Class Act Virna Lisi

Her beauty captured the attention of producers on two continents, but her talent kept her working through seven decades.

Born Virna Pieralisi in Ancona on Nov. 8, 1936, Virna Lisi began acting as a teenager and was cast in her first starring role in the 1953 melodrama “...e Napoli canta!” (Napoli Sings). Although the role opened doors, most directors were not yet able to see beyond her striking beauty and therefore cast her in roles based more on her looks than her acting ability. One of those early parts was as an extra opposite Alberto Sordi in Antonio Pietrangeli’s 1956 “Lo scapolo” (The Bachelor). 

In 1961, she starred in Francesco Maselli’s drama “La donna del giorno” (The Doll That Took the Town) as Liliana, a struggling model who makes up a story about being assaulted by three men. The film was released in the United States, where Hollywood executives saw her and believed they had discovered the European version of Marilyn Monroe. 

Lisi made her American debut a few years later opposite Jack Lemmon in Richard Quine’s 1965 comedy “How to Murder Your Wife.”  The film follows Stanley Ford (Lemmon), a successful Manhattan cartoonist and contented bachelor. After a night of partying, he wakes to realize that he has married an Italian woman who doesn’t speak English. The new Mrs. Ford (Lisi) is in love with Stanley and does her best to be a good wife by cooking, watching American movies to learn English, and showing her new husband constant affection. Feeling smothered, Stanley finds himself exhausted and out of sorts. At the same time, his comic strip is becoming very popular as he documents the woes of married life.

Missing his time as a bachelor, he comes up with a plan that would get rid of his wife and the chaos she has brought with her. He sets the plan in motion, foolishly detailing it in his comic strip. The illustrations receive national news coverage, but when Mrs. Ford sees them, she becomes heartbroken and leaves. When she can’t be reached for comment by the press, Stanley is accused of actually murdering her and goes on trial. In the end, he realizes that, despite the downsides of marriage, he truly misses her. 

Lisi played a more complex character that showcased her acting skills and impeccable comic timing in Norman Panama’s 1966 comedy “Not With My Wife, You Don’t!” Sharing the screen with Tony Curtis and George C. Scott, she stars as Julie, an Italian war nurse who falls for two fighter pilots. The film begins with Julie and her husband, Tom Ferris (Curtis), bickering and taking each other for granted. Tom is an Air Force colonel determined to climb the ranks while Julie wants to start a family and travel less. 

A gathering of Air Force personnel triggers memories for Tom of the Korean War, when he first met Julie and “Tank” Martin (Scott), a fellow pilot with whom he was always in competition. Injured in a bar brawl that ensues when he and Tank are fighting over a girl, Tom is admitted to the military hospital, where he falls in love with the nurse, his future wife, Julie. 

The smooth-talking Tank also meets and woos Julie, who backs away completely when she realizes she’s falling for both. When Tank’s plane is shot down in combat, Tom receives a notice that Tank was rescued by a naval ship and will only require a month of hospitalization. Relieved to hear it, Tom nevertheless burns the notice and tells Julie that Tank is presumed dead, paving the way for their courtship and marriage. Drama ensues when the truth finally comes out, but love prevails in the end. The perfectly cast film includes a strong supporting performance by Carroll O’Connor and a charming cameo by Bob Hope.

Lisi continued to work on Hollywood films through the ’60s. Her credits during that decade include “Assault on a Queen” (1966), in which she co-stars with Frank Sinatra, and “The Secret of Santa Vittoria” (1969), a WWII film shot on location in Italy. The latter co-stars Anthony Quinn and features several Italian actors, including Anna Magnani and Giancarlo Giannini, as well as master cinematographer Giuseppe Rotunno. 

Lisi’s film career slowed down considerably in the following decades as she opted to spend more time with her husband, Franco Pesci, whom she married in 1960, and their son, Corrado. Even though she lessened her workload, the projects she took on had great significance to her career, earning her several awards, including the David di Donatello, the Nastro d’Argento and France’s César.

Her final projects were directed by Cristina Comencini and featured some of the most intense dramatic performances of her career. 

Adapted from Susanna Tamaro’s novel, Comencini’s 1997 drama “Follow Your Heart” is a sentimental story that takes place during two different time periods. The tale is told by Olga, a grandmother who writes journals recalling the past for her estranged granddaughter, whom she raised like her own child. Margherita Buy and Lisi are spectacular playing Olga during different time periods. The journal entries answer questions surrounding the death of the girl’s mother. “To make mistakes is natural, but to leave without understanding them takes away the meaning of life,” Lisi as Olga claims. It’s such a moving story, perfectly adapted by these actresses from different generations.

Lisi’s last film, the 2014 comedy “Latin Lover,” tells the tale of four half-sisters who are forced to face long-buried secrets 10 years after the death of their father, the famous actor Saverio (Francesco Scianna).

The ensemble cast includes Saverio’s Italian daughter, Susanna (Angela Finocchiaro); his French daughter, Stephanie (Valeria Bruni Tedeschi); his Spanish daughter, Segunda (Candela Peña); and his Swedish daughter, Solveig (Pihla Viitala), who had little contact with him. There is also a possible fifth daughter, an American, Shelley (Nadeah Miranda), who is awaiting the results of a DNA test. None of the half-siblings got to experience a truly great father, but each mythologized and loved him in different ways during different periods in his triumphant career.

The film explores the consequences of infidelity and how the offspring of multiple marriages and affairs have to deal with the voids, resentments, and nontraditional family ties that result. Lisi is as beautiful and graceful as ever in the role of Saverio’s first wife, Rita, carrying each scene with the poise and elegance of a true class act. 

Lisi succumbed to lung cancer in 2014. An article published by the website Gossip Fanpage at the time of her death stated, “Virna Lisi’s heart stopped the day her husband died.” The two had a love affair that lasted for 53 years. She passed away less than a year after his death in December of 2013. 

Lisi was an extraordinary artist who remains highly regarded by audiences of all ages. Many of her films, including those in this article, are available online to stream. Click on the titles for direct links.

- Written by Jeannine Guilyard for the July 2022 issue of Fra Noi Magazine. Click here to subscribe.