I’m happy when I can work in Italy, especially when I can choose projects I like and I believe in like this one,” says actress Monica.She was not, however, referring to her lead role in Giuseppe Tornatore’s latest film (Mal?na) but a bra commercial. The actress, blessed with Mediterranean good looks and stunning curves, has [...]
About the only rebellion left for Asia Argento was blissful, normal domesticity– the final frontier for an actress whose early career included starring roles in three of father Dario Argento’s horror movies.”My latest vice? Learning to cook risotto,’ quipped Italy’s favorite bad girl, 26, who is expecting her first child in June 2001 from singer [...]
Alba Parietti, Italy’s poster girl for pneumatic plastic surgery, has gone from show girl (she can neither sing nor dance) to actress (a semi-erotic flop called “the Butcher”) to television host. Bored with being the dishy dunce on sport shows, Alba has gone serious. La Parietti has traded her bottle-blond mane for ebony locks, dumped [...]
Not surprisingly, 23-year-old beauty Manuela Arcuri won the title of “most clicked.” Arcuri, who hails from Latina, has never made her charms a secret: her latest mostly undressed calendar was an instant sell out. She was crowned the most wanted woman on the web recently by newsweekly Panorama, swiping the title from any number of [...]
A company in Gela (Caltanissetta) made headlines after spending a year trying to find a secretary able to speak and write standard Italian. Meic Service, a methane gas provider, placed ads in local papers but despite numerous candidates, none were able to meet the requirement. Exasperated director Maurizio Melfa asked the city government to lend [...]
“What you teach your son, you teach your grandson,” recites a Milanese proverb on a new site dedicated to keeping alive the local dialect. Instead of despairing about the disappearing dialect and traditions, the site offers handy tools–sayings, proverbs and a partial translation of Alessandro Manzoni’s classic “Betrothed.” For a daily dose of “milanesity” in [...]
An Italian court in Trento ruled recently that even calling someone”meridionale” (Southerner) can be considered an insult. The case, which sounds a bit like a bad joke, involves a transplantedSicilian who went to the city administration offices–to inquire about howto pay garbage tax.Upon taking his leave, the Sicilian said, Thanks, Illbe back tomorrow to pay [...]
A recent decision by Italy’s Supreme Court got one hot-headed neighbor out of trouble, ruling that a common insult does not harm the “decorum” of the person it’s hurled at. Alfred L., found guilty in Florence district lower courts for damages, refused to let the matter end there. His condominium had suffered too long from [...]
The joke about everyone being a “Dr.” in Italy may soon change, but probably won’t have much effect on everyday courtesy titles. University reformers made national news recently after proposing to end rampant use of “doctor” title. Currently, all university graduates can brandish the title of “Dr., ” without a Ph.D. or medical degree. If [...]
A mixed blessing for students of Italian: more English terms have become Italian standards, making it easier to cheat, but more dialect is seeping into everyday Italian making it harder to study. The new edition of the Zingarelli dictionary for 2001 contains terms like “standing ovation,” “appetizer”, “mobbing,” “trolley” and “new economy.” Increase in Internet [...]
