Sophia Loren / By Marjorie Rosen
Some Spicy Meatball
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- Read the Britannica Online entry for Sophia Loren.
orget venus and Mona Lisa. La Bella Sophia may well be Italy's most breathtaking work of art. First, there's her amazing body - the anatomy of perfect abbondanza. Then there's the face - as strong as espresso, and brimming with wondrous contradictions: Neapolitan eyes that flash as much with intelligence as with indignation, too-generous lips that curve as much with humor as with desire.
From the start, Sophia Loren, nee Scicolone, displayed a gift for elevating her characters, whether pizza vendors or puttanas, by sheer radiance of personality. But by 1959, as one in a long list of imported sexpots, she nearly fell victim to Hollywood mindlessness. She once recalled, "I spent my first five years in the movies having people throw pails of water on me." After such vulgar, silly pictures as "Boy on a Dolphin" and "The Pride and the Passion," Loren returned home. It was her professional salvation. Here a string of life-affirming Italian comedies like "Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow" and "Marriage, Italian Style" celebrated her glorious comedic sense and humanity - qualities that help explain her enduring appeal. Even today, at 62, Sophia remains la forza - the earth mother of us all.
Sophia Loren, 1960.
Credit: Paramount Pictures.
Marjorie Rosen is the author of "Popcorn Venus," a book on women in film.
