Magnani, Anna

Magnani, Anna

Anna Magnani, 1958.

(credit: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.)

(born March 7, 1908, Rome, Italy—died Sept. 26, 1973, Rome) Italian film actress. An illegitimate child brought up in poverty, she became a nightclub singer noted for her bawdy street songs. After acting in a touring company, she made her film debut in The Blind Woman of Sorrento (1934). She earned international fame for her role in Roberto Rossellini's Open City (1945). She became known for her forceful portrayals of earthy, working-class women in films such as The Miracle (1948), Bellissima (1951), The Rose Tattoo (1955, Academy Award), The Fugitive Kind (1960), and Mamma Roma (1962).