Angélica María
Angélica María Hartman Ortiz[a] (born September 27, 1944), known professionally as La novia de Mexico (Mexico's sweetheart), is a Mexican actress and singer. Her songs El hombre de mi vida (The man of my life) peaked at No. 6, Reina Y Cenicienta (Queen and Cinderella) peaked at No. 9, Prohibido (Prohibited) peaked at No. 13, and El Taconazo (The Taconazo) peaked at No. 34 on the hot Latin songs chart.
Angélica María
September 27, 1944
American
Mexican
La Novia de México
- Actress
- singer
1950–present
Angélica Vale (b. 1975)
Vocals
Early life[edit]
Born in 1944 in New Orleans, Louisiana, Angélica María is the daughter of American entrepreneur, Arnold Hartman, and theater producer, Angélica de Jesús Ortiz Sandoval. Following the divorce of her parents at the age of 5, María moved to Mexico City with her mother.
Early career[edit]
Her mother's sister, Yolanda Ortiz, introduced little Angélica to the Mexican Cinema when Gregorio Wallerstein, a movie producer, was looking for a boy for his next movie. Angélica told the producer, "Give me a haircut and I'm that boy". Charmed by the girl, he let her into his audition. She got the role in the movie Pecado ("Sin"). Soon afterwards, she worked on, Una Mujer Decente ("A Decent Woman"), La Hija de la Otra ("The Daughter of the Mistress"), Los Amantes ("The Lovers"), Fierecilla (Little Beast), Sígueme, Corazón ("Follow Me, Sweetheart"). She obtained the Ariel award for her role in Mi Esposa y la Otra ("My Wife and the Mistress") when she was 6. She also performed in her first fotonovela Rayito del Sol ("Little Sunray"). She sang in her two next movies, 2 Caras Tiene el Destino ("Destiny Has Two Faces") and Los Gavilanes (The Hawks) with superstar Pedro Infante, who told her she would be a great actress, because she spoke with her eyes, as he did.
Teen idol[edit]
In 1955, Rita Macedo offered her a role in the play La mala semilla (The Bad Seed), which would be the first of a series of plays she was involved with while she filmed. When she was 16 she joined the telenovela industry with the production Cartas de amor (Love Letters). The following year, she acted in musicals as well as in "lucha libre" movies such as El Señor Tormenta (Lord Storm) and Muerte en el ring (Death in the Ring). At that time she was beginning to be referred to as La novia de la juventud (Youth's girlfriend) and after her first musical, a journalist, Octavio de Alba, named her La Novia de México (Mexico's girlfriend or Mexico's sweetheart), which is the title she would keep thereafter.
Singing career[edit]
After a few musicals, she asked for her mother's assistance (who was also her manager) and together with Armando Manzanero, then a new songwriter, she sang 1962's Eddy Eddy which would eventually become one of her greatest musical successes. Manzanero took Angélica to see a producer, and in the same year she released her first album on the Musart record label. The album was a success, so she began touring and making movies with teen idols such as César Costa and actor/singer Enrique Guzmán whom she would date later. After joining RCA, she would later become one of the biggest stars in Latin America. In 1973 she met the aspiring singer Juan Gabriel who would become one of the biggest selling artists in the world. Together, they would record ballads performed by mariachi bands. The single Tú sigues siendo el mismo ("You are still the same one") sold one million copies in the United States alone, and has since then been performed by dozens of other singers. She recorded three more albums in 1974. In 1980, she recorded for the first time in a U. K. studio, making an album of ballads and a single record with two pop songs in English, seeking some kind of crossover. During these years, she signed with Marsal Productions, then Caytronics, Melody, RCA again, and finally CBS, which was her last contract with a foreign record company. Since then, she established her own recording company with which she has produced 7 albums.
Her singing career spans through 2013, being her most recent album "With Your Love", produced by R. Levaron, and launched by Universal Music.
Personal life[edit]
In 1974, she met Venezuelan singer/comedian Raúl Vale, whom she married in April 1975 in the first wedding to be televised in Mexico. That year she broke records in New York City when her show was sold out twice in the same day at the Madison Square Garden. This record has not yet been broken.[1] In November 1975 her daughter, the international actress, comedian, singer, and impersonator Angélica Vale, was born.
In 2003 Angélica María, negotiating with a major publishing house, launched an autobiography which would release the lesser known aspects of her life as an actress and a woman. It was published by Reader's Digest in November 2005.
She is fluent in Spanish, English, and French.
International tours[edit]
In 1980, she recorded her 28th album and created the show La historia del cine ("The history of cinema") in which she sang, danced, and performed various characters. She changed wardrobes 15 times without leaving the stage. That same year she recorded another album with Juan Gabriel and starred in El hogar que yo robé ("The home I stole") that would be remade in the 1990s as La usurpadora. Next year she took her show in a tour throughout the Americas. In 1982, she recorded another "balada ranchera" album and obtained a role in her first English-language film Matar a un extraño ("To kill a stranger") and presented a second show La magia de Angélica María ("The magic of Angélica María") in places from New York to Chile.
In 2001, Reader's Digest released an album of her hits, and she acted in the short Qué me va a hacer.
In 2006, joined again the show "Los Grandes del Rock" making tours throughout Mexico, and reteamed with her daughter Angelica Vale for the telenovela La fea mas bella (The Prettiest Ugly Girl). The series was a ratings smash, and in 2009 they acted again as a mother and daughter in the second season of Mujeres asesinas (Murderous women) in the episode Julia, encubridora.
The latter series marked Angelica Maria's second, and to date permanent, departure from Televisa, after a total of 43 years (1962–81 and 1986–2009).
In 2009, she was participating with Armando Manzanero in the show "The Women of Manzanero", touring throughout all Mexico, alongside singers such as: Tania Libertad, Ariadne, María del Sol, Rocio Banquells, Manoella Torres, Edith Márquez, Myriam, among others.
Other work[edit]
In 2012 Angelica joined Alberto Vázquez and César Costa in the show TR3S, performing tours throughout Mexico, delighting their Mexican & Latin audiences with their singing voices, up until nowadays. Enrique Guzman would join The Troupe, later on.
Between June 2013 and 2014, Angelica formed part of the jury of the Spanish-language version of The X Factor, which was broadcast starting that summer on MundoFox in the United States.[2]
In 2013, Angélica launched her most recent compilation: 'With Your Love', available at: '"Liquid Spins"', as well as participating during the 50th Anniversary Celebration of Disney's: It's A Small World After All.
In 2014, she joined the ensemble cast of the film: 'Ruta Madre'.
She will be a regular cast member of the TV Series: Graves (TV series), (2016).