Late 1950s/1960s Italian Crime Comedies

Movie poster for Mario Monicelli's I Soliti Ignoti (Italian title: The usual unknown persons, 1958), a comedy starring Italian movie stars Vittorio Gassman, Marcello Mastroianni, Renato Salvatori and Claudia Cardinale and Italian revue and comedy star Antonio De Curtis (aka Totò).




From the left: Marcello Mastroianni, Renato Salvatori and Vittorio Gassman.


Renato Salvatori and Claudia Cardinale.

Movie poster for Dino Risi's Operazione San Gennaro (Italian title: Operation Saint Gennaro, 1966), a comedy starring Italian comedy star Nino Manfredi, Senta Berger and Italian revue and comedy star Antonio De Curtis (aka Totò).




Movie poster for Operazione San Gennaro, featuring Nino Manfredi and Senta Berger (in the centre of the picture) and Totò.

Movie poster for Mario Camerini's Crimen (1960), a comedy starring Italian comedy stars Alberto Sordi, Vittorio Gassman and Nino Manfredi, Italian movie star Silvana Mangano, Italian comedy star Dorian Gray and Italian theatre and comedy star Franca Valeri.




The suspects: Vittorio Gassman, Alberto Sordi and Nino Manfredi.


Alberto Sordi and Bernard Blier.


Dorian Gray and Vittorio Gassman.

Movie poster for Luigi Zampa's Ladro Lui, Ladra Lei (He-thief, she-thief; 1958), a comedy starring Italian comedy stars Alberto Sordi and Sylva Koscina.


Sylva Koscina and, in the centre of the picture, Alberto Sordi.


Alberto Sordi and Sylva Koscina.


Artwork for Ladro Lui, Ladra Lei.

Movie poster for Nanni Loy's Audace Colpo Dei Soliti Ignoti (Italian title: Bold heist of the usual unknown persons, 1959), a comedy starring Italian movie stars Vittorio Gassman, Renato Salvatori, Claudia Cardinale and Nino Manfredi, and Italian comedy star Vicky Ludovisi.
The movie is the sequel of Mario Monicelli's I Soliti Ignoti (1958, see above).




Movie poster for Audace Colpo Dei Soliti Ignoti featuring Vittorio Gassman and Vicky Ludovisi.


Above and in the following pictures: Vicky Ludovisi in some of the promotional photos for Audace Colpo Dei Soliti Ignoti.

Movie poster for Lucio Fulci's I Ladri (The thieves, 1959), a comedy starring Italian revue and comedy star Antonio De Curtis (aka Totò), Italian comedy star Giovanna Ralli, Armando Calvo, and featuring Italian crooner Fred Buscaglione.




Totò with Italian comedy actress Maria Luisa Rolando.


Giovanna Ralli with Italian comedy actor Giacomo Furia.


Giovanna Ralli and Giacomo Furia.


Giacomo Furia and Giovanna Ralli.

Movie poster for Steno's Guardia, Ladro E Cameriera (Italian title: Guard, thief and maid; 1958), a comedy starring Italian comedy star Nino Manfredi, Italian pop singer Fausto Cigliano, Italian comedy actress Gabriella Pallotta and Italian revue and comedy star Mario Carotenuto.




Fausto Cigliano and Nino Manfredi.


Gabriella Pallotta and Fausto Cigliano.


Italian director and comedy actor Luciano Salce, Nino Manfredi and Italian comedy star Bice Valori.


In the centre of the picture: Mario Carotenuto (with Nino Manfredi on his right) gives the last instructions for the New Year's Eve burglary!

Movie poster for Mario Mattoli's Cadavere Per Signora, a comedy starring Italian comedy stars Sylva Koscina, Sandra Mondaini and Scilla Gabel, Sergio Fantoni, Italian theatre and comedy actress Elsa Vazzoler and Italian revue and comedy stars Franco Franchi and Ciccio Ingrassia.
The movie poster is drawn like the covers of the popular Italian detective paperback series I Gialli Mondadori (The Mondadori yellow books, after the Milan publisher Mondadori Editore). The series included international and Italian detective novels.
The adjective giallo (yellow) is still used as a noun to indicate both fictional detective stories and unresolved real crime cases.


Movie poster for Cadavere Per Signora, featuring Scilla Gabel (on the left) and Ciccio Ingrassia (on the right).


The ladies of the corpse: Elsa Vazzoler, Scilla Gabel, Sylva Koscina and Sandra Mondaini.


Picture from the opening sequence.


Sylva Koscina.


From the left: Sylva Koscina, Scilla Gabel, Elsa Vazzoler and Sandra Mondaini.


From the left: Scilla Gabel, Sylva Koscina, Elsa Vazzoler and Sandra Mondaini.


Picture of the floor show in the night-club sequence.


Newspaper ad for Cadavere Per Signora, featuring Sylva Koscina.