Celeste Rodrigues

Celeste Rodrigues was born in Fundão in the district of Castelo Branco in Portugal on 14 March 1923. Her family moved to Lisbon when she was five years old. She started work in a cake factory, and subsequently she and her sister Amalia worked in a shop that sold regional produce. Soon discovered by the impresario José Miguel, who heard her sing and insisted she turn professional. By the age of 22 she was appearing regularly at the Casablanca (now the Teatro ABC). At 25, she met the actor Varela Silva whom she later married; they had two daughters.

After Carnation Revolution in 1974, Rodrigues went to Canada for six months, where her only marriage to actor Varela Silva ended in divorce; then she moved to the United States. She commuted for many years between her two residences in Lisbon and Washington, D.C., where her two daughters live.{{cite web |url=http://www.portaldofado.net/content/view/189/67/lang,portuguese/ |title=Celeste Rodrigues |date=2 January 2011 |author=Catarina Rocha |publisher=Portal do Fado |access-date=20 March 2016}}

Although she did not achieve nearly as comprehensive a career as her sister, Rodrigues was able to achieve substantial fame in her own right (especially in Portugal itself) with recordings such as Lenda das Algas (Legend of the Seaweed), Já é tarde (It is already late) and the emblematic Fado Celeste achievements.{{cn|date=August 2020}}

Rodrigues sang a traditional style of fado, as opposed to the modern style of fado that her sister sang. In 2018, she was the oldest fado singer in the world, continuing to sing at age 95.{{cite web |last1=Barrio |first1=Javier Martín del |title=The Portuguese fado singer who charmed Madonna |url=https://english.elpais.com/elpais/2018/02/01/inenglish/1517479406_930834.html |website=El País |accessdate=24 August 2020 |language=en |date=5 February 2018}}

Like her sister Amália, Celeste Rodrigues was a monarchist and throughout her life met D. Duarte Nuno of Portugal, as well as the kings of Spain, Holland, and Italy.{{Cite web |date=2017-12-18 |title=Celeste Rodrigues: “Um dançarino da Madonna agarrou-se a mim e disse ‘you’re so young’” |url=https://www.nit.pt/cultura/musica/celeste-rodrigues-um-dancarino-da-madonna-agarrou-mim-disse-youre-so-young |access-date=2023-09-07 |website=NiT |language=pt-PT}} She said:

{{quote|"I do not believe in politics, I am a monarchist."}}&{{quote|"Everything beautiful was made in the time of kings and nothing in the Republic."}}

Rodrigues died on 1 August 2018, in Lisbon and she was buried in the Artists' Field at Prazeres Cemetery.{{cite web |URL=https://www.timeout.pt/lisboa/pt/noticias/morreu-celeste-rodrigues-em-actualizacao-080118 |title=Morreu a fadista Celeste Rodrigues |author=Editores da Time Out Lisboa |date=1 August 2018 |publisher=TimeOut |accessdate=1 August 2018}}

• 2007 Fado Celeste (CD, CoastCompany)

• 1995 O Melhor dos Melhores n.º 55 (CD, Movieplay){{cite web|url=http://fonoteca.cm-lisboa.pt/cgi-bin/info3.pl?14793&CD&0 |title=Catálogo – Detalhes do registo de "Celeste Rodrigues; O melhor dos melhores; 55" |publisher=Fonoteca Municipal de Lisboa |access-date=20 March 2016}}

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• {{IMDb name|0735076|Celeste Rodrigues}}

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Category:1923 births

Category:2018 deaths

Category:20th-century Portuguese women singers

Category:21st-century Portuguese women singers

Category:21st-century Portuguese singers

Category:Portuguese fado singers

Category:Commanders of the Order of Prince Henry

Category:People from Fundão, Portugal

Category:Portuguese monarchists