Alberto Sordi facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Alberto Sordi
Sordi in 1962
Born	(1920-06-15)15 June 1920 Rome, Kingdom of Italy
Died	24 February 2003(2003-02-24) (aged 82) Rome, Italy
Other names	Albertone
Occupation	Actor comedian director singer screenwriter
Years active	1937–1998

Alberto Sordi Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI (born June 15, 1920 – died February 24, 2003) was a famous Italian actor, comedian, director, singer, and writer for movies. He was known for his amazing talent in both funny and serious roles.

Early Life and Start

Alberto Sordi was born in Rome, Italy. His father was a musician and his mother was a teacher. He was the youngest of five children. Alberto tried to study acting in Milan, but he was asked to leave because of his strong Roman accent. This accent later became a special part of his acting style. He also studied to be an opera singer, which helped him develop his unique voice.

A Long Career in Film

Alberto Sordi's career lasted for over 60 years. He became a true legend of Italian cinema. He was great at both comedy and light drama.

First Steps in Movies

Sordi started his movie career in the late 1930s. He played small parts in films during World War II. Some of his early important roles included movies by famous director Federico Fellini. These were The White Sheik (1952) and I vitelloni (1953). In I vitelloni, he played a young, lazy character. He also had a main role in The Bachelor (1955), where he played a single man looking for love. Sordi often appeared in Italian historical comedies.

Big Successes

In 1959, Sordi starred in The Great War. Many people consider this one of the best Italian comedies ever made. His talent was recognized internationally when he won a Golden Globe Award in 1963. This was for his role in To Bed or Not to Bed. He also acted with British star David Niven in the World War II comedy The Best of Enemies. In 1965, he was in another popular comedy called I complessi.

Sordi also directed and wrote many of his own films. For example, in 1984, he directed Tutti dentro (Off to jail, everybody). In this movie, he played a judge who ordered the arrest of corrupt officials.

Voice Acting

Before becoming a big movie star, Alberto Sordi was a very important voice actor. He was known for dubbing, which means providing voices for foreign films. He famously voiced Oliver Hardy in many Laurel and Hardy films from 1939 to 1951. He won a contest to find the best Italian voice for Oliver Hardy. He also lent his voice to many other famous actors in Italian versions of their movies. Sordi stopped voice acting in 1956 to focus on his acting career.

Personal Life

Alberto Sordi kept his private life very quiet. He never married or had children. However, he did have some relationships during his life. He was a Roman Catholic. Sordi was also a huge fan of the AS Roma football (soccer) team. He even showed his love for the team in some of his movies.

Awards and Honors

Alberto Sordi won many awards for his work. He won seven David di Donatello awards, which are Italy's most important film awards. He holds the record for the most Best Actor awards. He also received a Golden Lion award in 1995 for his lifetime achievements at the Venice Film Festival. His Golden Globe Award for To Bed or Not to Bed was for playing an Italian worker stuck in Sweden. In 2000, the City of Rome made him an honorary mayor for a day to celebrate his 80th birthday.

He also won the Silver Bear for Best Actor at the 22nd Berlin International Film Festival for his role in In Prison Awaiting Trial. At the 13th Moscow International Film Festival, he won a special prize for I Know That You Know That I Know.

Sordi even received honorary citizenship from Kansas City, Missouri. This was because he mentioned the city in his 1954 film, Un americano a Roma.

Later Life and Death

In 2001, Alberto Sordi was diagnosed with lung cancer. He passed away from pneumonia and bronchitis at his home in Rome on February 24, 2003. More than a million people came to his funeral at the Basilica of St. John Lateran to say goodbye.

Images for kids

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  Sordi in Under the Sun of Rome (1948)

Filmography (Selected)

Alberto Sordi acted in over 150 films and directed many others. Here are some of his most well-known works:

Actor

Director

Dubbing Roles (Selected)

Alberto Sordi was a prolific voice actor, especially known for dubbing.

Live action

• Oliver Hardy in many Laurel and Hardy films (1939-1951)
• Ernie Bishop in It's a Wonderful Life
• Bicycle vendor in Bicycle Thieves
• Jim Brennan in The Valley of Decision
• Steven Warren in The Spiral Staircase
• James Cody in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre

See also

In Spanish: Alberto Sordi para niños