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Paolo Villaggio | |
|---|---|
 Villaggio in 2012 | |
| Born | (1932-12-30)December 30, 1932 Genoa, Kingdom of Italy |
| Died | 3 July 2017(2017-07-03) (aged 84) Rome, Italy |
| Resting place | Sori Cemetery |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1956–2017 |
| Political party | Proletarian Democracy (1987) Pannella List (1992–1999) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
Paolo Villaggio (Italian:[ˈpaːolovilˈladdʒo]; 30 December 1932 – 3 July 2017) was an Italian actor, comedian, film director, and writer. He is noted for the characters he created with paradoxical and grotesque characteristics: Professor Kranz, the ultra-timid Giandomenico Fracchia, and the obsequious and meek accountantUgo Fantozzi, perhaps the favourite character in Italian comedy. He wrote several books, usually of satirical character. He also acted in dramatic roles, and appeared in several movies.
Paolo Villaggio was born inGenoa, toEttore Villaggio (1905–1992), asurveyor originally fromPalermo, and Maria, originally fromVenice, a German-language teacher. Paolo had a twin brother, Piero, who taught at theUniversity of Pisa.[citation needed]
From there, Villaggio was hired for the TV programmeQuelli della domenica (The Sunday guys), in which Fantozzi made his first appearance, introduced his characters, the aggressive "Professor Kranz" and the hypocritical "Giandomenico Fracchia".[1]
He received several cinema awards, including theDavid di Donatello (1990), theNastro d'Argento (1992) and theGolden Lion for his entire career (1992).
After his television experience, Villaggio started writing, for the magazinesL'Espresso andL'Europeo, short stories featuring accountantUgo Fantozzi, a man with a weak character, dogged by misfortune and by the "mega-director" of the "mega-company" where he works. In 1971, the publishing houseRizzoli released the bookFantozzi, a collection of these stories, which sold over a million copies,[1] followed soon by the sequelIl secondo tragico libro di Fantozzi.
The first book received the Gogol Prize in Moscow and led to his 1975 appearance in the filmFantozzi, directed byLuciano Salce. The film's success led to a sequel,Il secondo tragico Fantozzi, with the same director in the following year, in which Fantozzi delivered his most famous line: "Per me...La corazzata Kotiomkin [sic] ... è una cagata pazzesca!!!", or roughly "As I see it...Battleship Kotiomkin [sic]... is an unbelievable load of crap!!!".[1]
Six sequel books were then released, with the last one published in 2012. Seven other films followed, which ended in 1999, but were often much less based on the short stories and the books.
Villaggio played in numerous comedies. He was directed byFederico Fellini (La voce della luna, 1990, withRoberto Benigni),Lina Wertmüller (Io speriamo che me la cavo, 1992), byErmanno Olmi (The Secret of the Old Woods, 1993), byMario Monicelli (Cari fottutissimi amici, 1994), and byGabriele Salvatores (Denti, 2000).
Villaggio continued writing while acting in films. He moved to theMondadori publishing house in 1994. He publishedFantozzi saluta e se ne va (1994–1995; "Fantozzi Says Goodbye and Leaves"),Vita morte e miracoli di un pezzo di merda ("Life, Death and Miracles of a Piece of Shit", 2002),7 grammi in 70 anni ("7 Grammes in 70 Years", 2003) and his latest,Sono incazzato come una belva ("I'm Fucking Mad as a Beast") in 2004.
He also acted in stage plays, playing Arpagone inL'Avare ofMolière in 1996. In 1996 he conducted the satirical news bulletinStriscia la notizia (broadcast onCanale 5), together withMassimo Boldi. More recently, he participated in the television fictionCarabinieri, in which he played the role of a tramp who often helped the police to solve crimes. Villaggio was also a lyricist. With fellow GenoanFabrizio De André, he wrote two songs, "Carlo Martello torna dalla battaglia di Poitiers" ("Charles Martel returning from theBattle of Poitiers") and "Il fannullone" ("The Loafer").
Villaggio died on 3 July 2017 from complications ofdiabetes inRome at the age of 84.[2]
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