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Italian former football star Fabio Cannavaro was part of his country’s 2006 World Cup-winning team and now coaches the Chinese football club Guangzhou. He has won awards such as the Ballon d'Or and was the only defender to earn the FIFA World Player of the Year tag.
Lorenzo Insigne is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a forward. He is currently affiliated with Serie A club Napoli and the Italian national team. He has over a decade’s experience as a professional and can play on either flank or through the center. He is known for his technical ability, speed, and accuracy from free kicks.
Born to an Italian Germanist scholar father and a Greek painter mother, Valeria Golino was destined to be associated with the arts but had initially aspired to be a cardiologist. She later stepped into movies and gained fame for her roles in movies such as Rain Man and the Hot Shots! franchise.
Enrico Caruso was an operatic tenor who performed at prominent opera houses in the Americas and Europe. His commercially released recordings made him an international star in the early-1900s. Thanks to his illustrious career that spanned 25 years, Caruso became one of the most popular entertainers of his generation. In 1987, he was honored with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
Giuliana Rancic is an Italian-American television personality and entertainment reporter. Over the years, she has co-hosted several important events like the Academy Awards and Golden Globes. Also known for her good looks, Rancic was named in the 100 Most Beautiful people list by People magazine in 2006. In 2014, she won the Daytime Emmy Award under the Fan Favorite category.
Though he wasn’t trained in a film school, Paolo Sorrentino created some of the most iconic movies of world cinema, including the Academy Award-winning The Great Beauty. His films often feature Toni Servillo, have obscure plots, and have prologues extending more than 10 minutes before the main title.
Emilio Pucci was an Italian fashion designer turned politician. He is best remembered for his style of creating geometric prints in a kaleidoscope of colors. He served as a pilot during World War II and became a fashion designer after the war. He also ventured into politics but didn’t enjoy much success in his political career.
Italian Baroque composer Domenico Scarlatti was no stranger to music, being the son of famous composer Alessandro Scarlatti. From being the official composer for the queen of Poland, to teaching music to the princess of Spain and creating 555 keyboard sonatas, the legendary harpsichordist had an illustrious life.
Italian philosopher Giambattista Vico is regarded as a pioneer of what is now known as cultural anthropology, or ethnology. He brought together history and the social sciences in his work Scienza nuova. A poor bookseller’s son, he studied by candlelight but grew up to be a major Counter-Enlightenment figure.
Andrea Dotti was an Italian psychiatrist. He specialized in treating women with depression and was the assistant director of Rome University's psychiatric department. He was also a skier, tennis player, dancer, and art collector. He was married to famous actress Audrey Hepburn from 1969 to 1982, and the couple had one son. Dotti had several affairs during their marriage.
Catholic bishop Alphonsus Liguori was the man behind the formation of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, also known as the Redemptorists. He stepped into his spiritual life after an 8-year stint as a lawyer. He is also remembered for his works on moral theology and equiprobabilism.
Elena Ferrante is an Italian novelist whose works have been translated into several languages. Ferrante is best known for her Neapolitan Novels book series. In 2016, Ferrante was named among the 100 most influential people list published by Time magazine. In 2016, her book The Story of the Lost Child was also shortlisted for the prestigious Man Booker International Prize.
Roberto Saviano is an Italian essayist, writer, and screenwriter. Since 2006, Saviano has been living under police protection after receiving death threats from an Italian criminal organization, which was upset with Saviano's works that expose the functionality of organized crime in Italy. Over the years, Roberto Saviano has also contributed to prominent Italian and international newspapers.
Luisa Ranieri is an Italian actress best known for her portrayal of American-born Greek singer Maria Callas in the 2005 TV film Callas e Onassis, which is the only movie ever made to exclusively depict the close friendship and emotional relationship between Maria Callas and Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis. Ranieri achieved international prominence after appearing in Letters to Juliet.
Italian-British dancer Flavia Cacace is part of the dance duo Vincent and Flavia, with her dance partner Vincent Simone. She appeared multiple times on the reality show Strictly Come Dancing and won in its 10th season. She has also appeared on The Magicians. Flavis is married to actor Jimi Mistry.
The wife of French king Louis Philippe I, Marie-Amélie de Bourbon was the last queen of France. Least interested in politics, she spent most of her life raising her 8 children. She also shunned public life for fear of a new revolution after Louis Philippe became the king following the July Revolution.
Charles I of Hungary reigned as the King of Croatia and Hungary from 1308 until his death in 1342. During his reign, Charles improved and reorganized the administration of royal revenues. Charles I of Hungary also encouraged the spread of chivalrous culture throughout his realms.
Lord Acton was an English Catholic historian, writer, and politician. Born to a prominent family in Naples, he was the son of a British baronet. He studied at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, where he developed a deep love of historical research. After building a career as a historian and writer, he ventured into politics as well.
After her father died, Joanna I was made the heir to the throne of Naples by her grandfather, King Robert the Wise. Her life was marred by the murder of her first husband and the attacks of the Hungarian king Louis I. She was eventually imprisoned and killed by Charles of Durazzo.
Enrico De Nicola was an Italian jurist, journalist, and politician. He served as the provisional head of state of republican Italy from 1946 to 1948, following which he became the first president of Italy. He was a successful lawyer before he entered politics. He was succeeded by economist Luigi Einaudi as the president.
Best known for his iconic opera Pagliacci, Ruggero Leoncavallo was one of the greatest opera composers of Italy. He was his own librettist in most of his operas. Mattinata, the song which he wrote for the Gramophone Company, or HMV, is another of his notable works.
