L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, AUGUST 20, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 20 L'Italo-Americano WE ARE SENDING  YOU TO  L'Italo Americano's Sweepstakes are back. It's time to go back to Sicily. Get your tickets today at www.italoamericano.rallyup.com/ciaosicilia N O P U R C H A S E N E C E S S A R Y L e g a l R e s i d e n t s o f t h e 5 0 U n i t e s S t a t e s , 1 8 y e a r s a n d o l d e r D e a d l i n e t o E n t e r : 1 1 / 0 6 / 2 0 2 0 1 2 : 0 0 P M P a c i f i c T i m e ( U S & C a n a d a ) W i n n e r A n n o u n c e d : 1 1 / 1 1 / 2 0 2 0 1 2 : 0 0 P M P a c i f i c T i m e ( U S & C a n a d a ) D e t a i l e d r u l e s o n : https://italoamericano.rallyup.com/ciaosicilia Void where prohibited by law. Sicily good journalist and a good president? I ask him. "He was fighting for the truth and fighting for education. He touched a lot of people in a positive way. We are recei- ving hundreds of letters these days. I strongly believe that life is not what you achieve, it's the people you touch." And he definitely touched the heart of many as demon- strated by recent news that Los Angeles City College w i l l d e d i c a t e a n a n n u a l scholarship to Lorenzo's m e m o r y . I n 2 0 1 5 T h e H o l l y w o o d F o r e i g n P r e s s pledged a $2 million grant to the Los Angeles City College to support its film and TV program. Since then, the film studies department has been known as the HFPA Center f o r C i n e m a a n d Television. "And it's happe- ning again, this time with his n a m e o n i t . " A r m a n d o underlines. In his role as President of the HFPA, Soria would often appear on the Globes broad- cast welcoming guests, and was a fixture at the early- garden. He texted me the day after to thank me. That was my farewell to him." A n d a s A r m a n d o g e t s e m o t i o n a l i n m e n t i o n i n g their last dinner together, he tells me how a glimpse of happiness and hope came his way right after Lorenzo's funeral, while he was driving back home. "I just looked up the sky and I saw this beauti- ful, biblical cloud. Look, I took a picture." He takes his m o r n i n g n o m i n a t i o n s announcements. "Celebrities w o u l d f e e l v e r y s a f e w i t h him, he was very kind, he would always make them feel comfortable. He met so many people, and he conquered everybody with his gentle and kind behavior. He did many good things, until the end. Last time I talked to him it was on Thursday on Zoom, just before an interview with Oliver Stone. We waved at e a c h o t h e r s : " L o r è ! — A r m a n d o ! " A n d t h e f o l - l o w i n g m o r n i n g h e w a s gone." But for Armando there is another significant "goodbye moment" with Lorenzo, one he will cherishes for the rest of his life. "I was lucky enou- gh to have him here for din- ner at my house on July 10th. He had just gotten out of a radiation treatment in the same place where I did the treatment myself ten years ago, and so we cheered each other up. After leaving the hospital, he came by for din- ner with his son Max; we went outside in my patio, our friend Carlo Siliotti was there too. We had a great spaghet- tata with tomatoes from my phone and shows me this big, fluffy cloud, unlikely to be seen in the usually clear sum- m e r s k i e s o f S o u t h e r n California. "I think it was a sign from him. He liked to play tricks like that." LOS ANGELES ITALIAN COMMUNITY Lorenzo Soria and Al Pacino (Photo courtesy of HFPA) Continued from page 18

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