The enigmatic Claudia Cardinale enthralled audiences with her captivating personality over the course of her more than 60-year career.
Cardinale didn’t intend to become one of the best actors of the golden age; instead, he took the frequently traumatized route to fame.
She says that “cinema saved my life,” and she is still alive at the age of 86, outliving the now-deceased Hollywood titans with whom she previously shared the screen.
Read on to learn more about this celebrity and her current activities!
The renowned actress Claudia Cardinale has had a significant impact on Italian and international film. Because of her skill, beauty, and versatility, she was able to play a range of intricate and unique characters during the course of her career.
The Italian actress, who was born in Tunisia, was pursuing a teaching degree when she was discovered at the age of 18. The glossy-haired, French-speaking young woman was mesmerized by the spectacle of an Italian film festival when she was chosen from the crowd and crowned the Most Beautiful Italian Girl in Tunisia.
I was in Tunisia helping my mother and Italian government officials organize an Italian film festival. I couldn’t resist staring at the women on stage even though I wasn’t meant to be there. Someone pushed me out on stage, and I was crowned the Most Beautiful Girl in Tunisia,” she said.
The young woman had numerous proposals from producers, and the reward was a trip to the Venice film festival, a foreboding experience.
Cardinale said in an interview that he initially turned down the offers because “it’s like a man.” He will go if you answer yes as soon as he approaches you. If you refuse, he will want you for a very long time.
She was expecting a child, therefore she declined most of the offers.
However, she couldn’t refuse one producer. Cardinale, as a teenager, signed an 18-year contract with Franco Cristaldi, a famous Italian producer known for feature films from the 1950s until the 1990s.
There was also a personal contract; after they were married, Cristaldi gained complete control of her social life, weight, hairstyle, and movie roles, turning her into an Italian Brigitte Bardot.
Cristaldi insisted that her pregnancy be kept a secret.
It was revealed that her son was her younger brother.
Cardinale had a few small parts in Italian movies while under Cristaldi’s direction, and because of her performances, she was known as “Italy’s sweetheart.”
Her big break came in 1958 when she landed a major part in the romantic comedy Three Strangers in Rome. Seven months into her pregnancy, which she continued to conceal at Cristaldi’s insistence, Carddinale had depression and suicidal thoughts, begging her management to end the arrangement.
Instead, under false pretenses that she was studying English for a role, Cristaldi sent her to London, away from the media.
She claimed that an unnamed man who raped her was the father of her child, Patrick, who was born in 1975. Until he turned 19, Patrick’s identity as her son was unknown.
In 2017, Cardinale informed Italian journalist Enzo Biagi of the horrifying truth of her pregnancy. She said, “A man I didn’t know, much older than me, forced me to go up to car and raped me.” The most beautiful thing is that the violence produced my wonderful Patrick, despite the fact that it was terrible. In reality, even though it was a really challenging situation for a single mother, I decided against getting an abortion.
She went on, “That man returned after finding out I was pregnant and insisted that I get an abortion. I didn’t even consider getting rid of my creature for a second!
“With him I was practically an employee, a subordinate who was paid a month for the four films I made a year: I didn’t even call him by name, but by surname,” Cardinale claimed about Cristaldi, who dominated her life. My mother and father were enraged, and I felt trapped.He was with me because I wasn’t in love. In summary, Cristaldi was undoubtedly a superb producer, but it would be preferable to ignore it on a personal level.
She left Cristaldi in 1975, but their turbulent relationship didn’t hinder her career.
The natural beauty, who debuted alongside Omar Sharif in the French-Tunisian film Goha, immediately established herself as one of Italy’s top actors. In 1960, she starred in Rocco and his Brothers. In 1963, she costarred alongside Marcello Mastroianni in the Oscar-winning picture 8½ and Burt Lancaster in The Leopard. Award-winning director Martin Scorsese declares both of his films, in which she portrayed an object of desire that seemed unachievable, to be among his top 12 favorites.
“Brigitte Bardot, an Italian”
She gained popularity in Hollywood after costarring with David Nivens in The Pink Panther. She later appeared on cinema with John Wayne and Rita Hayworth in Circus World (1964).
Cardinale, who costarred with movie stars Henry Fonda, Jason Robards, and Charles Bronson in the 1968 U.S.-Italian film Once Upon a Time in the West, received praise for her performance as a prostitute.
However, in 1971’s The Legend of Frenchie King, viewers relished seeing Cardinale, who was nicknamed the Italian Brigitte Bardot, with the real Bardot, who was her competition and friend. How did she differ from Bardot? “I always thought it was more erotic to leave some room to imagination, hinting at things rather than showing everything,” she stated, referring to the fact that she has never been seen naked in a movie.
Hollywood was a profitable and difficult place to work. Cardinale stated in a Life story that she wants to leave the patriarchal Hollywood system, calling herself “the most admired international film star since Sophia Loren.” Cardinale remarked, “If I have to give up the money, I give it up,” in reference to the lesser pay in Europe. I don’t want to sound cliched.
“Time cannot be stopped.”
Despite the slowdown in her career, Cardinale expressed her satisfaction at removing herself from the sexualized spotlight.
As a child, I wanted to see the world. And I was successful. I never went nude or altered my appearance. I truly don’t like that. I would rather be myself since time cannot be halted,” Cardinale said.
Cardinale married Italian director Pasquale Squitieri in 1975, and the two stayed together until his death in 2017. The couple’s only child is named Claudia.
In 2022, Cardinale addressed rumors that she had been taken without her will to the hospital. She stated that she was living near her family in France and was in good health. And to all of you, pleasant summer.
Cardinale has an active relationship with UNESCO in her current position as the goodwill ambassador for the preservation of women’s rights.
Although Claudia Cardinale had a prosperous life, it was also filled with trauma. It’s great to see her story encouraging other ladies, and we hope she continues to be healthy. What is your favorite Cardinale film?