Marcello Mastroianni (Fontana Liri, Italy, September 28, 1924 - Paris, France, December 19, 1996)
Mastroianni is one of the most famous Italian actors of all time, who achieved his best work in films by Federico Fellini and Michelangelo Antonioni. During WW II he was captured and taken into a concentration camp in north Germany but soon managed to escape and spent the rest of the war hiding in Venice. In 1945, he returned to Rome, got a job in the Italian branch of Eagle Lion Films and started to take acting classes. Besides that, he joined a local acting group where Luchino Visconti spotted him and then gave him smaller theatre roles. After working as an extra on some films, Mastroianni made his acting debut on the big screen in I miserabili (1948) by Riccardo Freda. In this early period, there are two roles that stand out: the main character in White Nights (Le notti bianche, 1957) by Luchino Visconti and the role of the petty criminal in Big Deal on Madonna Street (I soliti ignoti, 1958) by Mario Monicelli. He achieved international fame in 1960 when he starred as a reporter in Fellini’s La dolce vita, which remains one of his most famous roles. His next film was The Night (La notte, 1961) by Michelangelo Antonioni. For his role in the dark comedy Divorce - Italian Style (Divorzio all\'italiana, 1961) by Pietro Germi he was nominated for the Oscar for Best Actor (in the category of Best Foreign Film). He was nominated for the same award for two more films: A Special Day (Una giornata particolare, 1977) by Ettore Scola and Dark Eyes (Oci ciornie, 1987) by Nikita Mihalkov. He worked with Louis Malle on the film Vie privée (1962), and a year later he once again worked with Fellini on 8˝ (1963) in which he starred as a director in the middle of a creative crisis. In that same year he made another film with Monicelli The Strikers (I compagni, 1963), and with Vittorio De Sica on the film Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow (Ieri, oggi, domani, 1963) that won an Oscar as Best Film in 1965. Afterwards he acted in de Sica’s Marriage Italian-Style (Matrimonio all\'italiana, 1964) opposite Sophia Loren. Then he acted in several unnoticed films such as The Tenth Victim (La decima vittima, 1965) by Elio Petri, American TV production Poppies are Also Flowers (1966) by Terence Young, The Stranger (Lo straniero, 1967) by Luchino Visconti, A Place for Lovers (Amanti, 1968) by Vittorio De Sica. For his role in Ettore Scola’s Dramma della gelosia - tutti i particolari in cronaca (1970) as well as in Nikita Mihalkov’s Dark Eyes (1987) he won an award for Best Actor in Cannes. During 1970s, 1980s and 1990s he was still active and appeared in several films per year. However, few of them were famous outside of Italy. The exceptions are City of Women (La cittŕ delle donne, 1980) and Ginger e Fred (1986) by Federico Fellini, Oci ciornie (1987) and Pręt-ŕ-Porter (1994) by Robert Altman, which was his last role opposite Sophia Loren. Shortly after acting in Viagem ao Princípio do Mundo (1997) by Manoel de Oliveira, he died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 72.
Filmography:
Viagem ao Princípio do Mundo (1997)
Trois vies & une seule mort (1996)
Sostiene Pereira (1996)
Al di lŕ delle nuvole (1995)
Les cent et une nuits de Simon Cinéma (1995)
A che punto č la notte (1995) (TV)
Pręt-ŕ-Porter (1994)
Un, deux, trois, soleil (1993)
De eso no se habla (1993)
Used People (1992)
Le voleur d'enfants (1991)
To meteoro vima tou pelargou (1991)
Verso sera (1991)
Cin cin (1991)
Stanno tutti bene (1990)
Che ora č? (1989)
Splendor (1989)
Oci ciornie (1987)
I soliti ignoti vent'anni dopo (1987)
Miss Arizona (1987)
Ginger e Fred (1986)
O melissokomos (1986)
Maccheroni (1985)
Le due vite di Mattia Pascal (1985)
Enrico IV (1984)
Il generale dell'armata morte (1983)
Storia di Piera (1983)
Gabriela, Cravo e Canela (1983)
Oltre la porta (1982)
La nuit de Varennes (1982)
La pelle (1981)
Fantasma d'amore (1981)
La cittŕ delle donne (1980)
La terrazza (1980)
L'ingorgo - Una storia impossibile (1979)
Fatto di sangue fra due uomini per causa di una vedova - si sospettano moventi politici (1978)
Cosě come sei (1978)
Ciao maschio (1978)
Le mani sporche (1978) (TV)
Giallo napoletano (1978)
Doppio delitto (1977)
Mogliamante (1977)
Una giornata particolare (1977)
Signore e signori, buonanotte (1976)
Todo modo (1976)
Culastrisce nobile veneziano (1976)
La donna della domenica (1975)
Per le antiche scale (1975)
Divina creatura (1975)
La pupa del gangster (1975)
Allonsanfŕn (1974)
Touche pas ŕ la femme blanche (1974)
Salut l'artiste (1973)
Rappresaglia (1973)
L'événement le plus important depuis que l'homme a marché sur la lune (1973)
La grande bouffe (1973)
Mordi e fuggi (1973)
What? (1972)
Liza (1972)
Ça n'arrive qu'aux autres (1971)
La moglie del prete (1971)
Permette? Rocco Papaleo (1971)
Correva l'anno di grazia 1870 (1971) (TV)
Scipione detto anche l'africano (1971)
Giochi particolari (1970)
Leo the Last (1970)
I girasoli (1970)
Dramma della gelosia - tutti i particolari in cronaca (1970)
Diamonds for Breakfast (1968)
Amanti (1968)
Questi fantasmi (1968) (uncredited)
Lo straniero (1967)
Spara forte, piů forte, non capisco (1966)
Poppies Are Also Flowers (1966)
Io, io, io... e gli altri (1966)
La decima vittima (1965)
Casanova '70 (1965)
Oggi, domani, dopodomani (1965)
L'uomo dei cinque palloni (1965)
Matrimonio all'italiana (1964)
Ieri, oggi, domani (1963)
I compagni (1963)
8˝ (1963)
Cronaca familiare (1962)
Vie privée (1962)
Divorzio all'italiana (1961)
Fantasmi a Roma (1961)
L'assassino (1961)
La notte (1961)
Adua e le compagne (1960)
Il bell'Antonio (1960)
La dolce vita (1960)
Ferdinando I. re di Napoli (1959)
Tutti innamorati (1959)
La legge (1959)
Un ettaro di cielo (1959)
Il nemico di mia moglie (1959)
I soliti ignoti (1958)
Amore e guai (1958)
Racconti d'estate (1958)
Le notti bianche (1957)
Il momento piů bello (1957)
La ragazza della salina (1957)
Padri e figli (1957)
Il medico e lo stregone (1957)
Il bigamo (1956)
La fortuna di essere donna (1956)
La bella mugnaia (1955)
Tam tam mayumbe (1955)
Peccato che sia una canaglia (1954)
Casa Ricordi (1954)
Giorni d'amore (1954)
Tempi nostri (1954)
Cronache di poveri amanti (1954)
La principessa delle Canarie (1954)
Schiava del peccato (1954)
La valigia dei sogni (1953)
Non č mai troppo tardi (1953)
Il viale della speranza (1953)
Gli eroi della domenica (1953)
Febbre di vivere (1953)
Lulů (1953)
Penne nere (1952)
Le ragazze di Piazza di Spagna (1952)
L'eterna catena (1952)
Tragico ritorno (1952)
Sensualitŕ (1952)
Parigi č sempre Parigi (1951)
A Tale of Five Cities (1951)
Atto d'accusa (1951)
Cuori sul mare (1950)
Vita da cani (1950)
Contro la legge (1950)
Domenica d'agosto (1950)
Vertigine d'amore (1949)
Vent'anni (1949)
I miserabili (1948)