Sophia, Living and Loving: Her Own Story

"I was born wise," says Sophia, and this is true. She is also a very sincere person, and it makes this book even more wonderful to read. This book is based on numerous interviews with Sophia Loren and her family. It almost like you hear her telling her own story of her life and success. Anyway this is more than just a biography, this is a source of wisdom.

Not very many movie stars, I think, have ever sold tickets to male and female alike: but Sophia Loren did, and probably still could. Even fewer female movie stars who first came to public notice for the "abundanza" of their chests, have, I think, managed to turn into real actresses right in front of our eyes. And only one, I think, has managed to win an Academy Award for a film in a foreign language, following on a career of films in that foreign language, Italian, while never tasting a great English language success. That one, "certo," is Sophia Loren, still very much on the scene for one thing and another. Quite a few years ago, she collaborated with A.E. Hotchner on this book, and it's still one of the best. Her Oscar, of course, came for her powerhouse performance in "Two Women," a role that well-illustrated how she could move from sexpot to actress. How many glamorous leading ladies-- who happened to be married to their producers, no less-- would take the role of a mother older than themselves, in a film in which they had originally intended to play the daughter? And play it without makeup, in a wardrobe Gina Lollobrigida wouldn't use for rags? This is only the half of it, for, in order to be able to give that performance, Loren had to dig back to her hungry childhood during World War II. Few of us would want to. But one of the interesting things about this book is Loren's honesty. She was, as many people know, born illegitimate and very poor in Naples; during the war, her entire village slept in a single rat-infested railway tunnel and scavenged for food. She gives us a good look here at the grit and stamina that got her out of Pozzuoli and into pictures. In fact, she seems to be a woman of awesome grit, capable of hanging on for years until she got that slippery producer, Carlo Ponti to the altar. Then, she was capable of spending her two pregnancies isolated in her bed: it's what she had to do to have her children. There's more in the book, of course, such as her affair with Cary Grant and the choice she had to make between him and Carlo Ponti. Many sources agree that she was one of the great loves of Grant's life, and he never quite got over her loss. For many years, Rome's cinema elite rebuffed her. The Catholic Church preached against her. And she actually faced criminal prosecutions for adultery and public sinning. But let's not forget that the same woman who gave us "Two Women," also gave us a series of sparkling sex comedies, and the scintillating "Houseboat" with Cary Grant. Her striptease in "Yesterday Today and Tomorrow," for which she prepped with the exotic dancers from Paris's famous Crazy Horse Saloon, absolutely sizzled, yet still had an undercurrent of humor in it,from Mastroianni's command to "do a striptease, with just the refrigerator light on." That unbuttoned Neopolitan humor continued through "Marriage Italian Style," and "A Special Day," and could continue still, should Loren ever decide to

I'm not usually attracted to Italian women but Sophia Loren is in a class all by herself. Coming into fame in an era in which most movie stars were peroxide blondes (and to tell the truth it hasn't really changed all that much in Hollywood-worse even-women are not only still majority blonde but flat-backed stick figures!), this sensuous woman's dark and exotic beauty sent young American men's "you know whats" throbbing! It is ashame this book is out of print. I used to sneak it away from my mother's shelf and run off to look at the photos. The classic wet shot of Sophia from "Boy On A Dolphin" plus several topless shots from her early days as well as pictures of Sophia in gater belts and stockings (circa late-60's/early-70's) and much shots of her showing off those gorgeously full boobs of hers! I was 12 and I "discovered" my manhood from those photos. The woman is in her 70's now and in her latest film appearance, "Ready To Wear" ("Pret-a-Porter"), she was still beautiful, sexy and alluring. She had it all over her co-stars, Julia Roberts and Kim Basinger. Thank you Ms. Loren.

Numerous books have been published about Sophia Loren, since this one came out in late 70's. Many of them are very good, but this particular book is still the best for couple of reasons. First of all, it is a 100% autobiography, written by one of the most amazing, and not just most beautiful, women in the world. Loren's character is reflected on every page, as she narrates her life, starting with her family background all the way to talking about her own children. Secondly, she writes with candor that would surely shock a reader, who is used to reading polished and often pretentious autobiographies of Hollywood stars. Loren, the writer, does not shy away from admitting to being the uggliest girl in town, while growing up; to feeling such human emotions as rage, fear, jealousy, hate at various stages of her life...Yet, after you finish reading this book, you will be amazed at the fact that Loren's greatest emotions have invariably been that of a compassionate, forgiving, and loving woman.