Gia Scala (born Josephine Grace Johanna Scoglio; March 3, 1934 – April 30, 1972) was a British-American actress.

Early life

Scala was born March 3, 1934, in

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

, England, to Sicilian father Pietro Scoglio, and Irish mother Eileen O'Sullivan. She had one sister,

Tina Scala Tina Scala (July 16, 1935 – January 10, 2022) was an Italian-born American actress, model, singer and poet. Early life The daughter of an Italian father and an Irish mother, Scala's early life was one of privilege. As Agatina Carmen Maria Scog ...

, also an actress. Scala was brought up in

Messina Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in t ...

and Mili San Marco in Sicily, the latter on the estate of her grandfather, Natale Scoglio, who was one of the largest citrus growers in Sicily. When Scala was 16, she moved to the United States to live with her aunt Agata in

Whitestone, Queens Whitestone is a residential neighborhood in the northernmost part of the New York City borough of Queens. The neighborhood proper is located between the East River to the north; College Point and Whitestone Expressway to the west; Flushing and ...

, New York City. After graduating from Bayside High School, she moved to

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

to pursue acting. Scala supported herself by working at a travel agency. While she worked during the day for airlines and an insurance agency, Scala studied acting at night, with

Stella Adler Stella Adler (February 10, 1901 – December 21, 1992) was an American actress and acting teacher.
''

Steve McQueen Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of the counterculture of the 1960s, made him a top box-office draw for his films of the late 1950s, 1960s, and ...

, whom she dated from 1952 to 1954. Scala began to appear on game shows, including '' Stop the Music'', where she was spotted by Maurice Bergman, an executive of

Universal International Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...

located in New York City.

Career

In 1954, accompanied by her mother, Scala flew to Los Angeles to screen test for the role of

Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to his crucifixion and resurre ...

in ''The Gallileans.'' Although she did not get the part, Peter Johnson at

Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...

was impressed with Scala's screen test. Scala had her first official job in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

when she was given a non-speaking, uncredited part in the movie '' All That Heaven Allows'', starring

Rock Hudson Rock Hudson (born Roy Harold Scherer Jr.; November 17, 1925 – October 2, 1985) was an American actor. One of the most popular movie stars of his time, he had a screen career spanning more than three decades. A prominent heartthrob in the Gold ...

. Despite her minor role in the movie, Universal Studios signed her to a contract, dyed her hair dark brown, had her four front teeth capped, and gave her the stage name Gia Scala. Songwriter

Henry Mancini Henry Mancini ( ; born Enrico Nicola Mancini, ; April 16, 1924 – June 14, 1994) was an American composer, conductor, arranger, pianist and flautist. Often cited as one of the greatest composers in the history of film, he won four Academy Award ...

met Scala on the set of '' Four Girls in Town''. Inspired by her beauty, he wrote "Cha Cha for Gia", which appeared uncredited in the 1957 film. Russ Tamblyn and Gia Scala 1957

Scala became emotionally distraught following the death of her mother in 1957. In 1958, she became a

naturalized Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the in ...

American citizen. Scala soon after landed roles in such films as '' Tip on a Dead Jockey'' (1957), ''

The Garment Jungle ''The Garment Jungle'' is a 1957 American film noir crime film directed by Vincent Sherman and starring Lee J. Cobb, Kerwin Mathews, Gia Scala, Richard Boone and Valerie French. Plot Alan Mitchell is a returning Korean War veteran who joins hi ...

'' (1957), '' The Tunnel of Love'' (1958), and '' The Guns of Navarone'' (1961), starring

Gregory Peck Eldred Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 – June 12, 2003) was an American actor and one of the most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1970s. In 1999, the American Film Institute named Peck the 12th-greatest male star of Classic Hollywood ...

and

David Niven James David Graham Niven (; 1 March 1910 – 29 July 1983) was a British actor, soldier, memoirist, and novelist. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as Major Pollock in '' Separate Tables'' (1958). Niven's other roles ...

. Scala made frequent appearances on American television during the 1960s, appearing in such series as ''

Alfred Hitchcock Presents ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers and mysteries. Between 1962 and 1965 it was r ...

'', ''

Convoy A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...

,'' '' The Islanders,'' '' The Rogues,'' '' Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea,'' '' Twelve O'Clock High'', ''

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adv ...

'', and '' It Takes a Thief'' (1969) in the episode "The Artist Is for Framing", her final acting role.

Later years

On August 21, 1959, Scala married Don Burnett, an actor turned investment banker. After 11 years of marriage they divorced on September 1, 1970, and Burnett married actress Barbara Anderson. Scala had difficulties with alcohol and her career began to wane. In 2015, author/researcher Sterling Saint James wrote a book about Gia Scala's life titled ''Gia Scala: The First Gia.''

provided intimate details about her sister's life.

Death

On the night of April 30, 1972, 38-year-old Scala was found dead in her Hollywood Hills home. Los Angeles County Coroner

Thomas Noguchi is the former Chief Medical Examiner-Coroner for the County of Los Angeles. Popularly known as the "coroner to the stars", Noguchi determined the cause of death in many high-profile cases in Hollywood during the 1960s and 1970s. He performed a ...

reported her cause of death was from accidental "acute

ethanol Ethanol (abbr. EtOH; also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound. It is an alcohol with the chemical formula . Its formula can be also written as or (an ethyl group linked to a ...

and

barbiturate Barbiturates are a class of depressant drugs that are chemically derived from barbituric acid. They are effective when used medically as anxiolytics, hypnotics, and anticonvulsants, but have physical and psychological addiction potential a ...

intoxication". Scala is interred next to her mother, Eileen O'Sullivan-Scoglio, in the

Holy Cross Cemetery Holy Cross Cemetery may refer to: United States California * Holy Cross Cemetery (Colma, California) *Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City, California * Holy Cross Cemetery (Menlo Park, California) * Holy Cross Cemetery (Pomona, California) *Holy ...

in Culver City, California.

Film and television credits

Notes

References

External links

* *
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Scala, Gia 1934 births 1972 deaths 20th-century English actresses Accidental deaths in California Actresses from Liverpool Alcohol-related deaths in California Bayside High School (Queens) alumni Burials at Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City English emigrants to the United States English film actresses English people of Italian descent English people of Irish descent English people of Sicilian descent English television actresses Naturalized citizens of the United States People from Whitestone, Queens