Gina Lollobrigida - Born 1927
Italian Actress, Photographer, Sculptor and Political Activist
Added to the album by Sandy, A Wonderful Woman
As I sit writing from my Sicilian balcony about this wonderful Italian woman, I find myself reflecting once again on the role women have in this society. As I wrote in the entry on Sophia Loren (Wonderful Woman No. 88), the importance of the female in Italy is clear. Indeed, on March 8th, I enjoyed my first Festa Della Donna, the Italian day of celebrating the female in society. I suspect a better historian than I could explain in depth the importance of the female in ancient Rome and tell you all about goddesses and how this history has filtered through into modern life... I can only presume to know a little about this but there certainly seems to be a more clearly defined appreciation for women here than I have experienced in some other countries.
In her youth, beautiful Gina won a number of beauty pageants which lead to her getting acting work in a number of Italian films. She appeared in European films from the mid 1940s and made her Hollywood debut in 1953.
She made numerous films throughout the 1950s and '60s, appearing alongside some of the film industry's most recognisable leading men, including; Humphrey Bogart, Frank Sinatra, Rock Hudson and Sean Connery, to name just a few. Though her acting career slowed down from the 1970s, she continued to make films in both America and Europe until the 1990s. She also appeared in a number of television programmes. Her talent was acknowledged by numerous awards in Europe and a Golden Globe in the USA.
During the 1970s, alongside her acting career, Gina embarked on a career as a photographer, picturing stars such as Salvador Dalí, Henry Kissinger and fellow Wonderful Women; Audrey Hepburn (Wonderful Woman No. 30) and Ella Fitzgerald (yet to be blogged). Through her photojournalism, she interviewed and photographed the notoriously elusive Cuban Prime Minister, Fidel Castro.
Gina is also a celebrated sculptress, her work has been show in exhibitions worldwide.
She has a keen interest in politics, with liberal views. She previously ran to be elected as a European Member of Parliament in Italy and was a Goodwill Ambassador of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
A Wonderful Woman of many talents, who has busied herself with involvement in the arts and the politics of her home nation and the world.
All my life, I've had too many admirers.
Gina Lollobrigida
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