At her peak from the late 1950s into the late 1960s she was a rival of top "Hollywood Italian imports" Sophia Loren, Gina Lollobrigida and Claudia Cardinale. Her slim, sexy figure and elfin looks birthed the quip that she was a “kind of Audrey Hepburn with sex appeal”. Outside her busy film career, Martinelli was a member of the glitterati, married to an Italian count and befriending such international celebrities as Maria Callas, Aristotle Onassis and Jackie Kennedy.[2]
Martinelli made over 50 film appearances between 1954 and 1992.
Life and career
Elsa Martinelli was born Elisa Tia in Grosseto, Tuscany, and moved to Rome with her family. In 1953, she was discovered by Roberto Capucci, who introduced her to the world of fashion. She became a model and began playing small roles in films, such as Le Rouge et le Noir (1954). But her first important film role came the following year in The Indian Fighter opposite Kirk Douglas, who claimed to have spotted her on a magazine cover and hired her for his production company, Bryna Productions.[3] Douglas subsequently signed her to a two-year/two pictures a year non-exclusive contract with Bryna Productions in February 1956.[4]
From the late 1960s onward, Martinelli's output decreased as she worked in mostly European foreign-language productions, such as Manon 70 (1968); One on Top of the Other (1969); and L'amica (1969—for which she won a Silver Ribbon for Best Supporting Actress). Her last English-language role was in Once Upon a Crime (1992). Her final acting appearance was in the 2005 European television series Orgoglio, as the Duchessa di Monteforte.[7]
Personal life
Martinelli married Count Franco Mancinelli Scotti di San Vito in 1957, by whom she had a daughter, Cristiana Mancinelli (born 1958), also an actress. They separated in 1960, but it took until six years for an official annulment. In 1968 she married Willy Rizzo, the Paris Match photographer and 1970s furniture designer.[2][8] The marriage ended in divorce in 1978.
Death
Martinelli died of cancer[9] in Rome on 8 July 2017, at the age of 82.[10][11]