''The Champion'' (Italian: ''Il campione'') is a 1943 Italian

sports film A sports film is a film genre in which any particular sport plays a prominent role in the film's plot or acts as its central theme. It is a production in which a sport, sporting event, athlete (and their sport), or follower of sport (and the spor ...

directed by

Carlo Borghesio Carlo Borghesio (24 June 1905 – 12 November 1983) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. Life and career Born in Turin, Borghesio started his career as an assistant director in the second half of the 1930s, notably collaborating ...

and starring

Enzo Fiermonte Enzo Fiermonte (17 July 1908 – 22 March 1993), sometimes credited as William Bird, was an Italian actor and boxer. Early life Vincenzo "Enzo" Fiermonte was born on 17 July 1908 in Casamassima, a rural village near Bari, in southern Italy to D ...

Vera Bergman Vera Bergman (16 February 1920 – 1971) was a German stage and film actress known for her roles in Italian films. Bergman died in 1971. Biography Vera Bergmann was the daughter of Dutch diplomat Carl Bergman. Her mother was of Austrian descent ...

and

Erminio Spalla Erminio Spalla (7 July 1897 – 14 August 1971) was an Italian professional heavyweight Boxer (boxing), boxer, film actor and singer. Spalla studied fine arts in Brera (district of Milan), Brera, when in 1910 he saw film footage of the world box ...

.Chiti & Poppi p.56 It was shot at the

Fert Studios FERT (sometimes tripled, ''FERT, FERT, FERT''), the motto of the royal house of Savoy-Sardinia and Italy, the House of Savoy, was adopted by Duke Vittorio Amedeo II (1666–1732). It appeared for the first time on the collar of the Supreme Or ...

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

. The film's sets were designed by the

art director Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film industry, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and ...

Luigi Ricci Luigi Ricci may refer to: * Luigi Ricci (composer) (1805–1859), Italian composer * Luigi Ricci (vocal coach) Luigi Ricci (1893–1981) was an Italian assistant conductor, accompanist, vocal coach, and author. Career Ricci began studying music ...

Synopsis

A former boxer, now a trainer, discovers a young fighter who he feels has all the skills to become a champion. He takes him under his wing and begins to shape him into a fully rounded fighter. However the young man's success goes to his head and he becomes involved with a rich, vapid lady without realising that his trainer's daughter is in love with him.

Cast

as Massimo *

as Wanda Gregorovitch *

as Mario Martini *

Fiorella Betti Fiorella Betti (1927–2001) was an Italian actress.Roberto Chiti, Roberto Poppi. ''I film: Tutti i film italiani dal 1930 al 1944''. Gremese Editore, 2005. p.56. She was also a voice actress, dubbing a number of actresses in postwar Italian films ...

as Bianca Martini, sua figlia *

Michele Riccardini Michele Mario Alberto Riccardini (October 2, 1910 – July 24, 1978) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in around fifty films during his career as well as several television episodes. In 1943 he played the role of Don Remigio in Luchino Visc ...

as Federico *

Alessandra Adari Alessandra is a female given name of Italian origin, meaning ''defender of men''. It is the Italian form of the female given name Alexandra and the female form of the male given name Alessandro. Alessandra may refer to: * Alessandra Ambrosio (bo ...

Michele Bonaglia Michele (), is an Italian male given name, akin to the English male name Michael. Michele (pronounced ), is also an English female given name that is derived from the French Michèle. It is a variant spelling of the more common (and identically ...

Mario Bosisio is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the ''Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his cre ...

Luigi Garrone is a fictional character featured in video games and related media released by Nintendo. Created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, Luigi is portrayed as the younger fraternal twin brother and sidekick of Mario, Nintendo's masc ...

* Amedeo Martini * Bianca Martini * Merlo Preciso * Massimo Riccardi *

Vera Ruberti Vera may refer to: Names *Vera (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Vera (given name), a given name (including a list of people and fictional characters with the name) **Vera (), archbishop of the archdiocese of Tarra ...

* Mirella Scriatto * Beniamino Serpi as Un pugile *

Vittorio Vaser Vittorio Vaser (1904–1963) was an Italian stage and film actor. He appeared in Alessandro Blasetti's 1929 film ''Sun'' about the reclamation of the Pontine Marshes.Verdone p.63 He was the son of the actor Ernesto Vaser. Selected filmography ...

References

Bibliography

* Roberto Chiti & Roberto Poppi. ''I film: Tutti i film italiani dal 1930 al 1944''. Gremese Editore, 2005.

External links

*
''The Champion''
at

Variety Distribution Variety Distribution is an Italian-based film distribution company. It distributes Italian films worldwide, produced from the 1930s onward. History Variety Distribution (formerly Variety Film and Variety Communications) has been in the film ...

1943 films Italian boxing films 1940s sports films 1940s Italian-language films Films directed by Carlo Borghesio Italian black-and-white films 1940s Italian films {{1940s-Italy-film-stub