Romina Power

Romina Power
Romina Power in the movie Las trompetas del apocalipsis (1969)
Born	Romina Francesca Power (1951-10-02) October 2, 1951 (age 73) Los Angeles, California
Occupations	Actress singer
Years active	1964–present
Spouse	Albano Carrisi ​ ​ (m. 1970;div. 2012)​
Children	4, including Ylenia Carrisi
Parent(s)	Tyrone Power Linda Christian
Relatives	Taryn Power (sister) Tyrone Power Jr. (half-brother) Ariadna Welter (maternal aunt) Tyrone Power Sr. (grandfather) Tyrone Power (great-great-grandfather)
Website	www.rominapower.guru

Romina Francesca Power (born October 2, 1951) ^[1] is an American actress and singer born in Los Angeles, California. She is the daughter of actor Tyrone Power and actress Linda Christian. With ex-husband Albano Carrisi, she formed the music duo Al Bano & Romina Power, which gained popularity in many parts of the world during the 1980s.

Biography

Childhood

Power is the eldest daughter of American screen idol Tyrone Power and his second wife, Mexican actress Linda Christian. She was named after Rome, where her parents had fallen in love; her middle name is in reference to the church of Santa Francesca Romana, the site of their wedding ceremony. ^[1]

Initially, she grew up in the Bel Air neighborhood of Los Angeles. After her parents divorced in 1956, Power and her younger sister Taryn were sent to live with their maternal grandmother in Mexico. They went to live briefly with their mother and her new husband, Edmund Purdom, but were later sent to boarding schools in England, Switzerland, and Italy. ^[2] Among the schools Power attended was Cobham Hall School in Kent, England. ^[3] Later, both Power and her mother lived in a penthouse in the Roman quartiere of Parioli. ^[4]

Acting career

Power began trying out for film roles at age 12. She made her screen debut at age 14 in the Italian film Menage all'italiana , starring alongside Ugo Tognazzi and Anna Moffo. ^[5] Power subsequently appeared in several films, achieving notoriety for acting in roles that highlighted her sex appeal. ^[6] In December 1966, her role in the film How I Learned to Love Women came under attack from the Italian public and government, as well as the Catholic Church. ^[7] Ludovico Montini, brother of Pope Paul VI, and other Christian Democratic senators charged that Power was forced to rehearse "lewd scenes for the film countless times." ^[8] The Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano , called the film's moral content dubious and opined that minors should have been banned from viewing it. ^[7] In 1969, her starring role in the film Marquis de Sade: Justine resulted in its banning in Italy and in the seizure of all prints. ^[9]

In an interview Power gave in 1966, she said that despite her typecasting she did not regard herself as a "Lolita." ^[10] In a later interview in 1970, Power expressed regret for having let her mother choose sexually suggestive film roles for her. ^{[11] [12]}

Musical fame

Power and Albano "Al Bano" Carrisi in Greece in 1975

In 1975, Power and her husband Albano "Al Bano" Carrisi founded the singing duo Al Bano and Romina Power, which became a sensation in Continental Europe and Latin America. They released multiple albums in different languages and achieved 7th place for Italy in both the 1976 and 1985 Eurovision Song Contests. Their biggest hits included "Felicità", "Sharazan", and "Ci sarà".^{[ citation needed ]}

Later years

Power and Carrisi in the 1990s

In 2005, Power was a judge in the Italian TV show Ballando con le Stelle . Between 2006 and 2007, she organized exhibitions of her paintings, mainly in Milan. At the same time she dedicated herself to directing her film Upaya.^{[ citation needed ]}

In 2007, Power moved back to the United States, buying a house in Sedona, Arizona. According to an interview she gave to the Italian press at the time, she felt to be perceived by the Italian public merely as a performer of "Il ballo del qua-qua" (a song for children), and that she found it difficult to establish herself in Italy as a painter and writer. Power also stated that she was disturbed by the intrusive attention of the local press, which published multiple articles speculating about her private life and the disappearance of her daughter Ylenia. ^{[13] [14]}

Shortly after Power's relocation in 2008, her mother Linda Christian was diagnosed with colon cancer. Power went to live in her mother's house in Palm Springs, where she remained until her mother's death on July 22, 2011. In a November 2009 interview she gave to Italian TV she stated she had considered, at least for some time, a possible return to Italy.^{[ citation needed ]}She has continued living and working in the United States.^{[ needs update ]}

In the fall of 2012 her album Da lontano was released, containing songs written in 1999. In the summer of 2013, Power and Carrisi reunited for a concert performance in Moscow. ^{[15] [16]}

Personal life

Stanislas "Stash" Klossowski de Rola, the eldest son of the painter Balthus, proposed marriage to Power when she was 15 and he was 23. ^[17] She accepted and her mother approved, provided that he wait until Power turned 18 and was allowed to develop artistically first. ^[18] Klossowski de Rola introduced Power to Paul McCartney, Jane Asher, and Syd Barrett, with whom she later became friends.^{[ citation needed ]} The couple later postponed their wedding indefinitely. ^[19]

In 1969, Power announced her engagement to Albano Carrisi. ^[20] Upon their engagement, Carrisi persuaded Power to refrain from accepting any more risqué film roles and restricted the presence of her mother on set. ^[21] They married on July 26, 1970. ^[22]

Power and Carrisi separated in 1999. ^[23] Their divorce was finalized in 2012. ^[24] They have four children:

• Ylenia Maria Sole (born November 29, 1970), their eldest daughter who went missing in New Orleans, Louisiana in January 1994 (declared dead in absentia in 2014).
• Yari Marco Carrisi (born April 21, 1973) ^[25]
• Cristèl Chiara Carrisi (born December 25, 1985), who appeared in Italian reality TV show La Fattoria 2 ( The Farm ).
• Romina Yolanda Carrisi (born June 1, 1987), who appeared in the 2005 edition of Italian reality TV show Isola dei Famosi (a version of Survivor) with her father.

Power is a polyglot who speaks five languages: English, Italian, Spanish, French and Dutch. ^[26] She is a follower of Tibetan Buddhism. ^[27]

Filmography

Films

Title	Year	Role	Notes
1965	Menage all'italiana	Stella
1966	How I Learned to Love Women	Irene
1967	Assicurarsi vergine	Lucia Impallomeni
	Nel sole	Lorena Vivaldi
1968	24 Hours in the Life of a Woman	Mariette
	L'oro del mondo	Lorena Vivaldi
1969	Il suo nome è Donna Rosa	Rosetta Belmonte
	Pensando a te	Livia
	Marquis de Sade: Justine	Justine
	Carnal Circuit	Gloria Brighton
1970	Mezzanotte d'amore	Rosetta Belmonte
	Angeli senza paradiso	Anna Roskova
1984	Champagne in paradiso	Paola Davis
2007	Go Go Tales	Yolanda Vega
2014	Il segreto di Italia	Adult Italia Martin
2016	Quo Vado?	Herself	Cameo appearance
2021	Nightmare Alley	Show's viewer	Cameo appearance

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1969	Nero Wolfe (Italian TV series)	Lois Jarrell	Episode: "Circuito chiuso"
1970	Doppia coppia	Herself/ Co-host	Variety show (season 2)
1981–1982	Fantastico	Herself/ Co-host	Variety show (season 2)
1985	Il tastomatto	Herself/ Host	Variety show
	I promessi sposi	Lucia Mondella	Special
1989–1990	Cinema Insieme	Herself/ Host	Interstitial program
1991	Albano e Romina Power Story	Herself/ Host	Special
1996	The Return of Sandokan	Maharani Surama	Series regular (4 episodes)
	Canzoni sotto l'albero	Herself/ Judge	Musical contest (season 5)
1998–2000	Per tutta la vita...?	Herself/ Host	Variety show (seasons 2–4)
2003	Tutti i sogni del mondo	Cinzia's teacher	Miniseries
2010	Ciak... Si canta!	Herself/ Contestant	Talent show (season 2)
2016	Così lontani così vicini	Herself/ Co-host	Reality show (season 3)
2017	Standing Ovation	Herself/ Judge	Talent show
2020	Amici di Maria De Filippi	Herself/ Guest	Performer

Discography

Solo

• 12 canzoni e una poesia (1969)
• Ascolta, ti racconto di un amore (1974)
• Con un paio di Blue-Jeans (1974)
• Da lontano (2012)

With Al Bano

• Atto I (1975)
• 1978 (1978)
• Aria pura (1979)
• Sharazan (1981) (Spanish)
• Felicità (1982)
• Felicidad (1982) (Spanish)
• Che angelo sei (1982)
• Que ángel será (1983) (Spanish)
• The Golden Orpheus Festival 1984 (1984)
• Effetto amore (1984)
• Sempre sempre (1986)
• Siempre siempre (1986) (Spanish)
• Libertà! (1987)
• Libertad (1987) (Spanish)
• Fragile (1988)
• Fragile (1988) (Spanish)
• Fotografia di un momento (1990)
• Fotografía de un momento (1990) (Spanish)
• Weihnachten bei uns zu Hause (1990) (also known as Corriere di Natale)
• Navidad ha llegado (1991) (Spanish)
• Vincerai (1991)
• Vencerás (1991) (Spanish)
• Notte e giorno (1993)
• El tiempo de amarse (1993) (Spanish)
• Emozionale (1995)
• Amor sagrado (1995) (Spanish)
• Ancora... Zugabe (1996)
• The Very Best – Live aus Verona (2015)
• Raccogli l'attimo (2020)

Bibliography

• Al Bano & Romina Power: Autoritratto dalla A alla R (Rizzoli, 1989)
• Cercando mio padre (Gremese, 1998)
• Ho sognato Don Chisciotte (Bompiani, 2000)
• Kalifornia (It's Here Now) (Arcana, 2004)
• Upaya (Fazi Editore, 2005)
• Ti prendo per mano (Mondadori, 2015)
• Karma Express (Mondadori, 2017)

References

1. "Daughter Born to Tyrone Powers". Redding Record Searchlight. Redding, CA. Associated Press. October 3, 1951. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
2. Beck, Marilyn (February 8, 1979). "Power's 'Gay' Life, Louella's Girl Too, Spice Tell-All Tales". Fort Lauderdale News. Archived from the original on March 24, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
3. Biography of Romina Power at her official web site.
4. Rhodes, Andrew (December 4, 1966). "A Film Veteran at 15". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 24, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
5. "In Father's Footsteps?". New York Daily News. December 22, 1965. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022. Actress Romina Power, daughter of the late Tyrone Power, . . . at a cast party in Rome following her screen debut in the Italian comedy 'Menage, Italian Style.'
6. Graham, Sheilah (December 13, 1966). "Sheilah Graham in Hollywood". Des Moines Tribune. North American Newspaper Alliance. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
7. "'Erotic' Teen Scenes Protested in Rome". New York Daily News. Associated Press. December 2, 1966. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
8. "Pope's Brother Calls Film Lewd". Hackensack Record. Hackensack, NJ. United Press International. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
9. "Italy Bans Movie Starring Young Romina Power". Arizona Daily Star. Tucson, AZ. Associated Press. May 25, 1969. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
10. "Italy's Teen-Agers Idolize Romina Power". Long Beach Press-Telegram. Long Beach, CA. Associated Press. August 5, 1966. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022. 'Some people see me as a Lolita, but I don't like that,' Romina said disdainfully. 'I don't see myself as that at all.'
11. Broadley, Wes. "Bradley Broadley". Colorado Springs Gazette. Colorado Springs, CO. Archived from the original on March 24, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022. My mother talked me into doing nude movie scenes when I was only fourteen.
12. "The Last Word". Burlington Daily Times-News. Burlington, NC. Retrieved March 23, 2022. Mother should really have seen the mistakes I was making.
13. Spettacoli.tiscali.it Archived September 11, 2007, at the Wayback Machine , Romina Power: "Addio lascio l'Italia"
14. Tgcom.ùrfozdry/oy, La Power: "Italia addio per sempre"
15. Bild.de: Al Bano and Romina Power: Reunion after 14 Years (German). Retrieved May 12, 2013.
16. Express.de: Comeback: Al Bano and Romina Power Singing Together Once More Archived December 12, 2013, at the Wayback Machine (German). Retrieved May 12, 2013.
17. "Child Actress to Wed Polish Baron". St. Joseph News-Press. St. Joseph, MO. Associated Press. November 1, 1966. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
18. Scott, Walter (January 8, 1967). "Walter Scott's Personality Parade". Cedar Rapids Gazette. Parade. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022. Romina Power has agreed to marry her prince if he agrees to wait until she is 18. The prince is Stanislas Kosslowski de Rola, . . . 23, oldest son of the French painter Balthus. He plays the guitar, is known in Paris Left Bank circles as "Stash." [Linda] Christian approves of the match but first would like to see her daughter develop into a film star.
19. Knickerbocker, Suzy (November 26, 1966). "Wedding of 14 Year Old Romina Power Delayed". San Francisco Examiner. New York Journal-American. Archived from the original on March 24, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
20. Manners, Dorothy (April 5, 1969). "Dorothy Manners' Hollywood". Scranton Tribune. Scranton, PN. King Features Syndicate. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
21. O'Brian, Jack (October 14, 1969). "Reason To Hire A Press Agent". San Francisco Examiner. New York Journal-American. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
22. "Tyrone's Romina Weds". Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, NY. Associated Press. July 27, 1970. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
23. Celi, Rita. "Al Bano e Romina si separano". La Repubblica. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
24. Venegoni, Arianna (February 3, 2020). "Albano e Romina Power se la meritano una timeline con tutte le tappe della loro storia d'amore". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
25. "Yari.tv". Yari.tv. Archived from the original on July 9, 2017. Retrieved October 14, 2013.
26. "We'll live it all again". Esctoday.com. Archived from the original on January 29, 2009.
27. Marcella, Domenico (May 19, 2017). "La meditazione? Il "potere" di Romina Power" [Meditation? Romina Power's "Power"]. Vanity Fair (in Italian). Retrieved September 27, 2022.

External links

• Romina Power – Official site (bilingual)
• Official YouTube Channel
• Romina Power at IMDb
• Romina Power discography at Discogs

Preceded by Wess & Dori Ghezzi	Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest 1976 (as Al Bano and Romina Power)	Succeeded by Mia Martini
Preceded by Alice & Franco Battiato	Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest 1985 (as Al Bano and Romina Power)	Succeeded by Umberto Tozzi & Raf