Sophia Loren facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sophia Loren L.d'H. OMRI
Loren at the Transilvania International Film Festival 2016
Born	Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (1934-09-20) 20 September 1934 (age 90) Rome, Kingdom of Italy
Other names	Sofia Scicolone Sofia Lazzaro
Citizenship	Italy France
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1950–2020
Spouse(s)	Carlo Ponti Sr. ​ ​ (m. 1957; ann. 1962)​ ​ ​ (m. 1966; died 2007)​
Children	Carlo Ponti Jr. Edoardo Ponti
Relatives	Maria Scicolone (sister) Romano Mussolini (brother-in-law) Alessandra Mussolini (niece) Romano Floriani Mussolini (grandnephew) Sasha Alexander (daughter-in-law)

Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (Italian: [soˈfiːa vilˈlaːni ʃʃikoˈloːne]; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren (/ləˈrɛn/ LƏ-ren; Italian: [ˈlɔːren]), is a famous Italian actress. She has worked in movies for over 70 years in both Italy and the United States. She is one of the last big stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema.

Sophia Loren started acting at age 16 in 1950 after entering a beauty pageant. She had small roles at first. In 1956, she signed a contract with Paramount Pictures. This helped her become a worldwide star. Some of her early films include The Pride and the Passion, Houseboat, and It Started in Naples.

Her role as Cesira in the film Two Women (1960) won her an Academy Award for Best Actress. This was special because she was the first person to win an Oscar for acting in a non-English movie. She has won many other awards, including seven David di Donatello Awards for Best Actress. She also has five special Golden Globe Awards, a BAFTA Award, and awards from the Venice Film Festival and Cannes Film Festival. In 1991, she received an Academy Honorary Award for her amazing career. The American Film Institute named her one of the greatest stars in American film history in 1999.

Since the 1980s, Loren has appeared in fewer films. Some of her later movies include Prêt-à-porter (1994), Grumpier Old Men (1995), Nine (2009), and The Life Ahead (2020). She has also received special honors from France and Italy.

Sophia Loren: A Star's Story

Her Early Life and Family

Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone was born on September 20, 1934, in Rome, Italy. Her mother, Romilda Villani, was a piano teacher. Her father, Riccardo Scicolone Murillo, was an engineer. Sophia's father did not marry her mother, so her mother raised Sophia and her sister Maria alone.

Sophia and her family lived with her grandmother in Pozzuoli, near Naples. During World War II, Pozzuoli was often bombed. Sophia was hurt in the chin by shrapnel during one raid. After that, her family moved to Naples to stay with relatives. After the war, they returned to Pozzuoli. Sophia's grandmother opened a pub in their home. Sophia helped by waiting tables and washing dishes.

Her Start in Pageants

When Sophia was 15, she entered the Miss Italia beauty pageant in 1950. She was called Sofia Lazzaro then. She was one of the finalists and won the title of Miss Elegance 1950. She later returned to the pageant as a judge in 2001 and crowned the winner in 2010.

Becoming a Star in Movies

Sophia Lazzaro began her film career as an extra in the 1951 movie Quo Vadis. She was 16 years old. She also had small parts in other Italian films.

Later, Carlo Ponti helped her change her name to Sophia Loren. This new name was chosen to appeal to more people. Her first main role was in Aida (1953), which critics really liked. Her big breakthrough came in The Gold of Naples (1954). She also starred with Marcello Mastroianni in many films, starting with Too Bad She's Bad (1954).

Reaching International Fame

Loren in 1959

Sophia Loren became a global movie star after signing a contract with Paramount Pictures in 1958. She starred in films like Desire Under the Elms and Houseboat with Cary Grant.

In 1960, she starred in Two Women, a powerful story about a mother protecting her daughter during wartime. Sophia won many awards for this role, including the Cannes Film Festival's best actress prize and an Academy Award. This was a huge achievement for a non-English film. She won 22 international awards for Two Women.

During the 1960s, Sophia Loren was one of the most popular actresses worldwide. She continued to make movies in the United States and Europe. She worked with famous actors like Charlton Heston in El Cid and Marlon Brando in A Countess from Hong Kong. She also received several Golden Globe Awards during this time.

Sophia Loren in a still from Judith (1966)

Continuing Her Success

Sophia Loren appeared in fewer movies after she became a mother in 1968. In the 1970s, she mostly acted in Italian films. She starred with Richard Burton in The Voyage. She also reunited with Marcello Mastroianni in A Special Day (1977). This movie was nominated for many awards and was very popular.

In 1980, Sophia Loren played herself and her mother in a TV movie about her life. In 1981, she became the first female celebrity to launch her own perfume. She acted less in the 1980s to spend more time with her sons. She even acted with her son Edoardo Ponti in the 1984 TV movie Aurora.

Loren in 1986, photo by Allan Warren

Later Career and Honors

In 1991, Sophia Loren received an Academy Honorary Award for her amazing contributions to cinema. In 1995, she received the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award. She continued to choose her film roles carefully. She also ventured into business, creating cookbooks, eyewear, and jewelry.

She starred in Grumpier Old Men (1995), which was a big success. In 1999, the American Film Institute named her one of the greatest female stars in American film history. In 2009, she starred in the film Nine alongside actors like Daniel Day-Lewis and Nicole Kidman.

In 2010, Sophia Loren played her own mother again in an Italian TV series about her early life. In 2014, she starred in a short film directed by her son Edoardo. In 2020, she returned to feature films in The Life Ahead, also directed by her son. She won several awards for this role. In 2024, she turned 90 and said she hopes to keep acting.

Loren in 2016

In 2017, Sophia Loren received a star on the Almeria Walk of Fame in Spain.

Her Personal Life

Sophia Loren is a Roman Catholic. She lives in Geneva, Switzerland. She owns homes in California, New York, Florida, and Rome. She is a big fan of the football club S.S.C. Napoli.

In 2023, Sophia Loren had surgery for a hip injury after a fall at her home.

Marriage and Family

Ponti and Loren in 1958

Sophia Loren met Carlo Ponti in 1950 when she was 15 and he was 37. They married in Mexico in 1957. At that time, divorce was not allowed in Italy, so Carlo was not legally divorced from his first wife. Their marriage was later canceled in 1962. They continued to live together. In 1965, they became French citizens. Carlo then got a divorce in France, allowing him to marry Sophia legally in 1966. Their marriage lasted until Carlo's death in 2007.

Sophia and Carlo had two sons: Carlo Ponti Jr., born in 1968, and Edoardo Ponti, born in 1973. Sophia Loren has four grandchildren.

Her sister, Maria, married Romano Mussolini, the youngest son of Benito Mussolini. They had two daughters, Alessandra Mussolini and Elisabetta.

Cary Grant and Loren in Houseboat (1958)

Selected Films

Loren with her Volpi Cup in 1958

Recognitions and Awards

Awards Sophia Loren Has Won

Special Honors

• Knight of the Legion of Honour – France (1991)
• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic – Italy (1996)

See also

In Spanish: Sophia Loren para niños