Anna Magnani

Anna Magnani
Magnani in the movie The Peddler and the Lady (1943)
Born
Anna Maria Magnani

(1908-03-07)7 March 1908
Rome, Kingdom of Italy
Died26 September 1973(1973-09-26) (aged 65)
Rome, Italy
OccupationActress
Years active1928–1972
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1935; div. 1950)​
Children1

Anna Maria Magnani (Italian: [ˈanna maɲˈɲaːni]; 7 March 1908 – 26 September 1973) was an Italian actress.[1] She was known for her explosive acting and earthy, realistic portrayals of characters.

Born in either Rome or Alexandria and raised in Rome, she worked her way through Rome's Academy of Dramatic Art by singing at night clubs.[2][3] During her career, her only child was stricken by polio when he was 18 months old and remained disabled. She was referred to as "La Lupa", the "perennial toast of Rome" and a "living she-wolf symbol" of the cinema. Time described her personality as "fiery", and drama critic Harold Clurman said her acting was "volcanic". In the realm of Italian cinema, she was "passionate, fearless, and exciting", an actress whom film historian Barry Monush calls "the volcanic earth mother of all Italian cinema."[4] Director Roberto Rossellini called her "the greatest acting genius since Eleonora Duse".[2] Playwright Tennessee Williams became an admirer of her acting and wrote The Rose Tattoo (1955) specifically for her to star in, a role for which she received an Academy Award for Best Actress, becoming the first Italian – and first non-native English speaking woman – to win an Oscar.

After meeting director Goffredo Alessandrini, she received her first screen role in The Blind Woman of Sorrento (La cieca di Sorrento, 1934) and later achieved international attention in Rossellini's Rome, Open City (1945), which is seen as launching the Italian neorealism movement in cinema.[4] As an actress, she became recognized for her dynamic and forceful portrayals of "earthy lower-class women"[5] in such films as L'Amore (1948), Bellissima (1951), The Rose Tattoo (1955), The Fugitive Kind (1960) and Mamma Roma (1962). As early as 1950, Life had already stated that Magnani was "one of the most impressive actresses since Garbo".[6]

  1. ^ Obituary Variety, 3 October 1973, pg. 47
  2. ^ a b Johnson, Bruce. Miracles and Sacrilege: Roberto Rossellini, the Church, and Film Censorship, University of Toronto Press (2008) pg. 194
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Actors was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b Monush, Barry. The Encyclopedia of Hollywood Film Actors, Hal Leonard Corp. (2003)
  5. ^ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Encyclopedia, Merriam-Webster, (2000)
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Life50 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).