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

Laura Antonelli
Antonelli in the movie Malizia (1973)
Born
Laura Antonaz

(1941-11-28)28 November 1941
Pula, Kingdom of Italy (now Croatia)
Died22 June 2015(2015-06-22) (aged 73)
Rome, Italy
Occupations
  • Actress
  • teacher
  • model
Years active1964–1991
Known forMalizia
L'innocente
Passione d"Amore
SpouseEnrico Piacentini
Partner(s)Jean-Paul Belmondo
(1972–1980)
Children1

Early years

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Antonelli in How Funny Can Sex Be? (1973)

Antonelli was born Laura Antonaz in Pola, Kingdom of Italy (in Croatian, Pula), former capital of Istria.[1] After the war, her parents fled what was then Yugoslavia, lived in Italian refugee camps and eventually settled in Naples,[2] 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, 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."[3]

Setting aside ambitions to make a career in mathematics, she graduated as a gymnastics instructor.[4] 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.[1]

Career

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Antonelli in Milan, Italy (1974)
 
Laura Antonelli in Malicious (1973)

Antonelli's earliest engagements included Italian advertisements for Coca-Cola. In 1965, she made her first feature-film appearance in Le sedicenni, although her performance went uncredited.[1] Her American debut came in 1966 in Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs. Other roles followed; her breakthrough came in 1973's Malizia.[5] 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's last film, The Innocent (1976).[6] In Wifemistress, a romance film of 1977, she played a repressed wife experiencing a sexual awakening. Later, she appeared in Passione d'Amore (1981).[7] From 1986 she mostly worked on Italian television series.[8] Antonelli's final film role was in the sequel Malizia 2000 (1991), following which she retired.[9] She won the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists Award, Nastro d'Argento, in 1974 for Malizia.

Personal life

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Antonelli in The Naked Cello (1971)
 
Antonelli (1973)

Antonelli was married to publisher Enrico Piacentini but they divorced.[3] From 1972 to 1980, she was the companion of actor Jean-Paul Belmondo.[10]

On 27 April 1991, cocaine 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.[11] 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.[12]

Antonelli died in Ladispoli on 22 June 2015, aged 73, from a heart attack.[13][14]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes Ref.
1964 The Magnificent Cuckold Uncredited appearance
Guest with a Beehive Hairdo at the Artusis
1965 16 Year Olds
1966 Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs Rosanna
1967 Pardon, Are You For or Against? Piera Conforti
1968 La Rivoluzione sessuale Liliana
1969 Detective Belli Franca Uncredited appearance
1969 The Archangel Elena Uncredited appearance
1969 Venus in Furs Wanda von Dunajew
1970 A Man Called Sledge Ria
1970 Bali Daria
1970 Gradiva Gradiva
1971 The Married Couple of the Year Two Pauline de Guérandes
1971 Without Apparent Motive Juliette Vaudreuil
1971 Il merlo maschio Costanza Vivaldi
1972 The Eroticist Sister Delicata
1972 Dr. Popaul Martine Dupont
1973 How Funny Can Sex Be? Madame Juliette ("Madam, it's eight o'clock")
Celestina ("Two hearts and a shack")
Enrico's Wife ("It's never too late")
Grazia ("Honeymoon trip")
Tamara ("Come back my little one")
The Nun ("Italian worker abroad")
Donna Mimma Maccò ("Revenge")
Tiziana ("The guest")
[15]
1973 Malicious (aka Malizia) Angela Nastro d'Argento for Best Actress [16]
1974 Lovers and Other Relatives Laura
1974 Simona Simona
1974 Till Marriage Do Us Part Eugenia di Maqueda [17]
1975 The Divine Nymph Manoela Roderighi
1976 The Innocent Giuliana Hermil
1977 Wifemistress Antonia De Angelis
1977 Tre scimmie d'oro
1977 Black Journal Sandra
1979 Tigers in Lipstick The Wife / The Businesswoman
1979 Il malato immaginario Tonina
1979 Inside Laura Antonelli
1980 I'm Getting a Yacht Roberta
1981 Passion of Love Clara
1981 Il turno Stellina
1981 Chaste and Pure Rosa Di Maggio
1982 Porca vacca Mariana
1982 Sesso e volentieri Carla De Dominicis / Supermarket client / The Princess
1982 Viuuulentemente mia Anna Tassotti
1985 Slices of Life Monica Belli
1985 The Trap Marie Colbert
1986 The Venetian Woman Angela
1986 Grandi magazzini Elèna Anzellotti
1987 Rimini Rimini Noce Bove
1987 Roba da ricchi Mapi Petruzzelli Segment II
1989 Disperatamente Giulia Carmen Milkovič
1990 The Miser Frosina
1991 Malizia 2000 Angela final film role

TV appearances

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Lisanti, Tom; Paul, Louis (2002). "Laura Antonelli". Film Fatales: Women in Espionage Films and Television, 1962–1973. McFarland. pp. 44–46. ISBN 978-0-7864-1194-8.
  2. ^ "Laura Antonelli, Italian Actress and Sex Symbol, Dies at 73". 23 June 2015.
  3. ^ a b Roberts, Sam (22 June 2015). "Laura Antonelli Dies at 73; Popular, and Seductive, Italian Actress". The New York Times.
  4. ^ "Laura Antonelli obituary". The Guardian. 15 July 2015.
  5. ^ "Laura Antonelli: She was the sultry star of Italian sex comedies". The Independent. 8 July 2015.
  6. ^ "Laura Antonelli obituary". The Guardian. 15 July 2015.
  7. ^ "Laura Antonelli obituary". The Guardian. 15 July 2015.
  8. ^ "Laura Antonelli, Italian Actress and Sex Symbol, Dies at 73". 23 June 2015.
  9. ^ "Laura Antonelli obituary". The Guardian. 15 July 2015.
  10. ^ Mort de Laura Antonelli, star italienne des années 1970 et ex-femme de Jean-Paul Belmondo AlloCiné; 22 June 2015.
  11. ^ "Yahoo! Movies: Laura Antonelli". movies.yahoo.com. Yahoo. Retrieved 28 July 2010.
  12. ^ (in Italian) Laura Antonelli sarà risarcita Troppo lungo il processo per droga La Repubblica; accessed 22 June 2015.
  13. ^ "Laura Antonelli dead". Retrieved 27 June 2015.
  14. ^ "Lutto nel mondo del cinema: morta Laura Antonelli". Il Piccolo (in Italian). Rome.
  15. ^ "Film: Comedy:'How Funny Can Sex Be?' Opens at Trans-Lux East". The New York Times. 29 September 1976. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
  16. ^ "Screen: Lustful Sicilians:Sex Dominates Malice in Comic 'Malizia' The Cast". The New York Times. 6 June 1974. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
  17. ^ "Screen: Comedy Vehicle For Laura Antonelli:Bette Davis in New TV Movie". The New York Times. 20 July 1979. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
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