Giuliano Gemma (2 September 1938 – 1 October 2013) was an Italian

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

. He is best known internationally for his work in

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 ...

s, particularly for his performances as the title character in

Duccio Tessari Duccio Tessari (11 October 1926 – 6 September 1994) was an Italian director, screenwriter and actor, considered one of the fathers of Spaghetti Westerns. Born in Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian re ...

's ''

A Pistol for Ringo ''A Pistol for Ringo'' ( it, Una pistola per Ringo) is a 1965 Spaghetti Western, a joint Italian and Spanish production. Originally written and directed by Duccio Tessari, the film's success led to a sequel, ''The Return of Ringo'', later that y ...

'' (1965), Captain Montgomery Brown/'Ringo' in Tessari's ''

The Return of Ringo ''The Return of Ringo'' ( it, Il ritorno di Ringo) is a 1965 Italian Spaghetti Western film directed by Duccio Tessari and the sequel to the earlier film ''A Pistol for Ringo''. Like its predecessor, the film features a score composed by Ennio Mo ...

'' (1965), the title character in

Michele Lupo Michele Lupo (4 December 1932 – 27 June 1989) was an Italian film director. He directed 23 films between 1962 and 1982. He was born in Corleone, Italy, and died in Rome, Italy. Selected filmography * ''Colossus of the Arena'' (1962) * ...

's ''

Arizona Colt Arizona Colt ( it, Il pistolero di Arizona), also known as The Man from Nowhere ( it, L'uomo venuto dal nulla), is a 1966 technicolor Spaghetti Western directed by Michele Lupo and starring Giuliano Gemma, Fernando Sancho, Corinne Marchand. Syn ...

'' (1966), Scott Mary in

Tonino Valerii Tonino Valerii (20 May 1934 – 13 October 2016) was an Italian film director, most known for his Spaghetti Westerns. Tonino (Antonio) Valerii started his film career as an assistant director on Sergio Leone's ''A Fistful of Dollars'', before mo ...

's ''

Day of Anger ''Day of Anger'' ( it, I giorni dell'ira, lit. "The Days of Wrath") is a 1967 Spaghetti Western film directed and co-written by Tonino Valerii and starring Lee Van Cleef and Giuliano Gemma, and features a musical score by Riz Ortolani. The film ...

'' (1967) and Michael "California" Random in Lupo's ''

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

'' (1977).

Biography

Born in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, Gemma first worked as a stuntman, then was offered real acting parts by director

, starting with the film ''

Arrivano i titani ''My Son, the Hero'' (Italian title: ''Arrivano i titani'' - ''The Coming of the Titans''; alternative UK title: ''Sons of Thunder'') is a 1962 mythological sword-and-sandal comedy film directed by Duccio Tessari and starring Giuliano Gemma, Jacque ...

'' (1962). He also made an appearance in

Luchino Visconti Luchino Visconti di Modrone, Count of Lonate Pozzolo (; 2 November 1906 – 17 March 1976) was an Italian filmmaker, stage director, and screenwriter. A major figure of Italian art and culture in the mid-20th century, Visconti was one of the fat ...

's ''

Il Gattopardo ''The Leopard'' ( it, Il Gattopardo ) is a novel by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa that chronicles the changes in Sicilian life and society during the ''Risorgimento''. Published posthumously in 1958 by Feltrinelli, after two rejections by the ...

'' as Garibaldi's General. Gemma later went on to star in

s in films such as ''

'' (''Una pistola per Ringo''), ''

Blood for a Silver Dollar ''Blood for a Silver Dollar'' ( it, Un dollaro bucato) is a 1965 Spaghetti Western, Spaghetti Western film directed by Giorgio Ferroni, written by Giorgio Stegani and Ferroni, and starring Giuliano Gemma and Ida Galli. Plot synopsis Gary O'Hara, ...

'' (''Un dollaro bucato''), '' Wanted'' and ''

'' (''I giorni dell'ira''). He was sometimes credited as Montgomery Wood. Giuliano Gemma's career survived the demise of the genre, and he remained active on Italian television. Gemma played in a variety of movies, including art-house offerings such as

Valerio Zurlini Valerio Zurlini (19 March 1926 – 26 October 1982) was an Italian film director, stage director and screenwriter. Biography During his law studies in Rome, he started working in the theatre. In 1943, he joined the Italian resistance. Zurlin ...

's ''

The Desert of the Tartars ''The Desert of the Tartars'' ( it, Il deserto dei Tartari) is a 1976 Italian film by director Valerio Zurlini with an international cast including Jacques Perrin, Vittorio Gassman, Max von Sydow, Francisco Rabal, Philippe Noiret, Fernando Rey, ...

'' (''Il deserto dei tartari'') in 1976. The same year, Gemma won a

David di Donatello The David di Donatello Awards, named after Donatello's ''David'', a symbolic statue of the Italian Renaissance, are film awards given out each year by the ''Accademia del Cinema Italiano'' (The Academy of Italian Cinema). There are 26 award cat ...

, the Italian equivalent of the Oscar, for his portrayal of Major Matiss in ''The Desert of Tartars''. Gemma also starred in a web comic named "Man Born Again" (2012) by Eclypsed Word. His daughter,

Vera Gemma Vera Gemma is an Italian film actress. She was born in Rome, Italy. Her father was the movie star actor Giuliano Gemma. Filmography * Vera (2022) * The Card Player (2004) * Scarlet Diva (2000) * E insieme vivremo tutte le stagioni (1999) * Ca ...

, is also an actress. Giuliano Gemma also worked as a

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

. On 1 October 2013, Gemma died following a car accident in

Cerveteri Cerveteri () is a town and ''comune'' of northern Lazio in the region of the Metropolitan City of Rome. Known by the ancient Romans as Caere, and previously by the Etruscans as Caisra or Cisra, and as Agylla (or ) by the Greeks, its modern name de ...

, near Rome. He was taken to a hospital in

Civitavecchia Civitavecchia (; meaning "ancient town") is a city and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio. A sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it is located west-north-west of Rome. The harbour is formed by two pier ...

and pronounced dead shortly after his arrival. Two other passengers, a man and his son, were also injured in the accident.

Selected filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gemma 1938 births 2013 deaths Male Spaghetti Western actors Italian male film actors Italian male television actors Male actors from Rome 20th-century Italian sculptors 20th-century Italian male artists Italian male sculptors Nastro d'Argento winners Road incident deaths in Italy Burials at the Cimitero Flaminio People of Lazian descent