Mike Bongiorno
Mike Bongiorno ( born May 26, 1924 in New York City; † September 8, 2009 in Monaco; actually Michael Nicholas Salvatore Bongiorno ) was the most famous TV presenter in Italy. He was regarded as "King of Quiz Shows" and was continuously since 1953 even on television. He was most likely the moderator with the longest career.
Youth
Mike Bongiorno was in 1924 in New York City on the corner of Fifth Avenue / 12th Street to the world. His father Philip Bongiorno came from a Sicilian immigrant family. He had been admitted to the first Italian-American at Princeton University, worked as a lawyer and was chairman of the association Sons of Italy. Mike's mother Enrica Carello was Italian from Turin. After separation of the parents, Mike returned with his mother back to her hometown, where he attended high school. In 1942 he began an odd job for the sports pages of the newspaper La Stampa.
During the Second World War, he broke the school and graduated in 1944 the partisans of the Resistance at, for which he worked as Nachrichtenbote. In an attempt to settle through Ashenvale to neutral Switzerland, he was arrested on 23 April 1944 by the Gestapo in the village Cravegna at Crodo under the accusation of being an American agent. He spent several months in prison of San Vittore in Milan, together with the well-known journalist Indro Montanelli. He was then deported in September 1944 in the transit camp Bolzano, then in the camp Reichenau. Thanks to his American citizenship, he was released in January 1945 at a brokered by the Red Cross exchange of prisoners of war between the U.S. and Germany.
Beginning of radio and television
Immediately after his release, in February 1945, Bongiorno went to New York and worked from 1946 for the radio station of the newspaper Il progresso italo - americano at the Voci e volti dall'Italia program. The director of the news program of the Italian RAI, Vittorio Veltroni - the father of Walter Veltroni - noticed him and offered him a contract. Bongiorno produced reports from America on the radio program of RAI, especially on sporting events, such as 1951 a report on the boxing match against Joe Louis Rocky Marciano. 1953 Bongiorno returned to Italy and was one of the people who were involved in the transmission start of Italian television: on January 3, 1954 began the official television broadcasting to RAI, and Bongiorno initiated on this day the interview broadcast Arrivi e Partenze.
Lascia o raddoppia?
In November 1955, Mike Bongiorno launched the first quiz show of Italian television: Lascia o raddoppia, a version of the American show The $ 64,000 Question, The show ran until 1959 and was a huge success. It contributed to the inevitable breakthrough of television and made Mike Bongiorno become an icon of the new medium.
Return to the RAI and show scandal
After 27 years in which Bongiorno had worked almost exclusively for Berlusconi's Mediaset, he realized in September 2007 to its already long-awaited return to the RAI. He hosted on RaiUno the Miss Italia in Salsomaggiore. Bongiorno came on stage, mentioned his return, saying his usual " Allegria ". Then there was a live link to Bergamo, where the moderator and impersonator Fiorello was on tour. With the 36 years younger Fiorello Bongiorno shared a friendship. The live interview was overshadowed by technical problems. After Bongiorno announced its Moderation partner, Loretta Goggi on. It was a widely acclaimed by Italian media scandal. The expressly desired by Bongiorno as a partner Goggi walked the show stairs, complained about their treatment by Bongiorno and went off. A visibly perplexed Bongiorno tried decided to bring the show up to the first commercial break. Finally Goggi reappeared on the stage and sang a song provided. As she stood at Bongiornos side, they complained that they had had to wait for their performance during the show completed a master live to the moderator Fiorello half an hour behind the stage. Italian media reported that Goggi had to be persuaded by Fabrizio Del Noce station chief, jury president Michele Placido, the organizer and her husband to occur again. It was referred to the valid contract and a possible penalty. First, there was no public comments from Goggi or Bongiorno on this matter. However, Bongiorno said in his hotel a few journalists with wet eyes that he did not understand the matter and was very offended.
Robbery of the coffin
Approximately one and a half years after Bongiornos funeral in September 2009 in the cemetery of Arona, the coffin with the remains of the television presenter was stolen by unknown assailants. On December 8, 2011 his coffin was recovered in Vittuone near Milan. His sons have decided to let it burn ( urn ).
Others
- Umberto Eco, the Bongiorno knew, because he as an employee at Lascia e raddoppia? Had formulated quizzes, wrote in 1961 an essay entitled Fenomenologia di Mike Bongiorno ( in: Diario minimo, in German: Phenomenology of quizmaster ), in which he analyzes the television person Bongiorno. quote: "This man owes his success to the fact that for every action and every word speaks an absolute mediocrity. The spectator sees in him the image of his own limitations glorified. "
- The American avant-garde composer John Cage was in 1958 as a mushroom expert candidate in Lascia o Raddoppia? After he had attended the Darmstadt Summer Courses for New Music in the summer of that year and after four months in Milan for RAI the composition Fontana Mix recorded. He won the equivalent of $ 6,000 in six episodes. In the course of the program of his works, entitled Water Walk was performed, with 34 different sound generators were used, including a bathtub, a wing, a pressure cooker, ice cubes in a blender, five radios. Was known Bongiornos final word: " Bravo, Signor Cage, Arrivederci and good trip, return to America or stay here? " " ... My music is. " " Ah, go away and remains their music, but the opposite would be better if their music go away and they would remain. " ( Laughter and applause. )
- Bongiorno was also called Super Mike because of his decades of success.
- His exclamation: " Allegria " ( Freude! ) had become Bongiornos trademark.
- Mike Bongiorno was an avowed fan of Juventus.
- 1957 founded the Trofeo Topolino Bongiorno, one of the most important youth sport events in alpine skiing.
- He has starred in several films in which he himself interpreted mostly as quizmaster.