Sophia Loren

Sophia Loren, also Sofia Lauren (nee Sofia Villani Shikolone; genus. Winner of a number of prestigious film awards, including the Oscar and Golden Globe.

There are many interesting facts in the biography of Sophia Loren, which we will talk about in this article.

So, here is a short biography of Sophia Loren.

Biography of Sophia Loren

Sophia Loren was born on September 20, 1934 in Rome. Her father was an engineer Riccardo Shicolone, while her mother, Romilda Villani, was a music teacher and aspiring actress.

Childhood and youth

The entire childhood of the future artist was spent in the small town of Pozzuoli, located near Naples. The family moved here from Rome almost immediately after the birth of Sophia Loren.

It is worth noting that as soon as the father found out that Romilda was pregnant with Sophie, he agreed to acknowledge his paternity, but at the same time categorically refused to enter into an official marriage.

The girl did not want to stay with Riccardo on such conditions, which is why the couple broke up. An interesting fact is that Sophia Loren saw her father only 3 times: the first time at the age of 5, the second at 17, and the third time at his funeral in 1976. As a result, her mother and grandmother were involved in her upbringing.

In her youth, Lauren was taller than her peers and was thin. For this she was nicknamed "Perch". When she turned 14, she took part in the city beauty contest "Queen of the Sea". As a result, she managed to take 1st place.

Sophie received a fee and, most importantly, a ticket to Rome to participate in the casting. Soon, members of her family also moved to the Italian capital.

In 1950 she was among the contestants in the Miss Italy competition. It is curious that she was awarded the Miss Elegance prize, established by the judging panel especially for her.

Films

Initially, Sophie's talent went unnoticed. In the early years of her creative biography, she was offered either episodic or erotic roles. At the same time, the girl agreed to photo shoots for various glossy publications.

The turning point in the life of the actress happened in 1952, when she became the vice-champion of the beauty contest "Miss Rome". She began to play minor characters, attracting more and more attention from directors.

In 1953, Sophie, on the advice of producer Carlo Ponti, changed her surname to Lauren, which went well with her name. In addition, Carlo helped put her famous swinging hips walk and also changed her makeup.

Interestingly, the girl was offered to reduce her nose through plastic surgery, but she flatly refused such an offer. The change of image was in favor of Sophie. The first glory came to her after the premieres of the films "Attila" and "The Gold of Naples".

This was followed by such successful films with the participation of Sophia Loren, such as "The Beautiful Miller", "Houseboat", "Love under the Elms" and other works. A real breakthrough in her career occurred in 1960. For her role as Cesira in the drama Chochara, she received an Oscar, a Golden Globe and several other film awards.

In subsequent years of the biography, viewers saw Sophie in the films "El Cid", "Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow", "Italian Marriage", "Sunflowers", "An Unusual Day", etc. She was repeatedly recognized as the best actress, receiving various film awards.

The duet of Sophia Loren with Marcello Mastroianni is still considered the best in the history of cinema. The woman called the artist, with whom she starred in 14 projects, her brother and an incredibly gifted person.

Curiously, while collaborating with Hollywood directors, Sophie was unable to achieve any success. According to her, she could not become a Hollywood star due to the fact that her acting was contrary to the American model of understanding cinema and lifestyle.

At the peak of her popularity, Lauren managed to work with almost all the most famous actors in the world, including Frank Sinatra, Clark Gable, Adriano Celentano, Charlie Chaplin and Marlon Brando. In the late 80s, her popularity began to decline.

In the 90s, Sophie received a Golden Globe for Haute Couture in the Best Supporting Actress category. In the new millennium, she starred in 13 films, among which the last was The Human Voice (2013).

Personal life

Being a recognized sex symbol, Sophia Loren had a lot of fans who offered her a hand and a heart. However, her only man was Carlo Ponti, who managed to fully reveal the acting potential of his wife.

It is curious that their family union was not recognized by the government of the state, since Ponti was already married. Under Catholic law, divorce proceedings were simply impossible.

And yet, the lovers were able to find a way out by signing on the territory of Mexico. The newlyweds' act caused outrage among the Catholic clergy, and in 1962 an Italian court annulled the marriage.

Carlo Ponti, with his ex-wife and Sophie, temporarily settled in France to obtain citizenship and conduct a full-fledged divorce procedure. After 3 years, they finally got married and lived together until Carlo's death in 2007.

For a long time, lovers could not feel real family happiness, due to the absence of children and Lauren's two miscarriages. For several years, the girl was treated for infertility and in 1968 she was finally able to give birth to her first child, Carlo, named after her husband. The following year, her second son, Edoardo, was born.

Over the years, Sophie has become the author of 2 autobiographical books - "Living and Loving" and "Recipes and Memories". At the age of 72, she agreed to participate in a photo shoot for the popular erotic calendar Pirelli.

Sophia Loren today

Today Sophia Loren often appears at various social events, and also travels the world. Famous fashion designers Dolce and Gabbana dedicated a new collection to her as part of the Alta Moda show.