In Remembrance: Alberto Sordi

     Alberto Sordi, who contributed to making Italian comedy famous in cinemas worldwide, has died of a heart attack in Rome on Monday, February 25th. He was 82.

Born in Rome to a schoolteacher and a musician, Sordi enrolled in Milan's dramatic arts academy but was kicked out because of his thick Roman accent. Ironically, it was his accent that would later prove to be his trademark.

     His movie career began in the late working as a dubber for the Italian versions of Laurel and Hardy shorts, voicing Oliver Hardy. Early roles included Fellini’s The White Sheik in 1952, Fellini's I Vitteloni (1953), a movie about young slackers, in which he plays a weak, effeminate immature loafer and a starring role in Lo Scapolo (The Bachelor) (1955) playing a single man trying to find love.

     In 1959 he appeared in Monicelli's The Great War, considered by many critics and film historians to be one of the best Italian comedies.  The Hollywood Foreign Press recognized his abilities when he was awarded a Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture Actor in a Musical or Comedy for Il Diavolo (1963). Sordi acted alongside Britain’s David Niven in the World War II comedy The Best of Enemies and in 1965 he was in another highly regarded comedy, I Complessi (Complexes). 

     In 1965 he also starred in Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines, which was nominated for a Golden Globe.

     Sordi also succeeded in dramatic roles, most notablely in 1977's Un Borghese Piccolo Piccolo (An Average Little Man) in which he portrays a man whose son is killed in an armed robbery and sets out to extract revenge.

     Sordi was continually involved in film, whether he was acting, directing, producing or writing. But his acting gave him the most reward. Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines is considered by many to be one of his best, but Roma (1972) and I Vitelloni are hailed as well.

     He was no stranger to awards for his hard work, winning 5 David di Donatellos, Italy's most prestigious film award, and 4 awards for his works from the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists. He also received a Golden Lion for lifetime achievement at the Venice Film Festival in 1995. The city of Rome made him honorary major for a day to celebrate his 80th birthday in 1999.

-John Gibbon