20 December

NEW - Life is Beautiful - Oscar-winning movie

Roberto Benigni masterpiece released in Italy

The triple Oscar-winning movie La Vita è Bella, which became better known by its English title Life is Beautiful, made its debut in front of Italian cinema audiences on this day in 1997.  Co-written, directed and starring the Tuscany-born actor Roberto Benigni, the film was released in the United States in October 1998 and in the United Kingdom in February 1999. At the Academy Awards in March 1999, it received nominations in seven categories, winning three of them, including Best Actor for Benigni, who joined Anna Magnani and Sophia Loren as the only Italians to win Oscars in the two leading actor categories.  Life is Beautiful, which played to English-language audiences in the original Italian but with English subtitles, also picked up the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, while composer Nicola Piovani won for Best Original Score.  Read more…

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Francesco Bentivegna – military leader

Patriotic baron executed in what was to become Mafia heartland

Baron Francesco Bentivegna, a Sicilian patriot, died on this day at Mezzojuso in Sicily in 1856.  Bentivegna led revolts against the Bourbon rulers of the island in the mid 19th century and became renowned for his bravery.  He was born in Corleone near Palermo - a modern day Mafia stronghold - and it is believed his parents originally intended him for the church.  But after leading his first revolt against the Bourbons in 1848 in Palermo he was appointed military governor of the Corleone district as a reward.  Within 16 months the Bourbon soldiers had reoccupied Palermo and offered all the rebels an amnesty if they pledged loyalty to their French rulers.  Bentivegna refused and again attempted to launch a coup, which was unsuccessful. Afterwards he had to live as a wanted fugitive, while continuing to try to organise revolutionaries.  Read more…

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Giuliana Sgrena – journalist

War reporter who survived kidnapping in Iraq

The journalist Giuliana Sgrena, a war correspondent for an Italian newspaper who was kidnapped by insurgents while reporting the 2003 invasion of Iraq, was born on this day in 1948 in Masera, a village in Piedmont.  Sgrena, who was covering the conflict for the Rome daily Il Manifesto and the weekly German news magazine Die Welt, was seized outside Baghdad University on February 4, 2005.  During her 28 days in captivity, she was forced to appear in a video pleading that the demands of her abductors – the withdrawal of the 2,400 Italian troops from the multi-national force in Iraq – be met.  Those demands were rejected but the Italian authorities allegedly negotiated a $6 million payment to secure Sgrena’s release.  She was rescued by two Italian intelligence officers on March 4 only then to come under fire from United States forces. Read more…

Aulus Vitellius - Roman emperor

Brief reign marked by gluttony and ineptitude

Aulus Vitellius, the third leader of Rome in the so-called Year of the Four Emperors, who history remembers mainly as a glutton, drunkard and gambler, died on this day in 69AD in Rome.  Captured by supporters of his successor, Vespasian, he was dragged through the streets of the capital to the Scalae Gemoniae - the Gemonian Stairs - a flight of steps leading from the Capitoline Hill to the Forum that acquired a symbolic identity as a place of execution, where he was beaten to death.  Vitellius had been emperor for just eight months, his death bringing to an end a period of civil war and the chaos of three short-lived administrations before Vespasian’s accession restored order. Born in 15AD in Nuceria Alfaterna - now the Campanian town of Nocera Superiore - Vitellius was the son of Lucius Vitellius, a censor in the employ of the emperor Claudius. Read more…

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Gigliola Cinquetti - singer and TV presenter

Eurovision win at 16 launched successful career

Gigliola Cinquetti, who was the first Italian to win the Eurovision Song Contest, was born on this day in 1947 in Verona.  She took the prize in Copenhagen in 1964 with Non ho l'età (I'm Not Old Enough), with music composed by Nicola Salerno and lyrics by Mario Panzeri.  Just 16 years old at the time, she scored an overwhelming victory, gaining 49 points from the judges. The next best song among 16 contenders, which was the United Kingdom entry I Love the Little Things, sung by Matt Monro, polled just 17 points.  Non ho l'età became a big hit, selling more than four million copies and even spending 17 weeks in the UK singles chart, where songs in foreign languages did not traditionally do well. It had already won Italy's prestigious Sanremo Music Festival, which served as the qualifying competition for Eurovision at that time.  Read more…

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San Leonardo da Porto Maurizio

Franciscan monk canonised in 1867

San Leonardo da Porto Maurizio, whose feast day is celebrated on November 27 each year, was born Paolo Gerolamo Casanova on this day in 1676 in Porto Maurizio, which is now part of the port city of Imperia in Liguria.  Leonardo recovered from a serious illness developed soon after he became a priest and devoted the remaining 43 years of his life to preaching retreats and parish missions throughout Italy.  He was one of the main propagators of the Catholic rite of Via Crucis - the Way of the Cross - and established Stations of the Cross - reconstructions in paintings or sculpture of Christ’s journey to the cross - at more than 500 locations. He also set up numerous ritiri - houses of recollection.  Leonardo was a charismatic preacher who found favour with Popes Clement XII and Benedict XIV, who helped him spread his missions. Read more…

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Book of the Day: 50 Oscar Nights: Iconic Stars and Filmmakers on Their Career-Defining Wins, by Dave Karger

For almost a century, movie fans have been riveted by the Academy Awards and the stars who have won Oscars. 50 Oscar Nights takes readers behind the scenes of Hollywood's most storied awards show through new and exclusive interviews with dozens of A-list actors, filmmakers, and craftspeople spanning sixty years of the Oscars. Here these artists reflect on their winning work and how the entire experience impacted their life. Some interviews bring to light fun stories such as why Hilary Swank decided to celebrate her Academy Award at the Astro Burger in West Hollywood, or why Elton John was convinced he won his Best Original Song award for the wrong tune. Other interviews illuminate why for some winners, such as Julia Roberts, John Legend, and Octavia Spencer, the day remains a life highlight to be treasured, while for Marlee Matlin, Mira Sorvino, and Barry Jenkins, complex emotions cloud what most think would be a purely celebratory moment.  Filled with more than 150 photos of red-carpet moments, emotional acceptances, and after-party play, 50 Oscar Nights is both a stunning record of cinema glamour and a must-read for any movie lover.

Dave Karger is an award-winning TV host, interviewer, journalist, and film expert. He is a host on Turner Classic Movies and has been the Oscars expert on NBC’s TODAY since 2000.

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