Roberto Benigni
Italian actor and director who won an Oscar for a non-English role.
via Wikipedia: Giorgio Cantarini · see source
Roberto Remigio Benigni is an Italian actor, comedian, screenwriter, and film director who achieved international fame for writing, directing, and starring in the Holocaust comedy-drama *Life Is Beautiful* (1997). For this role, he won the Academy Awards for Best Actor and Best International Feature Film, making him the only performer to win the Best Actor Oscar for a non-English language performance. Born in Tuscany in 1952 to a fabric maker and a bricklayer, he was raised Catholic and served as an altar boy, though he later became an atheist before returning to religious themes. His theatrical career began in 1971 in Prato, and he later studied clowning under Philippe Gaulier. He gained notoriety in Italy in the 1970s for the television series *Onda Libera*, where a scatological satirical song caused a scandal and led to censorship. His film debut was in 1977’s *Berlinguer, I Love You*, which he also wrote. Benigni’s directorial debut was the 1983 anthology *Tu mi turbi*, which also marked the acting debut of his wife, Nicoletta Braschi, whom he married in 1991. He continued directing and starring in comedies such as *Nothing Left to Do But Cry* (1984), *The Little Devil* (1988), *Johnny Stecchino* (1991), and *The Monster* (1994). He also acted in Jim Jarmusch’s *Down by Law* (1986), *Night on Earth* (1991), and *Coffee and Cigarettes* (2003), as well as Federico Fellini’s *The Voice of the Moon* (1990), Blake Edwards’ *Son of the Pink Panther* (1993), Woody Allen’s *To Rome with Love* (2012), and Matteo Garrone’s *Pinocchio* (2019) as Geppetto.
- field
- Actor, comedian, screenwriter, film director
- nationality
- Italian
Lore & Background
Roberto Benigni is a tall, energetic performer with a distinctive physical comedy style and a rapid-fire, often irreverent verbal wit. He was born in the Tuscan frazione of Manciano La Misericordia to a fabric maker and a bricklayer-carpenter-farmer. Raised Catholic, he served as an altar boy before later becoming an atheist, though he eventually returned to religious themes in his work. His theatrical training began in Prato in 1971, followed by a move to Rome for experimental theatre, and he studied clowning under Philippe Gaulier. He first achieved major Italian fame in the 1970s through television, notably for a satirical scatological song that caused a censorship scandal, and later for a sketch as a lazy film critic. His film debut came in 1977, and he made his directorial debut in 1983. Benigni is known for collaborations with his wife, Nicoletta Braschi, who appears in most of his directed films. Internationally, he is recognized for roles in three Jim Jarmusch films, including an innocent foreigner in *Down by Law* and a confessional Roman cabbie in *Night on Earth*, as well as a rare serious part in Federico Fellini’s final film. His defining achievement is writing, directing, and starring in the Holocaust comedy-drama *Life Is Beautiful*, for which he became the only actor to win the Academy Award for Best Actor for a non-English-language performance.
Reader's Guide
It was nominated for seven Academy Awards and won three, including Best Actor for Benigni, the first for a male performer in a non-English-speaking role. The film was attacked by some critics who accused it of presenting the Holocaust without much suffering, while others praised Benigni's artistic daring. Benigni's giddy behavior at the Oscars, including climbing over seats, became widely noted. His legacy includes being the only actor to win an Academy Award for Best Actor for a non-English language performance.
Did You Know?
- Benigni is the first and only Academy Award winner for Best Actor for a non-English language performance.
- He studied clown under Philippe Gaulier at École Philippe Gaulier.
- His wife, Nicoletta Braschi, made her acting debut in his directorial debut Tu mi turbi (1983).
- Benigni's father spent three years in a concentration camp in Bergen-Belsen, which partly inspired Life Is Beautiful.
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