Luigi Pistilli (19 July 192921 April 1996) was an Italian actor of stage, screen, and television. At one time Pistilli was one of Italy's most respected actors of stage, screen, and television. In theater, he was considered one of the country's finest interpreters of

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known as Bertolt Brecht and Bert Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...

's plays in ''

The Threepenny Opera ''The Threepenny Opera'' ( ) is a 1928 German "play with music" by Bertolt Brecht, adapted from a translation by Elisabeth Hauptmann of John Gay's 18th-century English ballad opera, '' The Beggar's Opera'', and four ballads by François V ...

'' and ''

St Joan of the Stockyards ''Saint Joan of the Stockyards'' () is a play written by the German modernist playwright Bertolt Brecht between 1929 and 1931, after the success of his musical ''The Threepenny Opera'' and during the period of his radical experimental work with th ...

''. He is known to Italian horror movie buffs mainly for his three 1972 thrillers ''Twitch of the Death Nerve'', ''Iguana with the Tongue of Fire'' and ''Your Vice is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key''. Pistilli committed suicide in 1996 at age 66.

Biography

Pistilli was born in

Grosseto Grosseto () is a city and a ''comune'' in the central Italian region of Tuscany, the capital of the province of Grosseto and the main city of the Maremma region. The city lies from the Tyrrhenian Sea, at the centre of an alluvial plain on the ...

, and studied acting at Milan's Piccolo Teatro, graduating in 1955. Although he went into acting in films, he never completely severed his ties with the theater and often returned to appear in plays directed by

Giorgio Strehler Giorgio Strehler (; ; 14 August 1921 – 25 December 1997) was an Italian stage director, theatre practitioner, actor, and politician. Strehler was one of the most significant figures in Italian theatre during his lifetime, described by Mel Gu ...

. He appeared in many

Spaghetti Western The spaghetti Western is a broad subgenre of Western films produced in Europe. It emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's filmmaking style and international box-office success. The term was used by foreign critics because most o ...

s such as ''

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly ''The Good, the Bad and the Ugly'' (, literally "''The good, the ugly, the bad''") is a 1966 Italian epic spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone and starring Clint Eastwood as "the Good", Lee Van Cleef as "the Bad", and Eli Wallach a ...

'' (1966) (as the priest Pablo Ramírez, brother of

Eli Wallach Eli Herschel Wallach ( ; December 7, 1915 – June 24, 2014) was an American film, television, and stage actor from New York City. Known for his character actor roles, his entertainment career spanned over six decades. He received a British Aca ...

's character Tuco) and in ''

For a Few Dollars More ''For a Few Dollars More'' () is a 1965 Spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone. It stars Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef as bounty hunters and Gian Maria Volonté as the primary villain. Klaus Kinski plays a supporting role as a se ...

'' (1965) as the cunning second-in-command Groggy (his first credited film role). He played the murderous Albert in the

Mario Bava Mario Bava (; 31 July 1914 – 27 April 1980) was an Italian filmmaker who worked variously as a director, cinematographer, special effects artist and screenwriter. His low-budget genre films, known for their distinctive visual flair and stylish ...

giallo In Italian cinema, (; : ; from , ) is a genre that often contains Slasher film, slasher, thriller (genre), thriller, psychological horror, psychological thriller, Sexploitation film, sexploitation, and, less frequently, supernatural, supernat ...

'' Twitch of the Death Nerve'' (''A Bay of Blood'') in 1971. He had a regular role on the popular Italian television

Mafia "Mafia", as an informal or general term, is often used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the Sicilian Mafia, original Mafia in Sicily, to the Italian-American Mafia, or to other Organized crime in Italy, organiz ...

drama '' La piovra'' (''The Octopus''). He also appeared as the main villain in ''

Death Rides a Horse ''Death Rides a Horse'' () is a 1967 Italian spaghetti Western directed by Giulio Petroni, written by Luciano Vincenzoni and starring Lee Van Cleef and John Phillip Law. Plot Bill, a boy whose father was killed and mother and sister were gang-r ...

'' (1967). After a role in the 1970

Charles Bronson Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky; November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003) was an American actor. He was known for his roles in action films and his "granite features and brawny physique". Bronson was born into extreme poverty in ...

thriller ''

Cold Sweat "Cold Sweat" is a song performed by James Brown and written with his bandleader Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis. Brown recorded it in May 1967. An edited version of "Cold Sweat" released as a two-part single on King Records was a No. 1 R&B hit, and rea ...

'', in 1972 he appeared in two

films ''Iguana With the Tongue of Fire'' and ''

Your Vice Is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key ''Your Vice Is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key'' () is a 1972 Italian '' giallo'' film directed by Sergio Martino and starring Edwige Fenech, Luigi Pistilli, and Anita Strindberg. The film revolves around a depraved writer and his mistr ...

'' (playing an alcoholic), and appeared as an exorcising priest in the 1974 cult horror film ''The Eerie Midnight Horror Show'' (aka ''The Sexorcist'').

Death

Pistilli committed suicide in his home in Milan just before he was scheduled to appear in the final performance of

Terence Rattigan Sir Terence Mervyn Rattigan (10 June 191130 November 1977) was a British dramatist and screenwriter. He was one of England's most popular mid-20th-century dramatists. His plays are typically set in an upper-middle-class background.Geoffrey Wan ...

's ''

Tosca ''Tosca'' is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1 ...

'' on 21 April 1996. The program was panned by critics and audiences, and that might have contributed to Pistilli's state of mind. However, according to his suicide note, Pistilli had suffered deep despair after making bitter public comments regarding the recent end of a four-year off-stage relationship with singer/actress

Milva Maria Ilva Biolcati, (; 17 July 1939 – 23 April 2021), known as Milva (), was an Italian singer, stage and film actress, and television personality. She was also known as ''La Rossa'' (Italian for "The Redhead"), due to the characteristic co ...

. In his note he apologized to her for the spiteful statements released in the published interview.

Selected filmography

*''Walter e i suoi cugini'' (1961) – Man discussing with Tavolini (uncredited) *''

'' (1965) – Groggy (Indio's Gang) *''One Hundred Thousand Dollars for Lassiter'' (1966) – Danny *''

Texas, Adios ''Texas, Adios'' (Italian: ''Texas, addio'') is a 1966 Italian-Spanish Spaghetti Western film cowritten and directed by Ferdinando Baldi and starring Franco Nero. It is often referenced in connection with '' Django'', also starring Nero, and alth ...

'' (1966) – Hernandez *''

'' (1966) – Father Pablo Ramírez *''

We Still Kill the Old Way We Still Kill the Old Way may refer to: * We Still Kill the Old Way (1967 film), an Italian crime film * We Still Kill the Old Way (2014 film), a British crime drama film * "We Still Kill the Old Way, a song by Lostprophets from '' Start Somethin ...

'' (1967) – Arturo Manno *''

'' (1967) – Walcott *''La lunga sfida'' (1967) – Paynes *'' The Sweet Body of Deborah'' (1968) – Philip (starring Carroll Baker) *''

Bandits in Rome ''Bandits in Rome'' () is a 1968 Italian crime film directed by Alberto De Martino. It stars John Cassavetes. Cast * John Cassavetes as Mario Corda * Gabriele Ferzetti as Commissioner * Anita Sanders as Lea Corda * Nikos Kourkoulos as Enrico * R ...

'' (1969) – Colangeli *'' The Great Silence'' (1968) – Henry Pollicut *'' The Libertine'' (1968) – Otto Frank, aka Mr. X *'' The Protagonists'' (1968) – Tassoni *''

The Bandit A bandit is a person who engages in banditry. Bandit, The Bandit or Bandits may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * '' A Bandit'', a 1913 short film starring Fatty Arbuckle * ''The Bandit'' (1946 film), an Italian drama ...

'' (1969) *''

The Lady of Monza ''The Lady of Monza'' (, also known as ''The Awful Story of the Nun of Monza'' and ''The Nun of Monza'') is a 1969 Italian historical drama film directed by Eriprando Visconti. It is loosely based on the real life events of Marianna de Leyva, bette ...

'' (1969) – Count Fuentes *''

Machine Gun McCain ''Machine Gun McCain'' () is a 1969 English-language Italian crime film directed by Giuliano Montaldo and starring John Cassavetes, Britt Ekland, Peter Falk, Gabriele Ferzetti, and Florinda Bolkan. Cassavetes' spouse and regular collaborator Gen ...

'' (1969) – Duke Mazzanga *'' Eagles Over London'' (1969) – Major Krueger *''

Night of the Serpent ''Night of the Serpent'' (), also known as ''Nest of Vipers'', is a 1969 Italian spaghetti Western film co-written and directed by Giulio Petroni and starring Luke Askew, Luigi Pistilli, Magda Konopka, Giancarlo Badessi and Chelo Alonso. Synopsi ...

'' (1969) – Lieutenant 'The Snake' Hernandez *'' Dead of Summer'' (1970) – Doctor Volterra *''

'' (1970) – Fausto Gelardi (starring Charles Bronson) *''Veruschka – poesia di una donna'' (1971) – Luigi the manager *'' Twitch of the Death Nerve'' (1971) aka ''A Bay of Blood'' – Albert *''

The Case of the Scorpion's Tail ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

'' (1971) – Inspector Stavros *'' The Iguana with the Tongue of Fire'' (1971) – Detective John Norton *''

Caliber 9 ''Caliber 9'' (; also released as ''The Contract'') is a 1972 Italian poliziottesco film written and directed by Fernando Di Leo and starring Gastone Moschin, Mario Adorf, Barbara Bouchet, Philippe Leroy, Frank Wolff, Luigi Pistilli, and Lionel S ...

'' (1972) – Mercuri *''

'' (1972) – Oliviero *''

A White Dress for Marialé ''Spirits of Death'' (/ translation: ''A White Dress for Mariale'') is a 1972 Italian film directed by Romano Scavolini and starring Ida Galli, Ivan Rassimov and Luigi Pistilli. The film was also released as ''Exorcisme Tragique'' (''Tragic Exorcis ...

'' (1972) – Paolo *''

Tragic Ceremony ''Tragic Ceremony'' ( - ''lit. Extracted from the Secret Police Archives of a European Capital'', ) is a 1972 horror film directed by Riccardo Freda (credited as Robert Hampton) and starring Camille Keaton, Tony Isbert, Máximo Valverde and Irina ...

at Villa Alexander'' (1972) – Lord Alexander *''Il gatto di Brooklyn aspirante detective'' (1973) – Tony Mangialafoglia *'' The Black Hand (The Birth of the Mafia)'' (1973) – Don Nunzio Pantaleo *'' Number One'' (1973) – Carabinieri commander *''One Way'' (1973) – Javier *''

Silence the Witness ''Silence the Witness'' () is a 1974 Italian poliziottesco film written and directed by Giuseppe Rosati. Cast * Bekim Fehmiu: Dr. Giorgio Sironi * Rosanna Schiaffino: Luisa Sironi * Aldo Giuffrè: Inspector Santi * Guido Leontini: Mancuso * ...

'' (1974) – Inspector De Luca *'' The Eerie Midnight Horror Show'' (1974) aka ''The Sexorcist'' – Father Xeno * '' The Suspects'' (1974) – Marcello Angiotti *'' The Killers Are Our Guests'' (1974) – Commissario Di Stefano *''

Cagliostro Giuseppe Balsamo (; 2 June 1743 – 26 August 1795), known by the alias Count Alessandro di Cagliostro ( , ), was an Italian occultist and confidence trickster. Cagliostro was an Italian adventurer and self-styled magician. He became a gl ...

'' (1975) – Cardinal de Rohan *''Due Magnum .38 per una città di carogne'' (1975) – Commissario Perri *'' Sins Without Intentions'' (1975) – Stefania's Stepfather *' (1976) – Commissario *''La principessa nuda'' (1976) – Marco *''

Illustrious Corpses ''Illustrious Corpses'' (, ) is a 1976 Italian-French thriller film directed by Francesco Rosi and starring Lino Ventura, based on the novel '' Equal Danger'' by Leonardo Sciascia (1971). In 2008, the film was included in the Italian Ministr ...

'' (1976) – Cusan *''

Confessions of a Frustrated Housewife ''Confessions of a Frustrated Housewife'' () is a 1976 Italian drama film directed by Andrea Bianchi and starring Carroll Baker. Cast * Carroll Baker as Laura * Adolfo Celi as Antonio Lenzini * Cesare Barro as Claudio * Luigi Pistilli as Carlo * ...

'' (1976) – Doctor Carlo *'' Antonio Gramsci: The Days of Prison'' (1977) – Gennaro Gramsci *''

Mamma Ebe ''Mamma Ebe'' (''Mother Ebe'') is a 1985 drama film, courtroom drama film directed by Carlo Lizzani. It was entered into the main competition at the 42nd Venice International Film Festival, in which Barbara De Rossi won the Pasinetti Award for best ...

'' (1985) – Roberto Lavagnino *''Una casa in bilico'' (1986) *''Mal d'Africa'' (1990) *''L'amante senza volto'' (1993) – Athos Magnani

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pistilli, Luigi 1929 births 1996 deaths 1996 suicides 20th-century Italian male actors Italian male film actors Italian male stage actors Italian male television actors Male Spaghetti Western actors People from Grosseto Male actors from Tuscany Suicides by hanging in Italy