Vittorio Rietti
Encyclopedia
Vittorio Rietti was an Italian-born stage and movie actor and director who later achieved success in British television. He was knighted by the Italian government for his achievements using Italian-language dramas.
, who recommended him to Eleonora Duse
. Duse gave him several parts in her acting troupe.
Rietti was drafted into the Italian Army during World War I
. After the war he resumed pursuing acting roles, and achieved enough success that he was able to found his own company, Teatro Italiano (later known as Cosmopolitan Theater and then International Theater). The company staged popular Italian plays that he had translated into English.
On 9 June 1920 Rietti married Rachel Rosenay. They had two children, Robert and Ronald. Robert
also became a noted actor (often credited as Robert Rietty), and Ronald became a noted producer and director.
Rietti obtained several roles in 1930-1940s motion pictures, often providing comedy relief.
When World War II
broke out Rietti and his two sons were in England
. Being "enemy nationals", they were held for two years in internment camps.
In the 1920s Rietti had translated a play by Italian playwright Giovacchino Forzano
and had produced it in his Teatro Italiano as To Live in Peace. In the 1950s he adapted the play for a ninety-minute BBC television production, shown on Sunday Night Playhouse; he also acted in the production. The production was well-received, being named Best Play (1951).
For British television Rietti also produced two other Italian plays that he had previously translated and produced in his Teatro Italiano: The Wanderer (1952); and Against the Stream (1957); he acted in both productions.
For some of his work, Rietti is credited as Victor Rieth. To many of his entertainment colleagues he was known as Papa Rietti. His headstone is marked Vittorio Rietti.
In 1923 Rietti had been diagnosed with a heart condition that could easily prove fatal. However, he lived until 1963, when he died in London
from a heart attack
. He was survived by his wife and children. He is buried in the Golders Green Jewish Cemetery, in Greater London, England.
Biography
Born Vittorio Rietti in Ferrara, Italy, to the large (21 children) family of Samuele and Lucia Rietti, he was raised by an older sister in Peregallo. He began acting while in his teens, and was noticed by Tommaso SalviniTommaso Salvini
Tommaso Salvini was an Italian actor. His father and mother were both actors, and Tommaso first appeared when he was barely fourteen as Pasquino in Goldoni's Donne curiose. In 1847 he joined the company of Adelaide Ristori, who was then at the beginning of her brilliant career...
, who recommended him to Eleonora Duse
Eleonora Duse
-Life and career:Duse was born in Vigevano, Lombardy, and began acting as a child. Both her father and her grandfather were actors, and she joined the troupe at age four. Due to poverty, she initially worked continually, traveling from city to city with whichever troupe her family was currently...
. Duse gave him several parts in her acting troupe.
Rietti was drafted into the Italian Army during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. After the war he resumed pursuing acting roles, and achieved enough success that he was able to found his own company, Teatro Italiano (later known as Cosmopolitan Theater and then International Theater). The company staged popular Italian plays that he had translated into English.
On 9 June 1920 Rietti married Rachel Rosenay. They had two children, Robert and Ronald. Robert
Robert Rietti
Robert Rietti , usually credited as Robert Rietty, is a Italian actor and director.- Biography :Born of Italian heritage, Lucio Rietti was “discovered” at the age of 8 by his father Vittorio who noticed the boy had completely memorized a copy of a script he had given Lucio having wanted help from...
also became a noted actor (often credited as Robert Rietty), and Ronald became a noted producer and director.
Rietti obtained several roles in 1930-1940s motion pictures, often providing comedy relief.
When World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
broke out Rietti and his two sons were in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Being "enemy nationals", they were held for two years in internment camps.
In the 1920s Rietti had translated a play by Italian playwright Giovacchino Forzano
Giovacchino Forzano
Giovacchino Forzano was an Italian playwright, librettist, stage director, and film director. A resourceful writer, he produced opera librettos for most of the major Italian composers of the early twentieth century, including the librettos for Giacomo Puccini's Suor Angelica and Gianni...
and had produced it in his Teatro Italiano as To Live in Peace. In the 1950s he adapted the play for a ninety-minute BBC television production, shown on Sunday Night Playhouse; he also acted in the production. The production was well-received, being named Best Play (1951).
For British television Rietti also produced two other Italian plays that he had previously translated and produced in his Teatro Italiano: The Wanderer (1952); and Against the Stream (1957); he acted in both productions.
For some of his work, Rietti is credited as Victor Rieth. To many of his entertainment colleagues he was known as Papa Rietti. His headstone is marked Vittorio Rietti.
Partial filmography
- Sinfonia Fatale (1946) - Beppo
- A Man About the HouseA Man About the House (1947 film)A Man About the House is a black-and-white British film directed by Leslie Arliss and released in 1947. The film is a melodrama, adapted for the screen by J.B. Williams from the 1942 novel of the same name by Francis Brett Young...
(1947) - porter - The Glass MountainThe Glass Mountain (film)The Glass Mountain is a film released in 1949. It starred Michael Denison, Dulcie Gray and Valentina Cortese. The theme music by Nino Rota is memorable...
(1949) - - Mr. H.C. Anderson (1950) - King Frederick
- To Live in Peace (1951 television movie) - writer, Don Geronimo
- Sunday Night TheatreSunday Night TheatreSunday Night Theatre was a long-running series of plays created by the BBC first in early 1950, and was regularly shown on Sundays until late 1959, when the last play, A Cup of Kindness, was staged...
(1952 episode: The Wanderer) - writer/adaptation, Martino - As I Was Saying (television series, one 1955 episode: An Eye for Detail)
- The Story of Esther CostelloThe Story of Esther CostelloThe Story of Esther Costello is a 1957 British drama film starring Joan Crawford, Rossano Brazzi, and Heather Sears . The film is an exposé of large-scale fundraising. The Story of Esther Costello was produced by David Miller and Jack Clayton with Miller directing...
(1957) - Signor Gatti - The Jack Benny ProgramThe Jack Benny ProgramThe Jack Benny Program, starring Jack Benny, is a radio-TV comedy series that ran for more than three decades and is generally regarded as a high-water mark in 20th-century American comedy.-Cast:*Jack Benny - Himself...
(television series, one 1957 episode) - tour guide - Your Past Is ShowingThe Naked Truth (1957 film)The Naked Truth is a 1957 British film comedy starring Peter Sellers, Terry-Thomas and Dennis Price. Peggy Mount, Shirley Eaton and Joan Sims also appear...
(1957) - doctor - Dick and the DuchessDick and the DuchessDick and the Duchess is a rare 1950s CBS situation comedy filmed and set in London, England, and starring Patrick O'Neal and Hazel Court. O'Neal, a cousin of actor Ryan O'Neal, starred as Dick Starrett, an American insurance claims investigator based in London, who is married to Jane, an attractive...
(television series, one 1958 episode: The Italian Maid) - Poppa - Armchair Theatre (television series, one 1958 episode: A Gust of Wind) - Tribunal President
- Sunday Night Theatre (1959 episode: Against the Stream) - translator, Professor Totti
- The Story of Joseph and his Brethren (1960) - baker
- The Man from Interpol (television series, one 1960 episode: A Man Alone) - Manager
- ITV Television Playhouse (television series, one 1960 episode: Act of Terror) - Arturo Benevida
- Danger ManDanger ManDanger Man is a British television series that was broadcast between 1960 and 1962, and again between 1964 and 1968. The series featured Patrick McGoohan as secret agent John Drake. Ralph Smart created the program and wrote many of the scripts...
(television series, one 1961 episode: The Trap) - Papa - Village of DaughtersVillage of DaughtersVillage of Daughters is a 1962 British comedy film directed by George Pollock.-Plot:Herbert Harris is a traveling salesman who makes his way into a remote Italian village to sell his wares. There, he finds many single and attractive women who all pursue him madly. He quickly learns that the village...
(1962) - Luigi - The SaintThe Saint (TV series)The Saint was an ITC mystery spy thriller television series that aired in the UK on ITV between 1962 and 1969. It centred on the Leslie Charteris literary character, Simon Templar, a Robin Hood-like adventurer with a penchant for disguise. The character may be nicknamed The Saint because the...
(television series, one 1962 episode: The Charitable Countess) - Count Alzerno - Come Fly with MeCome Fly with Me (film)Come Fly with Me is a 1963 comedy film about three beautiful international airline stewardesses looking for romance and excitement. The film has dramatic or soap opera elements to it, and was a vehicle for glamorizing the jet age and the prestige, adventure and romance that came with being a...
(1963) - - Harry's GirlsHarry's GirlsHarry's Girls is an American situation comedy which appeared on NBC from September 13, 1963, to January 3, 1964. The series stars Larry Blyden portraying Henry Burns, the leader of a vaudeville troupe consisting of three young women. The co-stars were Dawn Nickerson as Lois, Susan Silo as Rusty,...
(television series, two 1963 episodes: Pilot, The Director) - Salvatore
Honors and death
Both Rietti and son Robert were knighted by the Italian Government (23 July 1959) for their contributions to the Italian entertainment industry, particularly for their efforts to bring popular Italian works to the English-speaking world.In 1923 Rietti had been diagnosed with a heart condition that could easily prove fatal. However, he lived until 1963, when he died in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
from a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
. He was survived by his wife and children. He is buried in the Golders Green Jewish Cemetery, in Greater London, England.