Bud Spencer obit

Bud Spencer, the ‘Good Giant’ of Spaghetti Westerns, Dies at 86

 

He was not on the list.

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. 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.

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. 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. 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. 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.

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

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." The audition proved to be a flop: Spencer lost the seat, and Berlusconi's party was swept from power in 2006.

 

Spouse

Maria Amato(February 25, 1960 - June 27, 2016) (his death, 3 children)

Children

Giuseppe Pedersoli

Diamy Spencer

Cristiana Pedersoli

Parents

Alessandro Pedersoli

Rosa Facchetti

Relatives

Sebastiano Pigazzi(Grandchild)

 

Actor

Bud Spencer in Recipe for Crime (2010)

Recipe for Crime

6.2

TV Series

Carlo Banci

2010

10 episodes

 

Rick Kavanian and Nora Tschirner in Killing is My Business, Honey (2009)

Killing is My Business, Honey

5.7

Pepe

2009

 

Bud Spencer in Pane e olio (2008)

Pane e olio

6.3

TV Movie

Laris

2008

 

Singing Behind Screens (2003)

Singing Behind Screens

6.3

Il vecchio capitano

2003

 

Bud Spencer in Padre Speranza (2002)

Padre Speranza

5.5

TV Movie

Padre Speranza

2002

 

Úrsula Murayama, José Sancho, Bud Spencer, and Omar Ayala in Hijos del viento: Entre la luz y las tinieblas (2000)

Hijos del viento: Entre la luz y las tinieblas

4.8

Quintero

2000

 

Bud Spencer in Tre per sempre (1998)

Tre per sempre

7.8

TV Series

Bops

1998

 

Al límite (1997)

Al límite

4.9

Elorza

1997

 

Fireworks (1997)

Fireworks

5.9

'Gandhi'

1997

 

Bud Spencer in We Are Angels (1997)

We Are Angels

7.9

Video Game

Padre Orso

1997

 

Bud Spencer and Philip Michael Thomas in We Are Angels (1997)

We Are Angels

5.9

TV Series

Bob

Father Orso

1997

6 episodes

 

Troublemakers (1994)

Troublemakers

6.0

Moses

1994

 

Bud Spencer and Philip Michael Thomas in Detective Extralarge (1991)

Detective Extralarge

6.1

TV Series

Jack 'Extralarge' Costello

1991–1993

12 episodes

 

Thierry Lhermitte and Bud Spencer in Speaking of the Devil (1991)

Speaking of the Devil

5.9

Bull Webster

1991

 

Big Man (1988)

Big Man

6.2

TV Series

Jack Clementi

1988

6 episodes

 

Bud Spencer and Luca Venantini in Aladdin (1986)

Aladdin

5.4

The Genie

1986

 

Terence Hill and Bud Spencer in Miami Supercops (1985)

Miami Supercops

6.1

Steve Forest

Officer L A Wray

1985

 

Double Trouble (1984)

Double Trouble

7.1

Greg Wonder

Antonio Coimbra de la Coronilla y Azevedo

1984

 

Terence Hill and Bud Spencer in Go for It (1983)

Go for It

7.1

Doug O'Riordan

Mason

1983

 

Tomas Milian and Bud Spencer in Thieves and Robbers (1983)

Thieves and Robbers

5.6

Lt. Alan Parker

1983

 

Jerry Calà and Bud Spencer in Bomber (1982)

Bomber

6.2

Bud Graziano

1982

 

Bud Spencer in Banana Joe (1982)

Banana Joe

6.3

Banana Joe

1982

 

Who Finds a Friend Finds a Treasure (1981)

Who Finds a Friend Finds a Treasure

7.1

Charlie

1981

 

Bud Spencer in Buddy Goes West (1981)

Buddy Goes West

6.5

Buddy

1981

 

Bud Spencer in Everything Happens to Me (1980)

Everything Happens to Me

5.8

Sheriff Hall

1980

 

Bud Spencer in Flatfoot in Egypt (1980)

Flatfoot in Egypt

6.1

Commissario Rizzo 'Piedone'

1980

 

Terence Hill and Bud Spencer in I'm for the Hippopotamus (1979)

I'm for the Hippopotamus

6.6

Tom

1979

 

Cary Guffey and Bud Spencer in The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979)

The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid

6.1

Sheriff Hall

1979

 

Terence Hill and Bud Spencer in Odds and Evens (1978)

Odds and Evens

7.1

Charlie Firpo

1978

 

Lo chiamavano Bulldozer (1978)

Lo chiamavano Bulldozer

6.7

Bulldozer

1978

 

Bud Spencer in Knock-Out Cop (1978)

Knock-Out Cop

6.2

Commissario Rizzo 'Piedone'

1978

 

Terence Hill and Bud Spencer in Crime Busters (1977)

Crime Busters

7.1

Wilbur Walsh

1977

 

Bud Spencer in Charleston (1977)

Charleston

5.6

Charleston

1977

 

Bud Spencer in Soldier of Fortune (1976)

Soldier of Fortune

6.2

Ettore Fieramosca

1976

 

Bud Spencer in Flatfoot in Hong Kong (1975)

Flatfoot in Hong Kong

6.4

Inspector 'Flatfoot' Rizzo

1975

 

Terence Hill and Bud Spencer in Turn the Other Cheek (1974)

Turn the Other Cheek

6.3

Father

Padre Pedro

1974

 

Watch Out, We're Mad (1974)

Watch Out, We're Mad

7.3

Ben

1974

 

Bud Spencer in The Knock Out Cop (1973)

The Knock Out Cop

6.7

Inspector 'Flatfoot' Rizzo

1973

 

Giuliano Gemma and Bud Spencer in Even Angels Eat Beans (1973)

Even Angels Eat Beans

6.2

Charlie Smith

1973

 

Terence Hill and Bud Spencer in All the Way Boys (1972)

All the Way Boys

6.6

Salud

1972

 

James Coburn, Telly Savalas, and Bud Spencer in A Reason to Live, a Reason to Die (1972)

A Reason to Live, a Reason to Die

6.1

Eli Sampson

1972

 

Bud Spencer in Torino nera (1972)

Torino nera

5.8

Rosario Rao

1972

 

Jack Palance and Bud Spencer in It Can Be Done Amigo (1972)

It Can Be Done Amigo

5.7

Hiram Coburn

1972

 

Four Flies on Grey Velvet (1971)

Four Flies on Grey Velvet

6.5

Diomede

Godfrey

1971

 

Terence Hill in Trinity Is Still My Name (1971)

Trinity Is Still My Name

7.2

Bambino

1971

 

Terence Hill and Bud Spencer in Blackie the Pirate (1971)

Blackie the Pirate

5.2

Skull

1971

 

Terence Hill in They Call Me Trinity (1970)

They Call Me Trinity

7.4

Bambino

1970

 

The Fifth Day of Peace (1970)

The Fifth Day of Peace

6.4

Jelinek

1970

 

Terence Hill, Eduardo Ciannelli, Bud Spencer, and Woody Strode in Boot Hill (1969)

Boot Hill

5.5

Arch Hutch Bessy

1969

 

Bud Spencer in The 5-Man Army (1969)

The 5-Man Army

6.6

Mesito

1969

 

Terence Hill, Brock Peters, Bud Spencer, and Eli Wallach in Ace High (1968)

Ace High

6.5

Hutch Bessy

1968

 

Lee Van Cleef, Antonio Sabato, Bud Spencer, and Lionel Stander in Beyond the Law (1968)

Beyond the Law

6.1

James Cooper

1968

 

Bud Spencer in Today We Kill, Tomorrow We Die! (1968)

Today We Kill, Tomorrow We Die!

6.1

O'Bannion

1968

 

Terence Hill and Bud Spencer in God Forgives... I Don't! (1967)

God Forgives... I Don't!

6.2

Hutch Bessy

1967

 

Hannibal (1959)

Hannibal

5.2

Rutario (as Carlo Pedersoli)

1959

 

A Farewell to Arms (1957)

A Farewell to Arms

5.8

Carabiniere (uncredited)

1957

 

Maurizio Arena and Ingeborg Schöner in Il cocco di mamma (1957)

Il cocco di mamma

7.2

Oscar D'Orazi (as Carlo Pedersoli)

1957

 

Giovanna Ralli, Alberto Sordi, and Franca Valeri in Un eroe dei nostri tempi (1955)

Un eroe dei nostri tempi

6.7

Fernando (as Carlo Pedersoli)

1955

 

Siluri umani (1954)

Siluri umani

7.0

Magrini (as Carlo Pedersoli)

1954

 

Deborah Kerr, Robert Taylor, Peter Ustinov, and Patricia Laffan in Quo Vadis (1951)

Quo Vadis

7.1

Imperial Guard (uncredited)

1951

 

Walter Chiari and Mady Saint-Michel in Quel fantasma di mio marito (1950)

Quel fantasma di mio marito

6.2

Nuotatore in piscina che soccorre Vivia (uncredited)

1950

 

Writer

Bud Spencer and Philip Michael Thomas in Detective Extralarge (1991)

Detective Extralarge

6.1

TV Series

Writer (as Carlo Pedersoli)

1993

2 episodes

 

Big Man (1988)

Big Man

6.2

TV Series

story

screenplay (as Carlo Pedersoli)

1988

6 episodes

 

Bud Spencer in Banana Joe (1982)

Banana Joe

6.3

story (as Carlo Pedersoli)

1982

 

Producer

Bud Spencer and Philip Michael Thomas in Detective Extralarge (1991)

Detective Extralarge

6.1

TV Series

producer (as Carlo Pedersoli)

1993

3 episodes