represented France, was left in second place with the ethnically haunting Le Dernier Qui A Parlé... ( The Last To Have Spoken... ). Ten years ago,Toto was back at the Samremo Festival but, on this occasion, it was to receive the festival’s Lifetime Achievement award. He continued with his singing and songwriting, regularly performing at concerts in New York and Atlantic City.Toto also built on his popularity that had become evident in Germany, Russia, Romania, Spain and Turkey, as well as his native Italy. Surgery In 2007, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer which had affected his kidneys. Choosing to have one kidney removed, the surgery was a success and allowed Toto to return to the stage. He even took part in the Samremo Festival in 2008 and 2010, but failed to have any impact on the competition. Four years ago,Toto was invited to perform in Kyiv, but some member of the Ukrainian Parliament accused him of being “a Russian war supporter”. Explaining that he had refused to perform in Crimea following the region’s annexation by Russia in 2014, it was then agreed that the concert could proceed and was held on 23 March 2019. Sadly,Toto’s prostate cancer returned and, unlike his previous battle with this terrible disease, surgery was of no consequence this time. Admitted to Milan’s San Raffaele Hospital,Toto Cutugno’s life quietly ended on 22 August 2023. He is survived by his wife, Carla, who he had married in 1971, and his son, Nico, who was born in 1990 following an extra-marital affair between Toto and another woman. GL
Toto hosting Eurovision 1991 with Gigliola Cinquetti. Tensions?
Flirting away in Rome
Toto wins Eurovision 1990
in the Italian charts. Its highest placing was in Portugal and, surprisingly, neutral Switzerland, with the song reaching number two in both countries. Mr Naef, Mr Naef! Tasked with organising the 1991 Eurovision Song Contest, RAI had intended to hold the event at Sanremo but, following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, Rome was considered to be a much more secure location. Hosted by what was then the only two Italian winners, Gigliola Cinquetti and Toto Cutugno, there appeared to be some onstage
tension between the pair in what has become something of an infamous event. Added to Toto’s flirtatious, but innocent, approaches directed towards some of the female singers, while introducing Spain’s Sergio Dalma as a younger Toto lookalike, no one will forget Toto’s cries of “Mr Naef, Mr Naef” as the voting procedure descended into near chaos, with France and Sweden both receiving 146 points. The solution, as EBU co-ordinator Frank Naef attempted to explain, was far simpler that it appeared from Toto’s own narrations. Using a process that looked
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