Martinelli, Elsa (1932—)

Italian actress . Born in Grosseto, Italy, in 1932; married; children: Cristiana Mancinelli (an actress).

Selected filmography:

The Indian Fighter (US, 1955); La Risaia (Rice Girl, 1956); Donatella (1956); Four Girls in Town (US, 1957); Manuela (Stowaway Girl, UK, 1957); I Battellieri del Volga (Prisoner of the Volga, 1958); Gosta Azzura (1959); Ciao Ciao Bambina (1959); La Notte Brava (1959); Un Amore a Roma (1960); Et Mourir de Plaisir (Blood and Roses, Fr.-It., 1960); Hatari (US, 1962); The Pigeon That Took Rome (US, 1962); Le Procès (The Trial, Fr.-It.-Ger., 1962); Rampage (US, 1963); The V.I.P.s (UK, 1963); De L'Amour (Fr.-It., 1965); La Fabuleuse Aventure de Marco Polo (Marco the Magnificent, Fr.-It.-Ger., 1967); La Decima Vittima (The Tenth Victim, 1965); Maroc 7 (UK, 1966); Sept fois Femme (Woman Times Seven, Fr.-It.-US, 1967); Le plus Vieux Métier du Monde (The Oldest Profession, Fr.-It.-Ger., 1967); Candy (US-Fr.-It., 1969); El Millón de Madigan (Madigan's Millions, Sp.-It., 1969); Maldonne (Fr.-It., 1969); L'Amica (1969); Les Chemins de Kathmandou (Fr.-It., 1969); La Part de Lion (Fr., 1971); Una sull'altra (One on Top of the Other, 1971); L'Araucana Massacro degli Dei (1972); Il Garofano Rosso (1976); Sono un Fenomeno paranormale (1986); Pygmalion 88 (1988); Once Upon a Crime (1991).

The daughter of a minor government employee, Elsa Martinelli was a barmaid and a model before being discovered by Kirk Douglas, who launched her film career by securing her a role in his movie The Indian Fighter (1955). The actress, slim, with cat-like qualities, graced Italian and international films throughout the 1960s, although her early unsophisticated roles were said to have far surpassed the cosmopolitan roles of her later career. Martinelli's daughter Cristiana Mancinelli is also a screen actress.