Carlo Ponti

Carlo Fortunato Pietro Ponti ( born December 11, 1912 in Magenta, Milan Province; † January 10, 2007 in Geneva) was one of the most important Italian film producers. Since 1941 he had produced more than 140 films, including masterpieces such as La Strada by Federico Fellini, Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow by Vittorio De Sica, Doctor Zhivago by David Lean or Blow Up by Michelangelo Antonioni, while the with a variety of important film directors 20th century worked.

Life

After studying law at the University of Milan and a short stint in the law office of his father (1935-1938), he launched a career as a film producer in the Artisti Associati Tecnici ( ATA) in Milan. Between 1945 and 1949 he was the sole producer of "Lux Films" in the Italian capital.

In 1951, Carlo Ponti along with Dino De Laurentiis production company Ponti - De Laurentiis, who has produced, among others, with Toto a Colori Italian first color film.

1950 met Ponti at a beauty contest for Miss Rome Sofia Villani Scicolone 16 -year-old know. He invented it for the name Sophia Loren, she promoted her and paved the way finally to Hollywood. On September 17, 1957, the two were married, after Ponti in Mexico from his first wife Giuliana Fiastri has divorced. This separation, however, was not recognized in Italy, since the Catholic Church does not allow divorces. Therefore, Ponti was accused of bigamy and the marriage Loren / Ponti was canceled in 1962. Sophia Loren, Carlo Ponti and his first wife Giuliana Fiastri then took French citizenship in 1966. Ponti and his first wife legalized divorce, and on 9 April 1966, he and Sophia Loren married again. Ponti has three sons: Carlo Ponti Jr., a former actor and now conductor of the San Bernardino Symphony Orchestra in California, and Edoardo Ponti, director and screenwriter, derived from his marriage to Sophia Loren. Alex Ponti, the film 's producer today comes from his first marriage to Giuliana Fiastri.

Carlo Ponti died on the night of January 10, 2007 in a Geneva hospital from the effects of pneumonia. He was buried in his home town of Magenta in the province of Milan.

Trivia

In the TV movie The Life and Death of Peter Sellers 2004 Ponti is portrayed by Joseph Long. In the television movie Sophia Loren - My Life 1980 it embodied Rip Torn.

Filmography (selection)

Awards