Scilla Gabel (born Gianfranca Gabellini; 4 January 1938) is an Italian film, television and stage actress. She appeared in 50 films between 1954 and 1982.

Career

Born in

Rimini Rimini ( , ; rgn, Rémin; la, Ariminum) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It sprawls along the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient ''Arimin ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, one of five children, Gabel entered the cinema industry as

Sophia Loren Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress. She was named by the American Film Institute as one of the greatest female stars of Classical Hollywood ci ...

's body double. Between 1957 and 1967 she appeared, often as the female lead actress, in dozens of films, but failed to emerge because of the stereotyped roles. Starting from late sixties she focused her activity on stage and television, in which she found most significant roles and critical appreciation.

Personal life

Gabel married Piero Schivazappa in 1968; they had one child.

Father's murder

On May 8th, 1999 Gabel's 87 year-old father Giuseppe Gabellini was murdered. He was landlord to a number of tenants at his villa on the

via Campi di Torre Flavia Via or VIA may refer to the following: Science and technology * MOS Technology 6522, Versatile Interface Adapter * ''Via'' (moth), a genus of moths in the family Noctuidae * Via (electronics), a through-connection * VIA Technologies, a Tai ...

two blocks from Ladispoli's beach, about 35 km west of

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. One tenant, 65 year old Elisa Santilli owed Gabellini Lit. 900,000 ($785 in 2022) for several months rent, which she refused to pay. Santilli had also refused a Lit. 3,000,000 ($2,820 in 2022) buyout from Gabellini to leave the apartment voluntarily. At 10:15 on the morning of Friday, May 8th Gabellini returned to via Campi di Torre Flavi to reason with Santilli one last time before informing her that he had scheduled her

eviction Eviction is the removal of a tenant from rental property by the landlord. In some jurisdictions it may also involve the removal of persons from premises that were foreclosed by a mortgagee (often, the prior owners who defaulted on a mortg ...

by carabiniere for May 25th. After a brief argument at the threshold, during which she accepted the buyout, Santilli returned to her kitchen where she retrieved a large kitchen knife. She sprang at the elderly man and stabbed him in the chest without a word. After Gabellini fell to the floor of the corridor she pounced on his stricken body. There she stabbed him fourteen more times, stopping only after she broke off the tip of her knife in one of her landlord's

vertebrae The spinal column, a defining synapomorphy shared by nearly all vertebrates, Hagfish are believed to have secondarily lost their spinal column is a moderately flexible series of vertebrae (singular vertebra), each constituting a characteristi ...

. She then stood back, apparently to watch Gabellini die. Gabel's father passed away at the scene in his daughter's arms. Santilli moved out of the apartment one week later, after being placed on house arrest awaiting trial. She moved 70 km northwest, to Pescia Romana.

Partial filmography

* ''Tua per la vita'' (1955) - La sartina dell' Atelier * ''Due sosia in allegria'' (1956) * ''Gente felice'' (1957) - Gina * '' Girls of the Night'' (1958) - Lola * '' Legs of Gold'' (1958) - Gianna * '' The White Warrior'' (1959) - Princess Maria Vorontsova * '' Tarzan's Greatest Adventure'' (1959) - Toni * ''Les canailles'' (1960) - Gina * ''Genitori in blue-jeans'' (1960) - Colette * '' Tough Guys'' (1960) - Josette * ''

Call Girls of Rome ''Call Girls of Rome'' ( it, I piaceri del sabato notte, lit=The pleasures of Saturday night) is a 1960 Italian film directed by Daniele D'Anza and starring Andreina Pagnani, Jeanne Valérie, Scilla Gabel, and Elsa Martinelli. Jean Murat also app ...

'' (1960) - Patrizia * '' Queen of the Pirates'' (1960) - Isabella, the Duke's Daughter * '' Mill of the Stone Women'' (1960) - Elfie Wahl * ''La grande vallata'' (1961) * ''Les filles sèment le vent'' (1961) - Kissa * '' The Festival Girls'' (1961) - Nadja * ''Mara'' (1961) * '' Three Faces of Sin'' (1961) - Rossana Stromboli * '' Romulus and the Sabines'' (1961) - Dusia * '' Village of Daughters'' (1962) - Angelina Vimercati * ''No Man's Land'' (1962) - Woman * '' Colossus of the Arena'' (1962) - Thalima * '' Sodom and Gomorrah'' (1962) - Tamar * ''La salamandre d'or'' (1962) - Béatrice * '' The Two Colonels'' (1963) - Iride * ''Knights of Terror'' (1963) - Cristina * '' I diavoli di Spartivento'' (1963) * '' Outlaws of Love'' (1963) - Wilma * '' Seven Slaves Against the World'' (1964) - Claudia * '' Corpse for the Lady'' (1964) - Renata * '' The Revenge of Spartacus'' (1964) - Cinzia * ''Una storia di notte'' (1964) - A German tourist * ''Il figlio di Cleopatra'' (1964) - Livia * '' Con rispetto parlando'' (1965) * ''

Modesty Blaise ''Modesty Blaise'' is a British comic strip featuring a fictional character of the same name, created by author Peter O'Donnell and illustrator Jim Holdaway in 1963. The strip follows Modesty Blaise, an exceptional young woman with many talen ...

'' (1966) - Melina * ''Djurado'' (1966) - Barbara Donovan * '' Target for Killing'' (1966) - La Tigra * '' How to Seduce a Playboy'' (1966) - Anita Bionda * '' Zärtliche Haie'' (1967) - Zeezee * ' (1967) - Molly Pink * '' Bastard, Go and Kill'' (1971) - Susanna

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gabel, Scilla 1938 births Living people Italian film actresses Italian stage actresses Italian television actresses Accademia Nazionale di Arte Drammatica Silvio D'Amico alumni People from Rimini 20th-century Italian actresses