Photo: Film diretto da Vittorio De Sica e prodotto da P.D.S. / Public domain (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Lamberto Maggiorani is, to me, one of cinema's most quietly miraculous figures. A Roman factory worker and turner with no acting background, he was cast as Antonio in De Sica's Bicycle Thieves and delivered a performance of such raw, unguarded humanity that no trained professional could have matched it. That is the heart of Italian neorealism, and he embodied it completely. I find his story moving precisely because it was never a career, just a single act of being utterly real on screen. Decades after his death in 1983, that defeated, searching figure still aches with truth, and I hold deep admiration for it.
Overview
Lamberto Maggiorani (28 August 1909 – 22 April 1983) was an Italian actor remembered for his portrayal of Antonio Ricci in the 1948 Vittorio De Sica film Bicycle Thieves. He was a factory worker (he worked as a turner) and a non-professional actor at the time he was cast in this film.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Lamberto Maggiorani
- Name (Japanese)
- ランベルト・マジョラーニ
- Reading
- らんべると・まじょらーに
- Born
- August 28, 1909 – April 22, 1983
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Virgo / Rooster
- Origin
- Rome, Province of Rome, Italy
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- actor / stage actor / film actor
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- Private
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Actor — see all → · Stage actor — see all → · More people from Italy →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.