L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2024 www.italoamericano.org 4 I n Rome, a grand cel- ebration at Cinecittà m a r k e d S o p h i a L o r e n ' s 9 0 t h birthday. Her son, director Edoardo Ponti, w h o d i r e c t e d h e r t h r e e t i m e s o n s e t i n B e t w e e n Strangers, Voce umana, and the intense The Life Ahead, addressed her with heartfelt words. It was Edoardo who, for a moment, set aside her status as a screen legend— the diva, recipient of two Oscars, five Golden Globes, a Golden Lion, a Volpi Cup at Venice, a Grammy Award, a C a n n e s P r i x , a G o l d e n Bear for Lifetime Achieve- ment at Berlin, and numer- o u s D a v i d d i D o n a t e l l o awards. He did not recount her accolades. Instead, he h i g h l i g h t e d t h e p e r s o n a l c o n n e c t i o n , m o m e n t a r i l y setting aside the fact that the American Film Institute ranked her 21st among the g r e a t e s t A m e r i c a n f i l m actresses of all time, and that she has a star on the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame. In November, Holly- wood will honor her with a major retrospective at the A c a d e m y o f M o t i o n P i c - tures, alongside a concert in Santa Monica conducted by Maestro Carlo Ponti, her eldest son, with producer Carlo Ponti. In front of all the guests, at a celebration where she w a s p r e s e n t e d w i t h t h e first-ever Keys to Cinecit- tà, her son Edoardo looked her in the eyes and spoke to her as a mother, expressing not only his filial love but also a quintessentially Ital- ian sense of family: "Mom," he said, "you are our light, a n d l i g h t h a s n o t i m e o r age. You are a light that this country carries like a torch around the world, and that we all carry in our hearts and in the deepest parts of our lives. The light you pro- j e c t i s t h e l i g h t o f y o u r b e a u t y , w h i c h h e l p s u s appreciate the beauty with- in all of us. It's the light of your humanity, which helps us understand each other a little better. It's the light of y o u r w i s d o m , w h i c h encourages us to believe in ourselves even when it's not so easy. It's the light of dig- n i t y a n d c o u r a g e t h a t shines through your exam- ple of never denying or for- g e t t i n g y o u r r o o t s a n d n e v e r a l l o w i n g a n o t h e r l i g h t — t h a t o f t h e s p o t - light—to steal your identity. You are a star, not for your success, but for your sim- plicity." He reminded everyone that Sophia Loren, synony- mous with Italian cinema and a respected American star, is an ambassador of Italian culture worldwide, an icon of La Dolce Vita, embodying beauty, authen- t i c i t y , a n d h u m a n i t y . H e a c k n o w l e d g e d t h e d e e p importance of her connec- tion to her roots, highlight- ing how her success has not e r a s e d b u t e l e v a t e d h e r past. O c t o b e r i s I t a l i a n - A m e r i c a n H e r i t a g e Month, a time to recognize t h e c o n t r i b u t i o n s o f t h e Italian community to the development and progress of American society. It is a celebration of the achieve- ments and successes of Ital- ian immigrants and Italian- A m e r i c a n s , w h o t o d a y represent the fifth-largest ethnic group in the United States. P e r h a p s t h e r e w a s n o b e t t e r i n t r o d u c t i o n t o explain the significance of a celebration like this, which seeks to emphasize the last- ing impact of Italian immi- gration on American cul- t u r e . I t ' s n o t j u s t a b o u t people who, proud of their tricolored roots, have con- tributed to and continue to s h a p e A m e r i c a n c u l t u r e , economy, or science. It's a b o u t p e o p l e w h o h a v e m a d e , a n d c o n t i n u e t o m a k e , a c u l t u r a l i m p a c t , leaving a profound imprint on society and customs. T a k e A m e d e o P e t e r Giannini, who wasn't just an American banker. Born in 1870 to Genoese immi- grants, he was one of the founders of the Bank of America alongside Venet- ian Lionello Perera. He was also the first to use adver- tising, the first to finance installment car sales, and t h e f i r s t t o c o n c e i v e o f banking as a public service, n o t j u s t f o r t h e w e a l t h y . He's considered the inven- t o r o f m o d e r n b a n k i n g practices, the first to offer f i n a n c i a l s e r v i c e s t o t h e middle class, and even to lend money to women—rev- olutionary for the time. Today, a documentary by d i r e c t o r D a v i d e F i o r e , who himself arrived in the Bay Area from Turin, traces Giannini's career and lega- c y , w h i c h w a s n o t o n l y financial. For example, with great foresight, he financed w h a t w o u l d b e c o m e t h e symbol of San Francisco: the Golden Gate Bridge. Italian-American Heritage Month: celebrating a proud and lasting legacy BARBARA MINAFRA NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS CONTINUED TO PAGE 6 © Arsenii Popel | Dreamstime.com

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