(1905-1990)
Actor and director. Of modest working-class origins, Fabrizi began acting in stage revues and cabaret in the 1930s, soon becoming famous for his endearing characters and vaudeville routines. His first foray into cinema was in Avanti c'e posto (Before the Postman, 1942), directed by Mario Bonnard, which allowed him to transfer one of his stage personas to the screen. He played similar roles in Bonnard's Campo de' Fiori (Peddler and the Lady, 1943), set in the very working-class area of Rome where Fabrizi was born, and Mario Mattoli's L'ultima carozzella (The Last Wagon, 1943). Although he had already become widely known in Italy, he then came to international renown as the character of Don Pietro, the courageous priest who lends his support to the Resistance movement and pays the price, in Roberto Rossellini's Roma citta aperta (Rome Open City, 1945, also known as Open City). After more leading roles in neorealist films such as Luigi Zampa's Vivere in pace (To Live in Peace, 1946), he also tried his hand at directing, with Emigrantes (Immigrants, 1949), La famiglia Passaguai (The Passaguai Family, 1951), and with what is generally regarded as his best self-directed film, Il Maestro (The Teacher and the Miracle, 1957).
He returned to comedy in a number of films with Toto but also continued to do stage comedy and revues. In 1964 he scored a great triumph on Broadway when he was hailed as a comic genius for his interpretation of the role of Mastro Titta in Pietro Garinei and Sandro Giovannini's musical comedy Rugantino. His last film appearances were as the Governor in an adaptation of the Tosca story directed by Luigi Magni in 1974, and as the grotesquely overweight wealthy father-in-law in Ettore Scola's C'eravamo tanto amati (We All Loved Each Other So Much, 1974), for which he received a Nastro d'argento as best supporting actor. Shortly before his death in 1990 he was awarded a David di Donatello for career achievement. His iconic status as one of the great actors of the Italian cinema was further confirmed in 1996 when the Italian postal service issued a stamp in his honor.
Historical Dictionary of Italian Cinema by Alberto Mira
Guide to cinema. Academic. 2011.