Franco Micalizzi (born 21 December 1939 in Rome) is an Italian composer and conductor, best known for his scores in

Poliziotteschi Poliziotteschi (; singular ''poliziottesco'') constitute a subgenre of crime film, crime and action films that emerged in Italy in the late 1960s and reached the height of their popularity in the 1970s. They are also known as ''polizieschi all'i ...

films. His first success was for the musical score of the

Spaghetti Western The Spaghetti Western is a broad subgenre of Western films produced in Europe. It emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's film-making style and international box-office success. The term was used by foreign critics because most o ...

They Call Me Trinity ''They Call Me Trinity'' ( it, Lo chiamavano Trinità...) is a 1970 Italian Spaghetti Western comedy film written and directed by Enzo Barboni (under the pseudonym of E.B. Clucher) and produced by Italo Zingarelli. The film stars Terence Hill and ...

'', in 1970. He had previously collaborated on composing with

Roberto Pregadio Roberto Pregadio (6 December 1928 – 15 November 2010) was an Italian composer, conductor and TV-personality. Born in Catania and graduated in piano at the San Pietro a Majella Conservatory in Naples, in 1960 Pregadio became a pianist in the RA ...

the famous whistled western score for the 1969 film ''

The Forgotten Pistolero ''The Forgotten Pistolero'' (Italian: ''Il pistolero dell'Ave Maria'', lit. "The Gunman of Hail Mary") is a 1969 Italian Spaghetti Western film co-written and directed by Ferdinando Baldi. The film is a western adaptation of the Greek myth of Ore ...

'' (original: ''Il Pistolero dell'Ave Maria''). His main theme for the 1976 poliziottesco film ''

A Special Cop in Action ''Special Cop in Action'' ( it, Italia a mano armata, lit=Italy at gunpoint) is a 1976 Italian ''poliziottesco'' film directed by Marino Girolami, here credited as Franco Martinelli. The film is the final chapter in the Girolami's Commissioner Bet ...

'' was used in the soundtrack of

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, Black comedy, dark humor, Nonlinear narrative, non-lin ...

's ''

Death Proof ''Death Proof'' is a 2007 American action-thriller film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It stars Kurt Russell as a stuntman who murders young women with modified cars he purports to be "death-proof". Rosario Dawson, Vanessa Ferlito, Jo ...

''. His other scores include ''

The Last Snows of Spring ''L'ultima neve di primavera'' (internationally known as ''The Last Snows of Spring'') is a 1973 Italian drama film written and directed by Raimondo Del Balzo. The film obtained a great commercial success and launched the career of child actor Ren ...

'', '' Beyond the Door'' and ''

The Last Hunter ''The Last Hunter'' ( it, L'ultimo cacciatore) is a 1980 Italian " macaroni combat" directed by Antonio Margheriti and starring David Warbeck and Tony King. Initially made to capitalize on the success of '' The Deer Hunter'', ''The Last Hunt ...

''. He often worked with

Umberto Lenzi Umberto Lenzi (6 August 1931 – 19 October 2017) was an Italian film director, screenwriter, and novelist. A fan of film since young age, Lenzi studied at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia and made his first film in 1958 which went unr ...

, scoring his movies ''

Syndicate Sadists ''Syndicate Sadists'' ( it, Il giustiziere sfida la città, or ''"The Executioner Challenges the City"''), also released under the titles ''Rambo's Revenge'' and ''Final Payment'', is a 1975 ''poliziotteschi'' film directed by Umberto Lenzi. It st ...

'', '' Rome Armed to the Teeth'', ''

Violent Naples ''Violent Naples'' ( it, Napoli violenta) is a 1976 ''poliziottesco'' film directed by Umberto Lenzi. It starred Maurizio Merli, John Saxon and Barry Sullivan, and was the first sequel to ''Violent Rome''. Saxon appeared in several such movies. Pl ...

'', ''

The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist ''The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist'' ( it, Il cinico, l'infame, il violento, lit=The Cynic, the Infamous, the Violent) is an Italian ''poliziotteschi'' film directed in 1977 by Umberto Lenzi and third entry into the Tanzi/Moretto/Monnezza shared un ...

'', ''

Brothers Till We Die ''Brothers Till We Die'' ( it, La banda del gobbo) is a 1977 Italian poliziottesco-action film by Umberto Lenzi and fifth and final entry into the Tanzi/Moretto/Monnezza shared universe. This film is the last collaboration among Lenzi and Tom ...

'', ''

The Greatest Battle ''The Greatest Battle'' ( it, Il grande attacco, lit=The Great Attack) is a 1978 Euro War, Euro War film co-written and directed by Umberto Lenzi and starring an all-star ensemble cast, including Giuliano Gemma, Helmut Berger, Stacy Keach, Ray Lov ...

'', ''

From Corleone to Brooklyn ''From Corleone to Brooklyn'' (original title: ''Da Corleone a Brooklyn'') is an Italian ''poliziotteschi'' film directed by Umberto Lenzi. The film was released in Italy on 13 April 1979 and stars Maurizio Merli, Mario Merola (singer), Mario Mero ...

'', '' Black Demons'' and ''

Mean Tricks ''Mean Tricks'' (original name: ''Hornsby e Rodriguez - Sfida criminale'') is a 1992 crime thriller film produced in Italy and directed by Umberto Lenzi. Released in 1992, it starred Charles Napier, David Warbeck and Stefano Sabelli. It was shot ...

''. In 1984 he founded the group "The Micalizzi Family" with his sons Cristiano and Alessandro. His piece "The Puzzle" appears in the soundtrack of ''

Curb Your Enthusiasm ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'' is an American television sitcom produced and broadcast by HBO since October 15, 2000, and created by Larry David, who stars as a semi-fictionalized version of himself. It follows David's life as a semi-retired televisio ...

'' and a slow tempo excerpt of it, rearranged for clarinet and bassoon, is often used in the series as the "stare" theme.

Selected filmography

References

External links

*
Franco Micalizzi
at

Discogs Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...

The Micalizzi family
at

1939 births Italian film score composers Italian male film score composers Living people Spaghetti Western composers Musicians from Rome {{Italy-music-bio-stub