Italian Celebrities Born In September

Monica Bellucci is one of the most popular actresses from Italy. Her popularity in the West helped her become the oldest woman to play a Bond girl in the history of the James Bond film franchise. Known for her hourglass figure, she has been regarded as a sex symbol and has appeared in lists like 100 Hottest Women of All-Time.

Widely regarded as an opera singer with the most beautiful voice, Andrea Bocelli is an Italian record producer and singer-songwriter. He serves as an inspiration to many as he went on to become one of the most popular Italian singers of all time, despite losing his vision at age 12. He has sold more than 90 million records worldwide.

Known as the quintessential “femme fatale” of the "Golden Age of Hollywood," Sophia Loren rose from participating in a beauty pageant as a teenager, to being the first actor to win the Academy Award for a foreign-language movie. The Italian bombshell is also known for her affair with Cary Grant.

Italian footballer Francesco Totti is known for his 25-year stint with Roma. Nicknamed “The Golden Boy” and “The Gladiator,” he led Roma to win the Serie A and the Coppa Italia. He was also part of the 2006 FIFA World Cup-winning Italian team. He was named to Pele’s FIFA 100. 

Italian former football star Fabio Cannavaro was part of his country’s 2006 World Cup-winning team and now coaches the Chinese football club Guangzhou. He has won awards such as the Ballon d'Or and was the only defender to earn the FIFA World Player of the Year tag.

Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni is regarded as his country's biggest film star of all time. Making his debut as an uncredited extra when he was just 14, he worked hard over the decades to become a major film star in his country. He was a big name in international cinema as well. He was the recipient of numerous prestigious awards.

Michelangelo Antonioni was an Italian screenwriter, film director, editor, short story author, and painter. Renowned for making films with striking visual composition and elusive plots, Antonioni's work has influenced art cinema of the subsequent generation. Over the course of his career, Antonioni won many prestigious awards, including an honorary Academy Award, Palme d'Or, the Golden Bear, and the Golden Lion.

Ettore Bugatti was an automobile designer and manufacturer. He is credited with founding the popular car manufacturer Automobiles E. Bugatti, which gained prominence as the maker of some of the fastest and technologically advanced cars of its day. In 2000, Ettore Bugatti was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame.

Elsa Schiaparelli was an Italian fashion designer who designed the wardrobes for many films like Topaze and Moulin Rouge. Widely regarded as one of the most important figures in the world of fashion, Schiaparelli was considered the greatest rival of Coco Chanel.

Caterina Murino first gained attention after participating in the Miss Italy contest. She later began her showbiz career as a model and starred in films such as The Corsican File. She also appeared as Bond Girl Solange in Casino Royale. She is also well-versed in dances such as flamenco and tango.

Elisabetta Canalis is an Italian showgirl and actress. Renowned for her impressive physique and good looks, Canalis has been a popular model in Italy, appearing on publications like Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. She has also modeled for Roberto Cavalli and was featured in the Max nude calendar in 2003. In 2010, she was ranked the seventh-most beautiful woman on Maxim.

Umberto II, the only son of King Victor Emmanuel III, was the last king of Italy and ruled for just 34 days, from May 9 to June 12, 1946, and then went into exile. Also known as Re di Maggio, he was the de facto head of state since 1944.

Luigi Galvani was an Italian physician, biologist, physicist, and philosopher. He is credited with the discovery of animal electricity and is considered a pioneer of bioelectromagnetics. He and his wife made one of the first forays into the study of bioelectricity when they discovered that the muscles of dead frogs' legs twitched when struck by an electrical spark.  

Italian mountaineer and explorer Reinhold Messner teamed up with Austrian mountaineer Peter Habeler to be the first to climb Mount Everest without using oxygen cylinders. He is also the first to complete a solo ascent of Everest and the first to climb all the 14 mountain peaks that stand above 8000m.

Pritzker Prize-winning Italian architect Renzo Piano was born into a family of builders from Genoa. His firm Piano and Rogers, was co-established with British architect Richard Rogers. The Renzo Piano Building Workshop worked on a number of museum commissions, most notably those of Menil Collection.

Catholic bishop Alphonsus Liguori was the man behind the formation of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, also known as the Redemptorists. He stepped into his spiritual life after an 8-year stint as a lawyer. He is also remembered for his works on moral theology and equiprobabilism.

Initially an artillery officer, Pietro Badoglio served as a general during the two World Wars. He eventually signed an armistice with the Allies to withdraw Italian forces from World War II. He eventually served as the prime minister of Italy and was also the 1st Duke of Addis Abeba.

Son of TV writer Antonio Amurri, Italian director Franco Amurri is best known for films such as Da grande and Monkey Trouble. He has previously also served in the Italian Army. He met actor Susan Sarandon on the sets of Tempest and later had a 4-year relationship with her.

Christian Democracy member Aldo Moro had served as the Italian prime minister and had also held important portfolios such as foreign affairs and public education. He was also a University of Bari professor of law, initially. He was abducted and killed by left-wing terrorists known as The Red Brigades.

The son of a banker father, Italian economist Mario Draghi initially served as the president of the European Central Bank and the Bank of Italy governor, and is the current prime minister of Italy. The media named him Super Mario for efficiently handling the Eurozone debt crisis.

Andrea Camilleri was an Italian writer whose book The Potter's Field was honored with the CWA International Dagger award in 2012. Over the course of his career, Camilleri also won other prestigious awards, such as the Nino Martoglio International Book Award.

Italian author Cesare Pavese is remembered for his themes of gloom and loneliness and for his protagonists who were often loners. His prolonged fight with fascists and the failure of his affair with actor Constance Dowling led him to commit suicide by consuming sleeping pills in a Turin hotel.

Ruggero Pasquarelli is an Italian actor and singer best known for his appearance in the fourth series of the popular TV talent show, X Factor. As an actor, he achieved popularity after playing Matteo Balsano in the Latin American telenovela Soy Luna, for which he received a couple of Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards.

Tommaso Campanella was an Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, astrologer, and poet. His heterodox views often brought him into conflict with the authorities, and he was imprisoned for several years. In prison, he wrote The City of the Sun, a utopia describing an egalitarian theocratic society. He also defended astronomer Galileo Galilei in his first trial. 

Grazia Deledda was an Italian writer who received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1926, becoming the first Italian woman to receive the prize. Interested in writing from a young age, she became a writer despite her family’s objections. Today, her work is highly regarded across the world, and generations of writers continue to be inspired by her.  

Francesca Caccini was an Italian composer, poet, lutenist, singer, and music teacher. She is best remembered for La liberazione di Ruggiero, her only surviving stage work, which is regarded as the oldest opera composed by a woman. Although little of her music has survived the test of time, Francesca Caccini was known to be a prolific composer.

Born in a stable in Verona, Lory Del Santo lost her father in an accident later and was raised by her mother. Beginning her TV career at 16, she later also participated in the Miss Universe contest. She gave birth to Eric Clapton’s son but lost the child in a freak accident.

Giuliano Gemma was an Italian actor best remembered for his performances in Spaghetti Westerns. Giuliano Gemma achieved international recognition for his portrayal of the title role in Duccio Tessari's A Pistol for Ringo. The success of the movie earned him title roles in subsequent Spaghetti Westerns, such as The Return of Ringo and Michele Lupo's Arizona Colt.