Laura Antonelli (née Antonaz; 28 November 1941 – 22 June 2015) was an Italian film actress who appeared in 45 films between 1964 and 1991.

Early years

Antonelli was born Laura Antonaz in Pola,

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy (, ) was a unitary state that existed from 17 March 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 10 June 1946, when the monarchy wa ...

(in Croatian,

Pula Pula, also known as Pola, is the largest city in Istria County, west Croatia, and the List of cities and towns in Croatia, seventh-largest city in the country, situated at the southern tip of the Istria, Istrian peninsula in western Croatia, wi ...

), former capital of

Istria Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; ; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian: ; ; ) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. Located at th ...

. After the war, her parents fled what was then

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

, lived in Italian refugee camps and eventually settled in Naples, where her father found work as a hospital administrator. Antonelli had a childhood interest in mathematics, but as a teenager, she became proficient at gymnastics. In an interview for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', she recalled, "My parents had made me take hours of gym classes during my teens ... They felt I was ugly, clumsy, insignificant and they hoped I would at least develop some grace. I became very good, especially in rhythmical gym, which is a kind of dance." Setting aside ambitions to make a career in mathematics, she graduated as a gymnastics instructor. She moved to Rome, where she became a secondary-school gym teacher and was able to meet people in the entertainment industry, who helped her find modelling jobs.

Career

Antonelli's earliest engagements included Italian advertisements for

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a cola soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings ...

. In 1965, she made her first feature-film appearance in '' Le sedicenni'', although her performance went uncredited. Her American debut came in 1966 in '' Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs''. Other roles followed; her breakthrough came in 1973's '' Malizia''. She appeared in a number of sex farces such as '' Till Marriage Do Us Part'' (1974). She worked in more serious films, as well, including

Luchino Visconti Luchino Visconti di Modrone, Count of Lonate Pozzolo (; 2 November 1906 – 17 March 1976) was an Italian filmmaker, theatre and opera director, and screenwriter. He was one of the fathers of Italian neorealism, cinematic neorealism, but later ...

's last film, '' The Innocent'' (1976). In '' Wifemistress'', a

romance film Romance films involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion (emotion), passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their ...

of 1977, she played a repressed wife experiencing a sexual awakening. Later, she appeared in ''

Passione d'Amore ''Passion of Love'' () is a 1981 Italian drama film directed by Ettore Scola and was adapted from the 1869 novel ''Fosca (novel), Fosca'' by Iginio Ugo Tarchetti. The film was entered into the 1981 Cannes Film Festival and served as the inspirat ...

'' (1981). From 1986 she mostly worked on Italian television series. Antonelli's final film role was in the sequel ''Malizia 2000'' (1991), following which she retired. She won the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists Award,

Nastro d'Argento The (plural: ''Nastri d'Argento''; English: Silver Ribbon) is an Italian film award, held since 1946 by the ''Sindacato Nazionale Giornalisti Cinematografici Italiani'' (Italian National Union of Film Journalists). Awards are given annually in ...

, in 1974 for ''Malizia''.

Personal life

Antonelli was married to publisher Enrico Piacentini but they divorced. From 1972 to 1980, she was the companion of actor

Jean-Paul Belmondo Jean-Paul Charles Belmondo (; 9 April 19336 September 2021) was a French actor. Initially associated with the New Wave of the 1960s, he was a major French film star for several decades from the 1960s onward, frequently portraying police officer ...

. On 27 April 1991,

cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

was found during a police raid on Antonelli's home. She was subsequently convicted of possession and dealing and sentenced to house arrest. She spent ten years appealing the conviction, which was eventually overturned. In 2006, the Italian court of appeals ruled in favour of Antonelli and ordered the Ministry of Justice to pay the actress 108,000 euros. Antonelli died in Ladispoli on 22 June 2015, aged 73, from a heart attack.

Filmography

TV appearances

* ' (1988) (

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

) as Lisa * ''Disperatamente Giulia'' (1989) (miniseries) as Carmen Milkovich

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Antonelli, Laura 1941 births 2015 deaths 20th-century Italian actresses Istrian Italian people Italian film actresses Italian television actresses Nastro d'Argento winners People from Pula