''I delitti del cuoco'' (English: ''The Chef's Crimes'') is an Italian

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

television series starring

Bud Spencer Bud Spencer (born Carlo Pedersoli; 31 October 1929 – 27 June 2016) was an Italian actor, professional swimmer and water polo player. He was known for action-comedy and spaghetti Western roles with his long-time film partner and friend Ter ...

, directed by Alessandro Capone, shot in

Ischia Ischia ( , , ) is a volcanic island in the Tyrrhenian Sea. It lies at the northern end of the Gulf of Naples, about from the city of Naples. It is the largest of the Phlegrean Islands. Although inhabited since the Bronze Age, as a Ancient G ...

and freely inspired by the

Nero Wolfe Nero Wolfe is a brilliant, obese and eccentric fictional armchair detective created in 1934 by American mystery (fiction), mystery writer Rex Stout. Wolfe was born in Principality of Montenegro, Montenegro and keeps his past murky. He lives in a ...

character from the eponymous US 1981 TV series (itself adapted from novels and stories by

Rex Stout Rex Todhunter Stout (; December 1, 1886–October 27, 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and ...

). Produced by Spencer's son Giuseppe Pedersoli's Smile Productions company, the series ran for only one season in 2010 on

Canale 5 Canale 5 () is an Italian free-to-air television channel of Mediaset, owned by MFE - MediaForEurope. It was the first private television network to have national coverage in Italy in 1980. On 4 December 2012, Mediaset launched Canale 5 HD, a ...

Plot

Carlo Banci (played by Spencer), anagraphically known as Rosario, is a former

police constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. ''Constable'' is commonly the rank of an police officer, officer within a police ser ...

. Once retired, he decides to open a restaurant. In his new venture, Carlo is partnered with three "acquaintances" of his, who he got jailed in the past: poison murderer Castagna,

forger Forgery is a white-collar crime that generally consists of the false making or material alteration of a legal instrument with the specific intent to defraud. Tampering with a certain legal instrument may be forbidden by law in some jurisdict ...

Margherita and robber Antonio. The grumpy but golden-hearted chef, who never lost his passion for justice and for upholding weak people's rights, collaborates indirectly to investigations of criminal cases led by his policeman adopted son Francesco. Soon, the company's routine is upset by the arrival of Elsie, a young woman who pretends she is a nun but is later revealed as an international thief and Carlo's daughter - born out of a relationship with an old crush of his in Germany, a thief as well. Elsie is forced to interrupt her thieving "activity" as she is controlled by her father; in the meantime, having realized she is a good cook, she becomes

sous-chef A sous-chef is a chef who is second in command of a kitchen, ranking directly below the head chef in the Kitchen Brigade system developed by Auguste Escoffier. In large kitchens, sous-chefs are typically left in charge of managing members of th ...

in the restaurant and falls in love with Francesco, who is already engaged to fellow law enforcer Serenella. However, his romance with Elsie ends up as truer and more deeply felt.

Historical inaccuracy

The third episode in the series includes a deliberate historical inaccuracy. It is stated that Gabriele D'Annunzio was killed by two lovers of his, who pushed him down a third-floor balcony. D'Annunzio actually died of

intracerebral hemorrhage Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), also known as hemorrhagic stroke, is a sudden bleeding into Intraparenchymal hemorrhage, the tissues of the brain (i.e. the parenchyma), into its Intraventricular hemorrhage, ventricles, or into both. An ICH is ...

; however, the incident actually happened, but instead of killing the writer, it resulted in a long agony which he recovered from after several days.

Cast

: Carlo Banci *

Enrico Silvestrin Enrico Silvestrin (born 30 May 1972) is an Italian actor, television and radio presenter and musician. Life and career Born in Rome, after a supporting role in Michele Placido's '' Close Friends'', in 1994 Silvestrin started working as a VJ o ...

: Francesco Fattori * Monica Scattini: Castagna * Monica Dugo: Margherita * Lucia Ragni: Suor Croce * Giovanni Esposito: Antonio * Eleonora Sergio: Serenella * Andrea Ferreol: Gertrude Heine *

Sascha Zacharias Sascha Zacharias (born 23 February 1979 in Stockholm) is a Swedish television and film actress who developed her acting career in Italy. Biography Born in Stockholm on 23 February 1979 to Sven-Bertil Taube, an actor and singer, Ann Zacharias an ...

: Elsie Keller *

Gigi Savoia Gigi Savoia (born 30 November 1954), also known as Luigi Savoia, is an Italian actor. Career Savoia was born in Naples. He debuted in theatre in 1980 with ''Pescatori'', written by Raffaele Viviani and directed by Mariano Rigillo. Currently he r ...

: Michele Apicella *

Sergio Solli Sergio Solli (19 November 1944 – 3 February 2023) was an Italian actor and stage director. Life and career Born in Naples, Solli was originally a hairdresser who acted in small amateur dramatics as a hobby, but his career had a turning point ...

: Gaetano Morabito

References

External links

* Italian television series Canale 5 original programming Television shows set in Campania {{Italy-tv-prog-stub

Plot

Historical inaccuracy

Cast

See also

References

External links