October 14, 2024, 2:43 pm | Read time: 5 minutes
Actress and international star Sophia Loren is celebrating her 90th birthday. The Italian-born actress has been in the film business for over 70 years and is still considered one of the greatest divas of our time. STYLEBOOK reveals eight things you definitely didn’t know about her.
Sophia Loren’s name is often mentioned alongside those of Grace Kelly and Marilyn Monroe; she is a living legend. In addition to her sex appeal and acting skills, the Italian also inspires with statements such as: “I owe everything you see here to spaghetti” while pointing to her curves. Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone, her full name, has been in the limelight since the 1950s. Nevertheless, STYLEBOOK has uncovered some lesser-known facts about the iconic Italian actress.
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Sophia Loren only owned one pair of shoes as a child
The actress hails from humble beginnings. Her mother was a piano teacher; her father was aristocratic but impoverished. He did not want to marry her mother, so Sophia was born on September 20, 1934, in the Clinica Regina Margherita in Rome – in the ward for unmarried mothers without financial support.
Sophia Loren’s beauty secret is pasta
When asked about the secret to her beauty, the actress doesn’t talk about the art of a surgeon but about pasta. She is often quoted as saying: “I owe everything you see here to spaghetti” – with a view of her curvy body. In addition to Italian pasta, she revealed another seven rules for her beauty in an interview. She goes to bed at 9 p.m. every night, has given up alcohol and cigarettes (since she turned 50), and eats baked eggplants. She starts the day with 20 minutes of stretching, rose water for her face, baby shampoo, and vitamin A cream. “The most important secret of my beauty,” she says, “is love.”
The actress prefers to wear Armani
“He’s a dear friend, and I adore his elegant, simple cuts,” Loren explains. She often sits in the front row at his fashion shows and impresses with her feminine outfits and hourglass figure.
Sophia Loren was in prison in the eighties
In May 1982, Loren ended up in Casserta women’s prison for tax fraud. After 17 days in prison and “good behavior,” she was released. This was the Italian woman’s second contact with the authorities. In the early 1960s, five years after her marriage to Carlo Ponti, the marriage was annulled. Ponti’s first divorce was carried out in Mexico and was not legally binding in Italy, nor was the marriage to Loren, as the Catholic Church did not allow divorces at the time. It was only after Loren, Ponti, and his still-wife had taken French citizenship and divorced there that Ponti and Loren could marry. The marriage lasted until his death in 2007.
The Italian actress is a devoted mother
The star of over 100 films is passionate about being a mother. For her, motherhood is the ultimate fulfillment. However, she put up with a lot for this role. After two miscarriages, the doctor told her she couldn’t have children. Loren sought medical support from an expert in Bern. He supported her but prescribed complete rest, which meant that she spent most of her pregnancies lying down. In the end, however, she gave birth to two sons in 1968 and 1973.
Sophia Loren loves cooking
As an Italian, good food is very important to the actress. “Bad food spoils your mood,” she explains her love of cooking. Her cookbook “In cucina con amore” (“With love in the kitchen”) from 1971 is famous. Her declaration of love for Italian cuisine was written in the fall of 1968 when she was living in Geneva for a few months while waiting for the birth of her son. The book is full of favorite recipes, kitchen secrets, and anecdotes from dinners with big Hollywood stars. She had a playful affection for her husband, affectionately nicknaming him ‘Involtini,’ which is Italian for roulades.
She was involved in a diva dispute
In the mid-1990s, there were heated arguments between Brigitte Bardot and Loren over Loren’s penchant for fur. Bardot, an enthusiastic animal rights activist, wrote an open letter to Loren because she was making TV commercials for fur. An excerpt from the letter: “You are taking sides with death. Wearing fur is like carrying a cemetery on your back. Even if you need it financially, it is degrading and pathetic to take bloody money.”
Sophia Loren was “afraid” of Jayne Mansfield’s breasts
It is probably one of the most famous photographs: two attractive ladies at dinner. One of them stares almost disgustedly into the other’s very low neckline. The photo shows Sophia Loren and fellow actress Jayne Mansfield. The evening had been organized by Paramount in Loren’s honor. Mansfield arrived later and made a grand entrance when she headed straight for Loren’s table. The photo was taken shortly afterward. In an interview, Sophia Loren explained: “I stared at her nipples, fearing they might land on my plate any moment. The fear is evident on my face. I feared her dress might just explode – boom! – scattering its contents across the table.” Although many fans present the photo for her signature, she refrains from signing it. Also, out of respect for her former colleague, Jayne Mansfield died in a car accident at the age of 34.