Marcella Mariani


Marcella Mariani was an Italian actress and Miss Italy contest winner. Though she appeared in several popular movies and was garnering acclaim as an actress, her career was cut short by her death in a 1955 airliner crash.

Early life and education

Marcella Mariani was born in Rome, Italy, on 8 February 1936.
Her first job was working as a cashier at a cinema in Rome, and was chosen as "Miss Cinema Lazio". At the age of 17 Mariani was crowned Miss Italy of 1953 in the Tyrolean resort town of Cortina d'Ampezzo.

Career

After winning the pageant Mariani began her career as a film actress, playing herself in the opening segment of producer/director Alfredo Guarini's portmanteau film We, the Women. Although in demand due to her beauty, she was eager to improve her acting skills, and attended acting courses at the Experimental Center of Cinematography. She began taking on challenging roles and working with artistically adventurous directors.
Her most significant role was in director Luchino Visconti's 1954 film Senso, in which she worked alongside Alida Valli and Farley Granger, playing the small but important part of Clara, a young prostitute.

Death

Her promising career was prematurely ended by her death in a plane crash, which occurred on the slopes of Monte Terminillo, in the province of Rieti, Italy, as she returned from hosting a film festival in Belgium on 13 February 1955. Travelling from Brussels to Rome, the DC-6 passenger liner crashed due to errors made by the crew in poor weather conditions. Heavy wind and snow prevented searchers from reaching the crash site for over a week. All 29 passengers and crew were believed to have died on impact. Mariani, who had turned 19 a few days earlier, was taken to Rome, where she was buried.

Filmography