"Malafemmena" (; "Bad Woman") is a song written by the

Neapolitan Neapolitan means of or pertaining to Naples, a city in Italy; or to: Geography and history * Province of Naples, a province in the Campania region of southern Italy that includes the city * Duchy of Naples, in existence during the Early and Hig ...

actor

Totò Antonio Griffo Focas Flavio Angelo Ducas Comneno Porfirogenito Gagliardi de Curtis di Bisanzio (15 February 1898 – 15 April 1967), best known by his stage name Totò (), or simply as Antonio de Curtis, and nicknamed ''il Principe della risata ...

(Antonio de Curtis) in 1951. It has become one of the most popular Italian songs, a classic of the

Canzone Napoletana Canzone napoletana (), sometimes referred to as Neapolitan song ( nap, canzona napulitana ), is a generic term for a traditional form of music sung in the Neapolitan language, ordinarily for the male voice singing solo, although well represented b ...

genre, and has been recorded by many artists.

Background

Totò dedicated the song, which is in the Neapolitan language, to his wife, Diana Bandini, after they separated in 1950. It was first sung by Antonio Basurto, then by Mario Abbate before becoming a hit for

Giacomo Rondinella Giacomo Rondinella (30 August 1923 – 25 February 2015) was an Italian singer and actor. Life and career Born in Messina, the son of a couple of Neapolitan actors and singers, Rondinella started his career as a singer after World War II, foll ...

Film Music

The song was used in the film ''

Totò, Peppino e la malafemmina ''Toto, Peppino, and the Hussy'' (originally ''Totò, Peppino e la... malafemmina'') is an Italian comedy film directed by Camillo Mastrocinque in 1956. It stars the comedy duo of Totò and Peppino De Filippo. The film also stars the popular sin ...

'' directed by

Camillo Mastrocinque Camillo Mastrocinque (11 May 1901 – 23 April 1969) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He directed more than 60 films between 1937 and 1968, and is known to horror film fans for directing ''Terror in the Crypt'' (1964) starring ...

(1956), sung by

Teddy Reno Teddy Reno (born 11 July 1926) is an Italian singer, songwriter, actor and record producer. Life and career Born in Trieste as Ferruccio Merk Ricordi, Reno made his debut on Radio Trieste during the Anglo-American administration of the city, la ...

. It was the top-grossing movie of the year in Italy with a 1,751,300

Italian lire The lira (; plural lire) was the currency of Italy between 1861 and 2002. It was first introduced by the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy in 1807 at par with the French franc, and was subsequently adopted by the different states that would eventually f ...

(about 40 million Euros in 2009) turnover.Italian national network page about the movie
in Italian

Covers

Among the many artists who have covered this song are the following: * Mario Abbate *

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* Manhattan Express *

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* Mina *

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* Nino Porzio *

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References

External links

"Malafemmena, lyrics, video-clip and MP3
{{DEFAULTSORT:Malafemmena 1951 songs Neapolitan songs