Xavier Cugat Filmography

Xavier Cugat was a Spanish-American bandleader who spent his formative years in Havana, Cuba. A trained violinist and arranger, he was a key personality in the spread of Latin music in United States popular music. He was also a cartoonist and a successful businessman. In New York, his was the leader of the resident orchestra at the Waldorf-Astoria before and after World War II. Cugat was born as Francisco d'Asís Xavier Cugat Mingall de Bru i Deulofeu in Girona, Catalonia . His family emigrated to Cuba when Xavier was five. He was trained as a classical violinist and played with the... Orchestra of the Teatro Nacional in Havana. On 6 July 1915, Cugat and his family arrived in New York as immigrant passengers on board the S.S. Havana. Cugat was married five times. His first marriage was to Rita Montaner  ; this contradicts all authoritative biographical accounts of her; his second was to Carmen Castillo ; his third to Lorraine Allen ; his fourth to singer Abbe Lane ; and his fifth to Spanish guitarist and comic actress Charo .
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