In addition to providing a star presence, Gina Lollobrigida displayed a considerable flair for comedy, notably in the 1968 film Buona Sera, Mrs Campbell (on which the later Mamma Mia! was based).
Having persuaded three US servicemen that each was the father of her daughter, accepting a monthly maintenance cheque from each, she pretends she had been married to a non-existent officer, her choice of Campbell as a name inspired by a tin of soup. When the daughter is about to run off with a married man, Lollobrigida’s character invokes the name of Campbell in dissuading her; meanwhile, the housekeeper’s doubtful look falls on three tins of Campbell’s soup on the kitchen shelf.
