Erminio Spalla (7 July 1897 – 14 August 1971) was an Italian professional heavyweight boxer,
film actor
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), lit ...
and singer.
Spalla studied fine arts in Brera, when in 1910 he saw film footage of the world boxing championships and decided to become a professional boxer.
He was the first Italian to win a European boxing title, which he did in 1923. He lost it in 1926 to
Paulino Uzcudun
Paulino Uzcudun Eizmendi (3 May 1899 – 5 July 1985) was a Spanish heavyweight boxer, who is considered to be the greatest heavyweight from Spain. Uzkudun is the Basque spelling of his last name. He was the youngest of nine siblings. In his ...
and retired from boxing the next year, though he briefly returned to the ring in 1934 and won all three of his final bouts. He returned to art after retiring from the ring.
In October 1937 he debuted as an opera singer in ''Nel Trovatore'' in
Turin
Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. Th ...
. In the same year he also worked in sculpture and painting.
In 1939 he acted in his first film, ''Io, suo padre'' by
Mario Bonnard
Mario Bonnard (24 December 1889 – 22 March 1965) was an Italian actor and film director.
Bonnard was born and died in Rome. He began his cinematic career as an actor becoming a popular romantic lead in numerous silent films made before World ...
. This was followed by over fifty films and television series, including the war film '' Giarabub'' (1942). His last film was ''I fratelli Karamazov'' by Sandro Bolchi (1969).
His elder brother Giuseppe was also a boxer.
Selected filmography
* ''Il match dei 100.000 dollari'' (1921)
* '' I, His Father'' (1939) - Romolo Tonelli
* '' The Silent Partner'' (1939) - Il colonello
* ''Il signore della taverna'' (1940)
* ''Il ponte dei sospiri'' (1940) - Scalabrino
* ''La compagnia della teppa'' (1941) - L'oste Bartolomeo Borghi
* ''
The Hero of Venice
''The Hero of Venice'' (Italian: ''Il bravo di Venezia'') is a 1941 Italian historical adventure film directed by Carlo Campogalliani and starring Gustav Diessl, Paola Barbara, Rossano Brazzi and Valentina Cortese.Damiani p.256-257
It was shot ...
'' (1941) - Franco
* ''Capitan Tempesta'' (1942) - El Kadur
* ''The Lion of Damascus'' (1942) - El Kadur
* ''Arriviamo noi!'' (1942) - Il terzo gestorio del "castello delle streghe"
* '' Giarabub'' (1942) - Il meccanico "Mago Bakù" Brambilla
* ''I due Foscari'' (1942) - Oliviero
* ''
Il fanciullo del West
''Il fanciullo del West'' ( ''The Boy of the West'' ) is a 1943 Italian comedy film directed by Giorgio Ferroni and starring Erminio Macario. It is named after Puccini's opera ''La fanciulla del West'' (''The Girl of the West'' ) and is consider ...
The Champion
A champion is a first-place winner in a competition, along with other definitions discussed in the article.
Champion or Champions may also refer to:
Brands and enterprises
* Champion (sportswear), a clothing manufacturer
* Champion (spark p ...
'' (1943) - Mario Martini
* ''
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Harl ...
'' (1943) - Franckie Battaglia, l'allenatore
* '' Romulus and the Sabines'' (1945) - Giovanni, il carrettiere
* ''Senza famiglia'' (1946) - Vitali
* ''Ogni giorno è domenica'' (1946) - Stefano
* ''
The Devil's Gondola
''The Devil's Gondola'' (Italian: ''La gondola del diavolo'') is a 1946 Italian historical drama-crime film directed by Carlo Campogalliani and starring Loredana, Carlo Lombardi, and Erminio Spalla.Klossner p.103
Made by Scalera Films, it was ...
'' (1946) - Marco, il gondoliere
* '' The Tyrant of Padua'' (1946) - Un evaso
* ''Sangue a Ca' Foscari'' (1946)
* ''
The Opium Den
''The Opium Den'' (Italian: ''Fumeria d'oppio'') is a 1947 Italian crime film directed by Raffaello Matarazzo and starring Emilio Ghione Jr., Mariella Lotti, and Emilio Cigoli. It was an unsuccessful attempt to revive the Za La Mort character, ...
Cab Number 13
''Cab Number 13'' ( it, Il fiacre n. 13) is a 1948 Italian crime- melodrama film directed by Mario Mattoli and starring Vera Carmi.
Cast
* Vera Carmi - Jeanne Herblet (segments "Delitto" & "Castigo")
* Ginette Leclerc - Claudia (segments "D ...
'' (1948) - Le marin
* ''Fabíola'' (1949)
* '' The Pirates of Capri'' (1949)
* '' Flying Squadron'' (1949)
* ''Santo disonore'' (1950) - Oreste
* ''
Deported
Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people from a place or country. The term ''expulsion'' is often used as a synonym for deportation, though expulsion is more often used in the context of international law, while deportation ...
Miracle in Milan
''Miracle in Milan'' ( it, Miracolo a Milano) is a 1951 Italian fantasy film directed by Vittorio De Sica. The screenplay was co-written by Cesare Zavattini, based on his novel ''Totò il Buono.'' The picture stars Francesco Golisano, Emma Gra ...
'' (1951) - Gaetano
* ''O Comprador de Fazendas'' (1951)
* '' A Flea on the Scales'' (1953)
* ''A Família Lero-Lero'' (1953)
* ''
Lights Out
Lights Out may refer to:
Events and times
* Institutional, and thence colloquial, term for bedtime
*Lights Out (event), an event in the UK on 4 August 2014 to commemorate the start of World War I
* Lights Out Hong Kong, a campaign to protest air ...
'' (1953)
* ''Chéri-Bibi'' (1955) - Il rosso
* ''
The Red Cloak
''The Red Cloak'' (Italian: ''Il mantello rosso'') is a 1955 French-Italian historical adventure film directed by Giuseppe Maria Scotese and starring Patricia Medina, Fausto Tozzi and Jean Murat.Italian Sword and Sandal Films, 1908–1990 p.134 ...
Poveri ma belli
''Poveri ma belli'' (U.S. title: ''Poor, But Handsome''; U.K. title: ''A Girl in Bikini'') is a successful 1957 Italian comedy film directed by Dino Risi.
There have been two sequels, also directed by Risi and starring Marisa Allasio, Maurizio A ...
'' (1957) - Amico del padre di Giovanna
* ''Addio sogni di gloria'' (1957)
* '' Song of Naples'' (1957) - Docker
* ''Solo Dio mi fermerà'' (1957)
* '' Il Conte di Matera'' (1958) - Amico di Golia
* '' Angel in a Taxi'' (1958) - Un saltimbanco
* ''
The Naked Maja
''The Naked Maja'' is a 1958 Italian-American co-production made by S.G.C., Titanus, and United Artists. This historical film recounting of the romance between the painter Francisco Goya and the Duchess of Alba was directed by Henry Koster, an ...
The Prisoner of the Iron Mask
''The Prisoner of the Iron Mask'' ( it, La vendetta della maschera di ferro, french: La vengeance du masque de fer) is a 1962 Italian-French swashbuckler film. It was directed by Francesco De Feo.The Fury of Achilles'' (1962) - Nestor
* ''Taur, il re della forza bruta'' (1963) - Re di Shrupuk
* '' The Sailor from Gibraltar'' (1967) - Eolo