Bud Spencer

Bud Spencer, the popular Italian actor who starred in innumerable spaghetti Westerns and action-packed potboilers during the 1960s and 1970s, was born Carlo Pedersoli on October 31, 1929, in Naples.

During the 1950s and first half of the 1960s he appeared in films made for the Italian market, but his career was strictly minor league until the late 1960s.

Educated as an attorney, he was bitten by the acting bug and appeared as a member of the Praetorian Guard in his first movie, MGM's epic Quo Vadis (1951) (which was shot in Italy) in 1951.

The first Italian to swim the 100-meter freestyle in less than a minute, Spencer competed as a swimmer on the Italian National Team at the Olympic Summer games in both Helsinki, Finland, in 1952 and Melbourne, Australia, in 1956. He was also an Olympic-class water polo player.

Spencer married Maria Amato in 1960 and they have three children, Giuseppe (born 1961), Christine (1962) and Diamante (1972).

Children: Giuseppe Pedersoli (1961), Christine (1962) and Diamy Spencer (1972).

He changed his screen name to "Bud Spencer" in 1967, as an homage to Spencer Tracy and to the American beer Budweiser. Spencer allegedly thought it was funny to call himself "Bud" in light of his huge frame. After the name change, Spencer achieved his greatest success in spaghetti Westerns lensed for a global audience.

Teaming up with fellow Italian Terence Hill, the two made such international hits as Ace High (1968) and They Call Me Trinity (1970) ("They Call Me Trinity"). Their dual outings made both stars famous, particularly in Europe. In all, Spencer made 18 movies with Hill.

He became a jet airplane and helicopter pilot after appearing in All the Way Boys (1972) and owned an air transportation company, Mistral Air, which he founded in 1984. However, he terminated his business interest in Mistral and entered the children's clothing industry.

He only dubbed himself (for the Italian versions) in these films: Flatfoot in Hong Kong (1975), Il soldato di ventura (1976), Piedone l'africano (1978), Piedone d'Egitto (1980), Occhio alla penna (1981), Fireworks (1997), Cantando dietro i paraventi (2003) & Padre Speranza (2005). For his other films he was dubbed by Glauco Onorato (in 30 films), Sergio Fiorentini (in 4 films) and Ferruccio Amendola (in Today We Kill, Tomorrow We Die! (1968).

After 1983 Spencer's movie career slowed down, though he did have a big success in the early 1990s with the TV action-drama series "Extralarge". A man of many talents, Spencer wrote screenplays and texts for some of his movies. He also has registered several patents.

In 2005 Spencer entered politics, standing as regional councillor in Lazio for the center-right Forza Italia party. He became a politician specifically at the bequest of then-Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. According to Spencer, "In my life, I've done everything. There are only three things I haven't been - a ballet dancer, a jockey and a politician. Given that the first two jobs are out of the question, I'll throw myself into politics. "Berlusconi, who was a media tycoon in the vein of Rupert Murdoch before he entered politics, recruited Spencer as he was "still a major draw for the viewer, alias the voter. " Critics of Berlusconi--who tried to retain power by launching a campaign to portray his allies as the embodiment of "good" and the leftists of the opposition as "evil"--was derided as an example of "politica spettacolo" ("showbiz politics"). Spencer announced his new career at a "Felliniesque" press conference at a Rome hotel, at which he hardly moved and had little to say except homilies about upholding family values. Spencer sat between two Forza Italia handlers, and according to one major Italian newspaper, "From one moment to the next, you expected this mountain of a man to grab the heads of the two presenters and smack them together in his usual style, as he has been seen doing countless times on the big screen and television.

His 78th birthday on October 31st 2007 was greatly celebrated in Berlin with about 100 guests and a big Tiramisu pie. Bud Spencer was shooting for his new movie Killing Is My Business, Honey (2009) by Sebastian Niemann, starring Rick Kavanian, at this time in Berlin. German comedians Oliver Kalkofe and Oliver Welke (famous for the 'Wixxer' movies) announced themselves to take the chance to congratulate him personally.

Joined the UNESCO Charity Gala in Düsseldorf/Germany. [November 2009]

Outside of his home country of Italy, he, along with co-star Terrence Hill, enjoyed major cult status in several European and South American countries, mainly Germany and Hungary. They are widely considered national favorites and some of the most popular actors of all time, their movies are broadcast on numerous television stations multiple times a year and you can even buy official merchandise, as well as various products named after them. In Germany, their popularity can be mostly attributed to the comical dubbing their movies received, which liberally reinterpreted the original dialogue and inserted a number of jokes. In other, primarily Eastern European territories, they mostly became popular due to the wide availability and constant reruns of their films. Spencer's passing in 2016 was a top headline in these countries.