Actress Sophia Loren arriving at Victoria Station on the boat train from Switzerland. She was in Britain for three days to film a scene at Elstree for the film "The Key" 1958 Sophia LOren - among the most successful stars of the post-war era. Rose to fame as a sex symbol and acheived critical acclaim, rarely afforded to her foreign born contemporaries. Born Sofia Scicolone in Rome on September 20, 1934, lived in abject poverty with her mother in the war torn slums of Naples. Became a model and got bit parts in films. Signed to a film contract by Carlo Ponti who groomed her for stardom. "La Favorita" her first larger role - Ponti changed her name to Sophia Loren. By the mid 50's she was a star in Italy but with the exception of 1955's "Attila Flagello di Dio" with Anthony Quinn, few of her films were distributed internationally. After some personal success in films that generally bombed she was spotted . After 1955's "La Donna del Fiume" Ponti declared her ready for Hollywood. 1957 - Ponti and Loren were wed in Mexico. Their marriage was a national scandal in the predominantly Catholic Italy because Ponti had been wed before. A series of legal complications ensued, one Magazine even calling for a boycott of Loren's films. Ponti secured a four film contract with Paramount but despite critical acclaim she faile to get commercial success. Her fourth film "It Started In Naples" with Clark Gable was her breakthrough but by this point Paramount had lost faith with her and so she travelled to England after being cut loose to film the Millionairess. Upon returning to Italy she teamed up with Sica for "La Ciociara" a wartime drama in which she played a widowed mother caught in a love triangle with her daughter, Eleanora Brown and Jean-Paul Belmondo. Climaxed by a brutal rape scene the film won her great acclaim and an Academy Award, the first foreign language performer to win "Best Actress" prize. She then returned to Hollywood with MGM, but this stage of her career was plagued by immense popularity not transforming itself into commercial success at the box office. In the seventies she again returned to Italy. She has continued working as an actress and launched her own perfume. In 1991 she received a special Oscar for her long film career. Fame
