Actor. He was well known not only in Italian television and cinema, but also to American film viewers as the extortionist Don Fanucci in the 1974 epic film "The Godfather Part II". He graduated from the Accademia Nazionale di Arte Drammatica Silvio D'Amico and then began his career in the 1950s as a theater actor, first with the Stable Theatre in Genoa and then with the Piccolo Teatro di Milano in Milan. In 1956 he made his film debut in "The Rival". Besides "The Godfather Part II", he would go on to appear in many Italian films including "The Birds, the Bees and the Italians" (1966),"The Conformist" (1970), "Caliber 9" (1972), "Don Camillo e i giovani d'oggi" (1972), "My Friends" (1975), "Wifemistress" (1977), "Lion of the Desert" (1980), "All My Friends Part II" (1982), "All My Friends Part III" (1985), "We Free Kings" (1996), and "Porzus" (1997)". He won Silver Ribbons from the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists twice (1967 and 1986) for his work in "The Birds, the Bees and the Italians" and "All My Friends Part III. He also appeared in various television mini-series and series throughout his career with such credits as "Il mulino del Po", "I miserabili", "Rosso veneziano", "Melodramma", "Sei forte, Maestro", and "Don Matteo". He retired from acting in the early 21st century and was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Italian Online Movie Awards in 2007.
Actor. He was well known not only in Italian television and cinema, but also to American film viewers as the extortionist Don Fanucci in the 1974 epic film "The Godfather Part II". He graduated from the Accademia Nazionale di Arte Drammatica Silvio D'Amico and then began his career in the 1950s as a theater actor, first with the Stable Theatre in Genoa and then with the Piccolo Teatro di Milano in Milan. In 1956 he made his film debut in "The Rival". Besides "The Godfather Part II", he would go on to appear in many Italian films including "The Birds, the Bees and the Italians" (1966),"The Conformist" (1970), "Caliber 9" (1972), "Don Camillo e i giovani d'oggi" (1972), "My Friends" (1975), "Wifemistress" (1977), "Lion of the Desert" (1980), "All My Friends Part II" (1982), "All My Friends Part III" (1985), "We Free Kings" (1996), and "Porzus" (1997)". He won Silver Ribbons from the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists twice (1967 and 1986) for his work in "The Birds, the Bees and the Italians" and "All My Friends Part III. He also appeared in various television mini-series and series throughout his career with such credits as "Il mulino del Po", "I miserabili", "Rosso veneziano", "Melodramma", "Sei forte, Maestro", and "Don Matteo". He retired from acting in the early 21st century and was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Italian Online Movie Awards in 2007.
Bio by: Mr. Badger Hawkeye
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