AMATO, GIUSEPPE

(1889-1964)

Actor, director, producer. After having worked for many years in various capacities in the Neapolitan film industry, Amato emigrated to America where, for a time, he tried unsuccessfully to become a Hollywood film producer. Returning to Italy in 1932, he producedCinque a zero(Five to Nil, 1932), a film directed byMario Bonnardthat employed the talents of veteran Sicilian stage actor Angelo Musco. This was followed by a string of popular comedies, among themTre uomini in frac(I Sing for You Alone, 1932) andIl cappello a tre punte(The Three-Cornered Hat, 1934), two of the first films to starEduardoandPeppino De Filippo.

In the following years Peppino, as he was universally known, produced many ofMario Camerini's films, among themBatticuore(Heartbeat, 1939),Igrandi magazzini(Department Store, 1939), andUna romantica avventura(A Romantic Adventure, 1940), as well asAlessandro Blasetti'sLa cena delle beffe(The Jester's Supper, 1940) andQuattro passi fra le nuvole(A Stroll through the Clouds, 1942).

In the postwar period he distinguished himself further as producer of several of the great classics ofneorealismincludingVittorio De Sica'sSciuscia(Shoe-Shine, 1946),Ladri di biciclette(Bicycle Thieves, 1948), andUmberto D(1952).He was also associate producer (usually uncredited) forRoberto Rossellini'sRoma citta aperta(Rome Open City, 1945) and forFrancesco, giullare di Dio(Francis, God's Jester, 1950). His final, and perhaps greatest, triumph as a producer wasFederico Fellini's landmarkLa dolce vita(1960).

Remembered affectionately as one of the Italian film industry's most colorful characters, Amato also directed a handful of films, among themYvonne la nuit(Yvonne of the Night, 1949) andDonne proibite(Angels of Darkness, 1954).