Calogero Alessandro Augusto Calà, known by his stage name Jerry Calà (born 28 June 1951), is an Italian actor, filmmaker, comedian and singer who has written, directed, and acted in multiple film and television projects. He is considered one of the most popular Italian comedians of the eighties and nineties in his country.[1]

Jerry Calà
Born
Calogero Calà

(1951-06-28) 28 June 1951 (age 73)
Catania, Italy
NationalityItalian
Occupation(s)actor, film director
Spouses
(m. 1984; div. 1987)
Elisabetta Castioni
(m. 2002)
Children1

Background

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Calà was born Calogero Calà in Catania, and as a child he moved first to Milan and then to Verona.[2] He married the Italian showgirl Mara Venier in 1984, but divorced three years later. He remarried in 2002 with the businesswoman Elisabetta Castioni and in 2003, his son Johnny was born.[2] He considers himself Roman Catholic.[3]

Career

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In the early 1970s Calà co-founded together with Umberto Smaila, Franco Oppini and Ninì Salerno a cabaret-ensemble, "I Gatti di Vicolo Miracoli".[2] In the early 80s, after two films with the group, he started a solo career as a leading actor in numerous comedy films, obtaining great popularity in Italy.[2] In 1993, he starred in the dramatic movie Diary of a Maniac, directed by Marco Ferreri which was entered into the 43rd Berlin International Film Festival, where Calà won the award for best actor by the Italian film critics.[4] He debuted as director in 1994 with Chicken Park, a low-budget parody of Jurassic Park.[5][2]

Filmography

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Jerry Calà's signature

As director

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As actor

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References

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  1. ^ Uva, Christian; Picchi, Michele (2006). "Gli anni '80: il rosso e il nero dall'horror ai Vanzina". Destra e sinistra nel cinema italiano: film e immaginario politico dagli anni '60 al nuovo millennio (in Italian). Rome: Edizioni interculturali. p. 119. ISBN 88-88375-66-X. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e Lancia, Enrico; Poppi, Roberto (2003). 3: Gli attori: dal 1930 ai giorni nostri (in Italian). Vol. 1: A-L. Rome: Gremese. ISBN 88-8440-213-1.
  3. ^ Giordano, Lucio (20 January 2023). "Dio esiste e io sono vivo per un Suo miracolo: mi salvò da un incidente". Dipiù (in Italian). No. 3. pp. 86–89.
  4. ^ "Berlinale: 1993 Programme". berlinale.de. Archived from the original on 8 May 2005. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  5. ^ Giusti, Marco (1999). Dizionario dei film italiani stracult (in Italian). Milan: Sperling & Kupfer. ISBN 88-200-2919-7.
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