It is with infinite sadness that we announce that we didn’t want to write anyway: Gina Lollobrigida died today at the age of 95
Well yes, you understood very well: today, January 16, 2023, one of the icons not only of Italian cinema but also of world cinema died. Gina Lollobrigidafor all the “Lollo” is gone at the age of 95, leaving a shocked and mourning world of entertainment.
She was one of the greatest interpreters of Italian cinema and an icon for her beauty and strong-willed character. Directed by the greatest Italian directors, from Blasetti a From Sikayes Comencini a Bolognaniher career as an actress had joined that of a photographer, her second great passion.
In recent years she has often been at the center of the news for private matters related to her emotional sphere.
The life of the great Gina Lollobrigida
With Gina Lollobrigida a piece of cinema history goes away, not just Italian. Between the 50s, 60s and early 70s she took part, often as a protagonist, in dozens of films between Italy and Hollywood, becoming ‘La Lollo’ for everyone.
Born on July 4, 1927, the second of four daughters of a small merchant, she spent a poor childhood in Subiaco, a mountain town in Lazio.
Graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in painting and sculpture, she began working as a model, a profession that opened the doors to the world of beauty contests.
In 1947 she took part in Miss Italia finishing third, behind the winner Lucia Bose it’s at Gianna Maria Canale.
In the cinema he made his debut with the film ‘Black Eagle’ (1946).
The Golden Years
In 1949 she was hired by American talent scouts to play in Hollywood a film produced and directed by Howard Hughes. This opportunity vanishes due to conflicts of a contractual nature with the producer.
She will then return to Hollywood in 1954 in other guises, not as a semi-debutant but as an already established actress, for ‘The treasure of Africa’Of John Huston (1954). The film was so successful that the following year Lollobrigida appeared on the cover of ‘Time’ and the American public began to speak of her as “the best thing about Italy after spaghetti”.
Back in Italy in 1949, she marries the Yugoslavian doctor Milko Skofic (whom he divorced in 1971), with whom he had one son.
The most beautiful woman in the world
In 1955, on the basis of her popularity and the interpretation of the character of Lina Cavalieri in the film of the same name, she was nominated ‘The most beautiful woman in the world’. In his heyday, he set such a trend that a particular type of hairstyle was named ‘Lollo’ in honor of him.
He has made more than 60 films and has worked with the greatest actors of those years since Mastroianni a Yul Brynneryes Sean Connery e Rock Hudson a Gerard Philip e Frank Sinatra.
The 70s and retirement
In the 1970s he decided to voluntarily leave the cinema to devote himself to photography and has published five books on his photos. Among his favorite subjects, Paul Newman, Salvador Dali and the German national soccer team. She then dedicated herself to another of her passions: sculpture. In 1992 a sculpture of her (a child riding an eagle) entitled “To live together” represented Italy at the Seville Expo.
President Mitterrand awarded her with the Legion of Honor of the French Republic for her artistic talents. In Italy she is an Honorary Academician of the ancient ‘Academy of Design Arts’ in Florence. In the eighties you starred in the American TV series ‘Falcon Crest’.
She has worked for UNICEF, UNESCO and was an FAO Ambassador.
We can therefore only end this very sad news with a famous wish that we feel with all our hearts not only as Italians, but also as art and cinema enthusiasts: may the earth be light on you, great Gina!
Are you looking for new movies and new TV series to watch? Discover the new Disney+ subscription, the streaming home of Disney, Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars, National Geographic and now Star too. Subscribe now to only 8.99 euros per month on this page.