La Collectionneuse: Helena and Tony D’Algy

Multilingual siblings Helena and Tony D’Algy were born to a Portuguese father and a Spanish mother. They were probably the first film actors of direct Portuguese descent to gain international popularity. During their Hollywood stay, Helena, who would also use the spellings Elena, Helen or Helene throughout her professional life, was the more successful of the two and got more press coverage than her brother. After the advent of talkies, Tony’s screen career took off, whereas Helena’s would decline.


French postcard by A.N., Paris, no. 732. Photo: Paramount.


British postcard in the Famous Cinema Stars Series by Beagles Postcards, no. 171.G. Photo: Vitagraph.

A mix of Portuguese and Spanish origins

Tony D’Algy was born Antonio Lozano Guedes Infante on 30 November 1896 or 1897 in Luanda, Angola, then a Portuguese colony.

Helena D’Algy was born Antonia Lozano Guedes Infante on 18 June 1906 in Lisbon, Portugal (some sources say Madrid, Spain).

Their father, Antonio Guedes Infante, was born in Porto, in northern Portugal, and was a civil engineer.

Their mother, Blanca Lozano Caparre, was a Spanish opera singer.

After the father died in 1915, the family relocated to Spain, in Madrid, where Blanca resumed her singing career under the pseudonym of Blanca Drymma.


Finnish postcard by Kortcentralen Korttikeskus, no. 476.

Stage debuts

Still a teenager, Helena, who had been taught singing and dancing, would join a touring company alongside her mother and perform in South America for a few years.

Antonio had settled in the U.S.A. to pursue an acting career, and in 1923, he persuaded his sister to come to New York.

As a pseudonym, he had used the acronym of his real name, A.L.G.I., substituted a Y for the I and thus became Antonio / Tony D’Algy. This would also become his sister’s professional name.

Helena D’Algy appeared on Broadway in the summer edition of the 'Ziegfeld Follies of 1923' from 25 June to 15 September 1923.

She was then cast in the regular edition of the same show from 20 October 1923 to 10 May 1924.


Danish postcard by J. Chr. Olsens Kuntsforlag, Eneret, no. 604.


British postcard in the Picturegoer Series, London, no. 270.

Helena and Tony embark on a movie career

The D’Algy siblings made their movie debut in 1924.

Helena immediately got an important part in Let Not Man Put Asunder (1924) and was soon signed to become Rudolph Valentino’s leading lady in A Sainted Devil (1924).

She also got the female leading role in The Cowboy and the Princess (1926). Her other films include Pretty Ladies (1925), Confessions of a Queen (1925), as Sephora, the King’s voluptuous mistress, Siberia (1926) or The Silver Treasure (1926).

Tony had supporting roles in movies such as Meddling Women (1924), Soul Mates (1925) and The Boob (1926). He also allegedly directed The Reckless Mollycoddle (1927), but, curiously enough, the American Film Institute Database doesn’t list any director for this movie.

In 1927, Helena starred in the Spanish film Raza de hidalgos, which was directed by Tony in Germany, which was, in those days, renowned for their technologically advanced studios. Her co-star was Jose Nieto and Tony also had a role in the film. At the same time, she came back on stage and performed in countries such as Mexico, Cuba and Spain.


Czech postcard. Photo: Paramount. Helena D’Algy and Rudolph Valentino in A Sainted Devil (Joseph Henabery, 1924).


Italian postcard by Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 434. Photo: Films Paramount. Helena D’Algy and Rudolph Valentino in A Sainted Devil (Joseph Henabery, 1924).

Tony’s ascent

In 1929 and 1930, Tony D’Algy was featured in several French and Belgian films such as Figaro (1929), La femme rêvée (1929), L’appel de la chair (1929), Carillons, dentelles et chansons de rivières (1929), Ruines (1930), Voici dimanche (1930) and Un clown dans la rue (1930).

In 1930, Paramount started to produce foreign-language films in their French studios situated in Saint-Maurice, and not in the nearby city of Joinville as it’s mistakenly mentioned in many sources.

The studios built in Joinville belonged to Pathé at the time and had nothing to do with Paramount.

It was a big break for Tony, who became much in demand for Spanish-language adaptations of Paramount films, such as El segreto del doctor (1930), Toda una via (1930), La fiesta del diablo (1930), La incorregible (1931), Sombras del circo (1931) and Lo mejo es reir (1931).


Italian postcard by Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 793. Photo: Fox Film, Roma. Helena D’Algy and Buck Jones in The Cowboy and the Countess (Roy William Neill, 1926).

Helena in talkies

Helena D'Algy also worked for Paramount French studios in Saint-Maurice but only got supporting parts in Un hombre de suerte (1930), Dona mentiras (1930) and Marions-nous (1931).

In 1931, she made a brief return to Broadway for the adaptation of a French play, Edouard Bourdet’s 'Le sexe faible'.

In England, she appeared in two Spanish-language versions of British films, El hombre que asesino (1932), a Rosita Moreno vehicle, and Entre noche y dia (1932), which offered her a last starring role.

Her movie career ended with the Paramount production Melodia de arrabal (1933), which showcased famous tango singer Carlos Gardel and Imperio Argentina‘s talents.


Spanish postcard by La Novela Semanal Cinematografica, no. 284.


Spanish postcard by M.C., Barcelona, no. 228.

Tony pursues a cosmopolitan career

After having gained much popularity thanks to his work for Paramount, Tony D’Algy starred in two Spanish films, Una semana de felicitad (1934) and La casa de Troya (1936).

As the Civil War erupted in 1936, he went to Argentina, where he got parts in Mateo (1937) and Papa Chirola (1937). A third movie, ...Y pasa la comparsa (1937), doesn’t seem to have been officially released. He then worked in Italy for two Italo-Spanish co-productions, Il segreto inviolabile / Su mayor aventura (1939) and Fortuna / Lluvia de millones (1940).

According to several sources, he would also have appeared in La nascita di Salome / El nacimiento de Salome (1940) but no details can be found about the character he allegedly would have played in this movie and his name isn’t mentioned on any film poster or program, which seems strange regarding his fame at the time. So this information is subject to caution.

Tony then went back to Spain to pursue his successful career in, for example, Polizon a bordo! (1941), Torbellino (1941), Primer amor (1942), La blanca Paloma (1942), Misterio en la marisma (1943), Una herencia en Paris (1944), …

In the second half of the 1940s, he finally had the opportunity to work in two Portuguese films, O Leao de Estrela (1947), an Antonio Silva vehicle, and Fado, Historia d’uma Contadeira (1947), opposite celebrated fado singer Amalia Rodrigues. He ended his movie career in Spain with La casa de las sonrisas (1948), Si te hubieses casado conmigo (1949) and Aquellas palabras (1949). Tony D’Algy died in Lisbon on 29 April 1977.


Spanish postcard by La Novela Cinematografica del Hogar, no. 44.


Small Spanish promotional card. Tony d'Algy and Florencia Becquer in Una herencia en Paris / An Inheritance from Paris (Miguel Pereyra, 1944).

Helena’s later years

After her movie career ended, Helena D'Algy appeared on stage in cities such as Cairo, Paris and Bucharest.

After the Spanish Civil War had started in 1936, she chose to live in Portugal and disappeared from view.

She notably had a long and discreet relationship with Prince Juan de Borbon, father of the future King of Spain, Juan Carlos, who had settled in Portugal in 1946.

In the 1960s, Helena D’Algy made Madrid her hometown. She passed away in 1992.


Italian postcard, no. 272.

Text and postcards: Marlene Pilaete.