Italian actor Gina Lollobrigida has died aged 95.
The film star, who was a high profile figure in cinema in the 1950s and 1960s, died on Monday (16 January) in Rome. Her death was confirmed by Italian news agency ANSA.
Lollobrigida, whose biggest films included The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Beautiful But Dangerous, appeared on screen opposite stars such as Frank Sinatra, Humphrey Bogart and Rock Hudson.
She was often described as “the most beautiful woman in the world” and, before her death, was considered to be one of the last remaining stars from the Golden Age of cinema.
Born in Subiaco in 1927, the young Lollobrigida modelled and took part in a number of beauty contests before taking a number of small roles in Italian cinema.
Despite being prevented from working in American films shot in the US until 1959 by a contract signed with film producer Howard Hughes, she went on to find success in European cinema throughout the 1950s.
Lollobrigida earned her first Bafta nomination, as well as a Nastro d’Argento award in 1953 for the Italian-language film Bread, Love and Dreams. On followed The Wayward Wife and Woman of Rome the following year, as well as a number of French films.
Also in 1953, she appeared as Bogart’s wife in Beat the Devil, which was her first mainstream English-language film. Other big projects in the 1950s included Crossed Swords with Errol Flynn, Trapeze with Burt Lancaster,The Hunchback of Notre Dame with Anthony Quinn, Never So Few with Frank Sinatra and Solomon and Sheba with Yul Brynner.
In 1961, she gave a Golden Globe-winning performance opposite Rock Hudson in romantic comedy Come September.
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