The actor, dancer and singer Enrique Castellón Vargas, better known as El Príncipe Gitano , has died at the age of 88 due to COVID-19 in the nursing home where he lived, as confirmed by AISGE.

"Unforgettable his 'In the ghetto', unforgettable all his talent, charisma and rabid personality" , indicates the Entity of Management of Rights of actors, dubbers, dancers and stage directors in a message that alludes to one of his most emblematic musical performances and individuals, from the song that made Elvis Presley popular in the first place.

Born in Ruzafa (Valencia), he grew up in a gypsy family dedicated to street vendors and cattle deals and made an artistic career in Madrid after touring half of Spain with them, practicing flamenco singing and various styles such as zambra and the rumba .

Sabicas' first brother, his six brothers also include guitarist Juan José Castellón Vargas and, above all, Dolores Vargas' La Terremoto ', whom he accompanied on his first songs, such as "Penas de la gorriona" or "Málaga bella" .

At the age of 14 he made his debut at the Teatro Calderón in Madrid in the same show as Lola Flores and very soon after he formed his first show, "Pinceladas" , becoming a great figure in Spanish song in the 1950s, despite the fact that his real passion was bullfighting, with which he did not get the same impact.

With dozens of shows that toured various countries behind him, his company also served as a launching pad for many other figures, such as Rocío Jurado, Carmen Sevilla and Manolo Escobar.

It is said that it was precisely in one of those shows that Escobar heard from his mouth for the first time interpreting "El porompompero" and that, with his acquiescence, he would end up incorporating it into his own repertoire.

A similar situation was repeated years later with "I'm afraid", which ended up popularizing "the biggest", and again with "Obí, Obá, I love you more every day", which obtained greater repercussion in the version released by Gipsy Kings to late 80s. Among the songs that did transcend with his voice are "Ay, Mi Dolores!", "Tani" or "Cariño de Legionario" and versions of "Delilah" and "Obladí Obladá" .

As an actor, he stood out with roles such as "Brindis al cielo" (1954), his first great leading role, in a short career that reached the film "Españolear" (1969) and in which his characters often appeared as El Gypsy Prince.

On that artistic nickname, he himself related that he had accompanied him since childhood. Blond and green-eyed, usually dressed in a cap and a sailor's cloak, someone mistook his mother for a maid during a ride together in which he had a mishap with a tram. "Madam, because you have a little prince," she says that they told her mother after correcting the mistake.

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