Valentina Cortese

About

Valentina Cortese (January 1, 1923 - July 10, 2019) was an Italian film actress. The Milan-born actress starred in The House on Telegraph Hill (1951) directed by Robert Wise, and costarring Richard Basehart and William Lundigan. Cortese, aged 28, married Basehart in 1951, and had one son with him before they divorced in 1960. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1975 for her performance in François Truffaut's Day for Night. Cortese appeared in Jules Dassin's Thieves' Highway (1949), Joseph L. Mankiewicz's The Barefoot Contessa (1954), Michelangelo Antonioni's Le Amiche (1955), Gérard Brach's The Boat on the Grass, Terry Gilliam's The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988), and in the Franco Zeffirelli projects such as the 1972 film Brother Sun, Sister Moon, his 1977 miniseries, Jesus of Nazareth and the 1993 film Sparrow.

Known for

Lux Video TheatreSeries • 1950Jesus of NazarethSeries • 1977The Adventures of Baron MunchausenMovie • 1988AppassionataMovie • 1974The Barefoot ContessaMovie • 1954Day for NightMovie • 1973Brother Sun, Sister MoonMovie • 1972The Rocket from CalabuchMovie • 1956Black MagicMovie • 1949BarabbasMovie • 1961The Girl Who Knew Too MuchMovie • 1963Thieves' HighwayMovie • 1949Juliet of the SpiritsMovie • 1965The Secret of Santa VittoriaMovie • 1970The PossessedMovie • 1965When Time Ran Out...Movie • 1980La Classe américaineMovie • 1993The Assassination of TrotskyMovie • 1972Give Her the MoonMovie • 1970The VisitMovie • 1964The Iguana with the Tongue of FireMovie • 1971Kidnap SyndicateMovie • 1975The Legend of Lylah ClareMovie • 1968The House on Telegraph HillMovie • 1951