Italian Film Legend Gina Lollobrigida Dies

Desk Report

Published: 17 Jan 2023, 02:24 pm

Italian legendary film actress Gina Lollobrigida at a younger age. || Photo: Collected

Italian legendary film actress Gina Lollobrigida at a younger age. || Photo: Collected

Italian actor Gina Lollobrigida, one of the last icons of the Golden Age of Hollywood, has died aged 95, culture minister Gennaro Sangiuliano announced Monday, reports AFP.

"Farewell to a diva of the silver screen, protagonist of more than half a century of Italian cinema history. Her charm will remain eternal," Sangiuliano wrote after Italy's ANSA news agency reported her death.

(Photo: Collected)

In this file photo taken on 13 May, 1965, Italian actress Gina Lollobrigida waves to the crowd during the 18th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France. Gina Lollobrigida died at 95 on 16 January, 2023, according to French Culture Minister.

In this file photo taken on 13 May, 1965, Italian actress Gina Lollobrigida waves to the crowd during the 18th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France. Gina Lollobrigida died at 95 on 16 January, 2023, according to French Culture Minister.AFP

Prime minister Giorgia Meloni also paid tribute to Lollobrigida, famed when younger for her biting wit and sensual beauty, describing the actor as a "great talent, passionate, intense, enthralling".

She was "one of the most important performers of her generation, who contributed to the diffusion of the Italian image in the world", Meloni said in a statement.

Lollobrigida had undergone an operation in a Rome clinic in September after breaking her femur, ANSA reported.

(Photo: Collected)

Her funeral will be held on Thursday in one of the churches in Piazza del Popolo in Rome, it said.

In this file photo taken on 11 April, 1992, Italian actress Gina Lollobrigida arrives to attend the inauguration of the Euro Disneyland amusement park in Marne-la-Vallee, eastern Paris. Gina Lollobrigida died at 95 on 16 January, 2023, according to French Culture Minister.

In this file photo taken on 11 April, 1992, Italian actress Gina Lollobrigida arrives to attend the inauguration of the Euro Disneyland amusement park in Marne-la-Vallee, eastern Paris. Gina Lollobrigida died at 95 on 16 January, 2023, according to French Culture Minister.AFP

Best known for Luigi Comencini's 1953 classic "Bread, Love and Dreams", and Jean Delannoy's 1956 "The Hunchback of Notre Dame", Lollobrigida starred with many of the leading men of the time, including Errol Flynn, Burt Lancaster and Humphrey Bogart.

Born on 4 July, 1927, in Subiaco, a mountain village 50 kilometres (30 miles) east of Rome, her big breakthrough came in 1953 starring alongside Bogart in John Huston's romp "Beat the Devil".

Bogart said at the time Lollobrigida made "Marilyn Monroe look like Shirley Temple".

In this file photo taken on 31 October, 2008, Italian actress Gina Lollobrigida poses on the red carpet upon her arrival to present the documentary, "Gina Lollobrigida, Un simbolo italiano nel mondo" (Gina Lollobrigida, An Italian symbol in the world) at the Rome Film Festival. Gina Lollobrigida, one of the last icons of the Golden Age of Hollywood, has died aged 95, Culture minister Gennaro Sangiuliano said on Twitter on 16 January, 2023.

In this file photo taken on 31 October, 2008, Italian actress Gina Lollobrigida poses on the red carpet upon her arrival to present the documentary, "Gina Lollobrigida, Un simbolo italiano nel mondo" (Gina Lollobrigida, An Italian symbol in the world) at the Rome Film Festival. Gina Lollobrigida, one of the last icons of the Golden Age of Hollywood, has died aged 95, Culture minister Gennaro Sangiuliano said on Twitter on 16 January, 2023.AFP

Lollobrigida won seven David di Donatello awards during her career, Italy's Oscar equivalent.

But by the 1970s she had turned from acting to sculpture and photojournalism, including getting a scoop interview and photo shoot with Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

She was back in the spotlight in 2021, amid a bitter legal battle with her son over her fortune.

Italy's Supreme Court ruled that she needed a legal guardian to stop people preying on her wealth, because of a "weakening" in her perception of reality.

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