Sophia Loren

Loren was portrayed by Sonia Aquino in the 2004 biopic The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, as well as by Silvia Vrij in a 1980 film entitled Dirty Picture. Adapted from the article Maria Montez (http://www.wikinfo.org/wiki.phtml?title=Maria_Montez), from Wikinfo, licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.. In her 60s, Loren was selective in her films, but made a well-received appearance in the 1994 comedy Grumpier Old Men and in 2004 had a major role in the mini-series, Lives of the Saints. Her legacy as the only great star from that country remains, and in 1996 the Maria Montez International Airport opened in Barahona. In 1991, Loren received an honorary Academy Award for her contributions to cinema. Much loved by the people of the impoverished Dominican Republic, in her birthplace of Barahona the city changed the name of an existing street to that bearing her name. In 1980 she had the rare distinction of portraying herself (as well as her own mother) in a made-for-television biopic, Sophia Loren: Her Own Story (Ritza Brown and Chiara Ferrari played younger versions of the actress). She was buried in the Cimetière du Montparnasse in Paris where her tombstone reads her theatrical year of birth 1918-1951.

In 1982, she made headlines when she served an 18-day prison sentence in Italy on tax evasion charges but this didn't slow down her career. The 39-year-old Montez died after apparently suffering a heart attack and drowning in her bath. Loren moved into her 40s and 50s gracefully and continued to be considered both a fine dramatic actress and a sex symbol for years, with acclaimed roles in films such as The Cassandra Crossing and Robert Altman's Ready to Wear. She also wrote 3 books, two of which were published, as well as penning a number of poems. That same year, Loren gave an acclaimed performance in Italy's Two Women, which earned her the distinction of being the first actor to win a major category Academy Award (in her case, Best Actress) for a non-English language performance. There, Maria Montez appeared in several films and a play written by her husband. To promote the film, Loren and Sellers recorded a best-selling album of comedic songs. At War's end, the couple had a daughter, Maria Christina, born in Hollywood in 1946 following which they moved to a home in Suresnes, Île-de-France in the eastern suburb of Paris, France.

One of her best-known films of this period was The Millionairess (1960) which became the subject of much speculation due to the fact her co-star, Peter Sellers, became infatuated with the actress and later claimed to have had an affair with her (a fact she denies). While working in Hollywood, she met and married French actor Jean-Pierre Aumont (1911-2001) who had to leave a few days after their wedding to serve in the Free French Forces fighting the Nazis in Europe. By the 1960s, Loren was one of the most popular actresses in the world, and continued to make popular films in both America and in Europe. Over her career, Maria Montez appeared in 26 films, 21 of which were made in North America and five in Europe. Some of her earliest American films included Desire Under the Elms (based upon the Eugene O'Neill play), Houseboat (a romantic comedy starring Cary Grant), and The Black Orchid (a romantic drama co-starring Anthony Quinn). Dubbed the "The Queen of Technicolor," she made her film debut in 1940 opposite Johnny Mack Brown, marking a career that saw her much loved by audiences, usually in adventure films as the beautiful damsel in distress. In short order, however, Loren demonstrated considerable skill as a dramatic and comedic actress, which gained her respect as being more than just a sex symbol. Her screen image was crafted as that of a hot-blooded Latin seductress, playing characters dressed in exotic costumes and sparking jewels.

Although she had appeared in a bit part in the Hollywood blockbuster Quo Vadis in 1951, it was not until 1957's Boy on a Dolphin that Loren became a major international film star, due in part to the iconic image of her wearing a water-soaked, body-clinging dress. Eventually she accepted an offer from a Hollywood film studio. This film, like many of her other early roles, emphasized her voluptuous physique; she even appeared topless in a few films (which was considered acceptable in European cinema at the time, though said scenes were usually cut out when the films were distributed in the United Kingdom or in North America). Determined to become a stage actress, she hired an agent and created a résumé that made her several years younger by listing her birth as 1917 in some instances and 1918 in others. Two Nights with Cleopatra). Her marriage lasted several years but in 1939 she ended up in New York City where her exotic looks landed her a job as a model. One of her first major roles was as the titular character of the 1953 Italian film Due notti con Cleopatra (a.k.a. At a young age, she taught herself to speak English, and in 1932 she married William McFeeters, an American banker working in her seaside home town of Barahona.

She was "discovered" by her future husband Carlo Ponti, who produced many of her films. The second daughter of 10 children, she was given the name Maria Africa in honor of her diplomat/businessman father's native land, the Spanish Isla de la Palma, on the African continent. She grew up there in poverty but found her way into small parts in European films in the early 1950s, often billed as Sofia Lazzaro. Maria Montez was the stage name for Maria Africa Gracia Vidal (June 6, 1912, Barahona, Dominican Republic - September 7, 1951, Paris, France). She was born Sofia Villani Scicolone in Pozzuoli, Italy, the illegitimate daughter of Romilda Villani and Riccardo Scicolone. La Vendetta del corsaro (1951). Sophia Loren (born September 20, 1934) is one of the most famous Italian actresses of all time, and even at the age of 70 continues to be considered one of the most desirable women on the planet. Amore e sangue (1951).

"If you haven't cried, your eyes can't be beautiful.". Il Ladro di Venezia (1950). "The two big advantages I had at birth were to have been born wise and to have been born in poverty.". Portrait d'un assassin (1949). "It's a mistake to think that once you're done with school you need never learn anything new.". Hans le marin (1948). That is why some people with mediocre talent, but with great inner drive, go much further than people with vastly superior talent.". Siren of Atlantis (1948).

"Getting ahead in a difficult profession requires avid faith in yourself. Pirates of Monterey (1947). "Everything you see I owe to spaghetti.". The Exile (1947). "A woman's dress should be like a barbed-wire fence: serving its purpose without obstructing the view.". Tangier (1946). When asked why she stopped doing nude scenes: "When Sophia Loren is naked, that is a lot of nakedness.". Sudan (1945).

"Sex appeal is 50% what you've got and 50% what people think you've got.". Bowery to Broadway (1944). "Mistakes are a part of the dues one pays for a full life.". Gypsy Wildcat (1944). Other notable film roles were: Jimena (Charlton Heston's love interest) in El Cid; Lucilla in The Fall of the Roman Empire with Alec Guinness; and Aldonza/Dulcinea in Man of La Mancha with Peter O'Toole. Cobra Woman (1944). Her childhood nickname: "Toothpick". Follow the Boys (1944).

Often appeared with Marcello Mastroianni. Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves (1944). Received an Oscar for Best Actress for the 1960 film Two Women.. White Savage (1943). Arabian Nights (1942). The Mystery of Marie Roget (1942).

Bombay Clipper (1942). South of Tahiti (1941). Moonlight in Hawaii (1941). Raiders of the Desert (1941).

That Night in Rio (1941). Lucky Devils (1941). The Invisible Woman (1940). Boss of Bullion City (1940).