Sophia Loren: A Biography - Hardcover

Born out of wedlock in fascist Italy, Sofia Scicolone seemed destined for a life of shame, poverty, and suffering. That she survived the bombings, food shortages, and epidemics of World War II was a miracle in itself. But she went on to astound the world as Sophia Loren, one of the most beautiful and talented superstars of this century. She costarred with Cary Grant and Frank Sinatra in her very first international film, and went on to work opposite many of their peers, including Clark Gable, John Wayne, Alan Ladd, William Holden, Marlon Brando, Gregory Peck, Charlton Heston, Paul Newman, David Niven, Peter O'Toole, Anthony Quinn, Peter Finch, Omar Sharif, and Richard Burton. Sophia Loren reveals the truth behind the legend who was once described as Italy's most perfect - and enigmatic - work of art since the Mona Lisa. The story of her rise from homely and skinny toothpick to awesome love goddess begins with Sophia's frustrated mother, a Greta Garbo lookalike who transferred her own dreams of stardom to her daughter. Following a chance meeting with producer Carlo Ponti, Sophia became his "protegee, " acting in some of his films and becoming the married Ponti's mistress. Sophia and Ponti have been together ever since. For nearly two decades they were treated like criminals in Italy, where, until 1970, citizens were denied the right to divorce without approval from the Vatican. Facing criminal prosecution, Sophia and Ponti became exiles. The story of how they were eventually able to return to Italy, only to be later prosecuted for alleged tax evasion, is just part of author Warren G. Harris's intimate portrait of one of the celebrity world's most remarkable - and secretive - marriages.Also covered in depth are Sophia's remarkable personal relationships with Cary Grant, Peter Sellers, Richard Burton, and others who fell under her spell. The Pontis are one of the wealthiest couples in Europe. Their magnificent villa near Rome once contained a collection of paintin

The most revealing portrait yet of one of the most glamorous and enduring international film stars of all time.

Born Sofia Scicolone, an illegitimate child in Fascist Italy, Sophia Loren grew up a sickly and undernourished girl who blossomed into one of the world's great beauties.

After her screen debut as a teenager, she made several movies in Italy, impressing directors with her stunning looks and range of emotion. But it was her Oscar "RM" -winning performance in Two Women in 1960 -- under the tutelage of the great Italian director Vittorio DeSica -- that made Sophia Loren an international star.

Skillfully blending first-rate research and the light, deft touch that distinguished his earlier celebrity biographies -- Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant, among others -- Warren Harris gives us a multidimensional portrait of this legendary actress.

Whether he is describing her impoverished childhood; discussing the making of such early films as The Pride and the Passion (when costar Cary Grant was smitten with her) or the hilarious romp Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow (with Marcello Mastroianni); or examining her enduring love affair with Italian producer Carlo Ponti, to whom she has been married for nearly 40 years, Harris gives depth to his portrait, with many new facts about Loren's personal life.