Valentina Cortese

Valentina Cortese

1923-01-01 – 2019-07-10 (age 96) Milan, Lombardy, Italy
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Biography

Valentina Cortese (January 1, 1923 - July 10, 2019) was an Italian film actress.

The Milan-born actress starred in The House on Telegraph Hill (1951) directed by Robert Wise, and costarring Richard Basehart and William Lundigan. Cortese, aged 28, married Basehart in 1951, and had one son with him before they divorced in 1960.

She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1975 for her performance in François Truffaut's Day for Night.

Cortese appeared in Jules Dassin's Thieves' Highway (1949), Joseph L. Mankiewicz's The Barefoot Contessa (1954), Michelangelo Antonioni's Le Amiche (1955), Gérard Brach's The Boat on the Grass, Terry Gilliam's The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988), and in the Franco Zeffirelli projects such as the 1972 film Brother Sun, Sister Moon, his 1977 miniseries, Jesus of Nazareth and the 1993 film Sparrow.

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Known For

Appassionata
Appassionata

1974

as Elisa Rutelli

Barabbas
Barabbas

1961

as Julia

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen
The Adventures of Baron Munchausen

1988

as Queen Ariadne / Violet

The Barefoot Contessa
The Barefoot Contessa

1954

as Eleanora Torlato-Favrini

The Visit
The Visit

1964

as Mathilda Miller

Black Magic
Black Magic

1949

as Zoraida

Angels of Darkness
Angels of Darkness

1954

as Vally

Thieves' Highway
Thieves' Highway

1949

as Rica

Day for Night
Day for Night

1973

as Séverine

The Assassination of Trotsky
The Assassination of Trotsky

1972

as Natalia Trotsky

Le Amiche
Le Amiche

1955

as Nene

The Rocket from Calabuch
The Rocket from Calabuch

1956

as Eloísa, la maestra de escuela

La Classe américaine
La Classe américaine

1993

as The Helicopter Man's Wife (archive footage) (uncredited)

Brother Sun, Sister Moon
Brother Sun, Sister Moon

1972

as Pica Di Bernardone

The Secret of Santa Vittoria
The Secret of Santa Vittoria

1970

as Gabriella (uncredited)

The Legend of Lylah Clare
The Legend of Lylah Clare

1968

as Countess Bozo Bedoni

When Time Ran Out...
When Time Ran Out...

1980

as Rose Valdez

Rome: Free City
Rome: Free City

1946

as La ragazza

Juliet of the Spirits
Juliet of the Spirits

1965

as Valentina

Malaya
Malaya

1949

as Luana