Valeria Moriconi (Pupella) stated in an interview that the spaghetti scene was improvised as they had only rehearsed approaching the spaghetti and no more. Furthermore, Toto inadvertently put into his pocket a "spiral" (a hot smoking device placed in the food to make it look piping hot) and the scene had to be stopped as his jacket caught fire.
In real life lead actor Totò was obsessed with nobility. Adopted by a Marquis, he fought a long legal battle to see even his real paternal family recognized as noble (an impoverished branch of the ancient De Curtis family). In 1946 he was recognized an impressive string of titles, including Prince, Duke and Count, although controversies about the veracity of them lasted for years.
Film version of a 1888 play by Eduardo Scarpetta, father of actors Eduardo, Peppino and Titina De Filippo. Totò worked a lot with the De Filippo siblings, in particular with Peppino. Dolores Palumbo and Enzo Turco, who play respectively Luisella and Pasquale, were actors of the theatre company of Eduardo De Filippo.
The plot of the movie is very faithful to the original of the 1888 play. Only exception is the addition of Nadia, a young milliner from Piedmont played by Franca Faldini, who was Totò's partner.
The original play was already adapted into a silent movie in 1914, played by same author Eduardo Scarpetta and his son Eduardo De Filippo and directed by Enrico Guazzoni. As of 2020, the film is lost.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content
