Vittorio Gassman, popularly known as Il Mattatore, was an Italian actor, director, and screenwriter.
Silvana Mangano was an Italian film actress. She was one of a generation of thespians who arose from the neorealist movement, and went on to become a major female star, regarded as a sex symbol for the 1950s and '60s. She won the David di Donatello for Best Actress three times - for The Verona Trial (1963), The Witches (1967), and The Scientific Cardplayer (1973) – and the Nastro d'Argento for Best Actress twice.
Mammola Sandon, known by the stage name of Flo Sandon's, was an Italian singer who was popular in the post-World War II years. She won the Sanremo Music Festival in 1953 with the song "Viale d'autunno".
Barabbas is a 1961 religious epic film directed by Richard Fleischer, expanding on the career of Barabbas, from the Christian Passion narrative in the Gospel of Mark and other gospels. The film stars Anthony Quinn as Barabbas, features Silvana Mangano, Katy Jurado, Arthur Kennedy, Harry Andrews, Ernest Borgnine, Vittorio Gassman, and Jack Palance, and was distributed by Columbia Pictures. It was conceived as a grand Roman epic, was based on Nobel Prize-winning Pär Lagerkvist's 1950 novel of the same title. A previous film version of the novel, in Swedish, had been made in 1953.
Bitter Rice is a 1949 Italian film made by Lux Film, written and directed by Giuseppe De Santis. Produced by Dino De Laurentiis, starring Silvana Mangano, Raf Vallone, Doris Dowling and Vittorio Gassman, Bitter Rice was a commercial success in Europe and the United States. It was a product of the Italian neorealism style. The Italian title of the film is based on a pun; since the Italian word riso can mean either "rice" or "laughter", riso amaro can be taken to mean either "bitter laughter" or "bitter rice".
Power of Evil is a 1985 French-German-Italian drama film written and directed by Krzysztof Zanussi.
Armando Trovajoli was an Italian film composer and pianist with over 300 credits as composer and/or conductor, many of them jazz scores for exploitation films of the Commedia all'italiana genre. He collaborated with Vittorio De Sica on a number of projects, including one segment of Boccaccio '70. Trovajoli was also the author of several Italian musicals: among them, Rugantino and Aggiungi un posto a tavola.
Raffaele Vallone was an Italian actor and footballer. One of the top male Italian stars of the 1950s and '60s, he first became known for his association with the neorealist movement, and found success in several international productions. On stage, he was closely associated with the works of Arthur Miller. He played the role of Eddie Carbone in A View from the Bridge several times, notably in Sidney Lumet's 1962 film adaptation, for which he won the David di Donatello for Best Actor.
The Last Judgment is a 1961 commedia all'italiana film by Italian director Vittorio De Sica. It was coproduced with France.
Silvana Pampanini was an Italian film actress, director and singer. She was also the niece of the well-known soprano of the golden era of opera, Dame Rosetta Pampanini. Silvana Pampanini caused a sensation when she took part in the 1946 Miss Italia contest and the following year she started her movie career. Madame Pampanini was born into a well-off family, she was educated, and studied opera and ballet since her childhood. According to interviews, Pampanini was a contralto with notable voice extension. However, she also said many times over the years that she preferred to pursue a career in cinema as it required less training and it was much less demanding than a career as an opera singer.
The Sign of Venus is a 1955 Italian comedy film directed by Dino Risi and starring Sophia Loren. It was entered into the 1955 Cannes Film Festival.
Tina Lattanzi was an Italian actress and voice actress.
Me, Me, Me... and the Others is a 1966 Italian comedy film directed by Alessandro Blasetti. For this film Blasetti won the David di Donatello for best director.
No Peace Under the Olive Tree is a 1950 Italian neorealist drama film directed by Giuseppe De Santis and starring Raf Vallone, Lucia Bosé and Folco Lulli. It was the director's follow-up to Bitter Rice (1949) which also starred Vallone. It was originally planned to partner him with Silvana Mangano again, but due to her pregnancy she was replaced by Lucia Bosé. Despite the commercial success of Bitter Rice, the Communist De Santis had been stung by left-wing criticism due to American cultural elements included the film which he purposefully excluded from the follow-up. He also included characters who were less ambiguous and concluded with a happy ending, similar to those of Socialist realism.
Deceit is a 1952 Italian melodrama film directed by Guido Brignone and starring Gabriele Ferzetti, Nadia Gray and Tina Lattanzi. The film's sets were designed by the art director Piero Filippone. It was partly shot on location around Trieste.
Mambo is an Italian/American international co-production film, produced by Dino De Laurentiis, Carlo Ponti and Paramount Pictures written and directed from 1952 to 1953 by Robert Rossen and released in 1955. A mambo craze spread through the USA in the 1950s, and Rossen aimed to repair his finances after almost two years without work since his 1951 House Un-American Activities Committee hearing. The film co-stars Katherine Dunham who acted as the film's choreographer.
La tempesta is a 1958 Italian drama film directed by Alberto Lattuada. It is based on A History of Pugachev (1834) and the 1836 novel The Captain's Daughter, both by Alexander Pushkin. For this film Lattuada was awarded a David di Donatello for Best Director.
Giacomo the Idealist is a 1943 Italian drama film directed by Alberto Lattuada and starring Massimo Serato, Marina Berti and Andrea Checchi. It represents the directorial debut of Lattuada.
"El Negro Zumbón" is a baião song written by Armando Trovajoli in 1951 for the film Anna, directed by Alberto Lattuada and starring Silvana Mangano.
The Wolf of the Sila is a 1949 Italian drama film directed by Duilio Coletti and starring Silvana Mangano, Amedeo Nazzari and Vittorio Gassman. Much of the film was shot on location around La Sila in Calabria.
