Little Known Spaghetti Western Actors ~ John Dunn-Hill

[These daily posts will cover little known actors or people that have appeared in more recent films and TV series. Various degrees of information that I was able to find will be given and anything that you can add would be appreciated.]

 John Dunn-Hill was a Scottish-born Canadian actor known for his versatile career spanning theatre, film, and television on both sides of the Atlantic.

Born in Glasgow, Scotland on March 3, 1936, he initially trained as a chef and worked on naval and cruise ships before turning to acting, studying in Paris at the École Charles Dullin under Marcel Marceau, Jean Vilar, and Alain Cuny. He collaborated with notable figures including Lindsay Anderson and Donald McWhinnie.

Relocating to Canada in the mid-1970s, Dunn-Hill established himself in Quebec's entertainment scene, gaining recognition for his portrayal of Marco D'Ascola in the Radio-Canada series ‘Omertà’. He appeared in dozens of film and television projects, including supporting roles in “Secret Window” (2004), “300” (2006), “Punisher: War Zone” (2008), and “Incendies” (2010).

He resided in Montreal's Petite Patrie neighborhood, where he enjoyed painting, writing, and storytelling in his later years, until his death on September 22, 2015, at the Montreal General Hospital. He is survived by his daughters Nadia Dunn-Hill and Tansy Troy.

John Dunn-Hill appeared in one Euro-western, “Grey Owl” in 1999 as Slim Hancock, and previously had appeared in the Euro-western television series “Grand Nord” (Legends of the North) as O’Malley in 1995.

DUNN-HILL, John (aka John Dunhill) [3/3/1936, Glasgow, Scotland, U.K. – 9/22/2015, Montreal, Canada] – theater, film, TV actor, married to ? father of costume designer Nadia Dunn-Hill, poet, writer, illustrator Tansy Troy.

Legends of the North (TV) – 1995 (O’Malley)

Grey Owl – 199 (Slim Hancock)

Spaghetti Western Directors, Screenwriters, Cinematographers

Spaghetti Western Director ~ Nathan H. Juran

 

Nathan Juran was a Romanian-born American film art director and director, best known for his Academy Award-winning contributions to art direction and his later work in science fiction and fantasy cinema.

Born Naftuli Hertz Juran in Gura Humorului, Bukovina, Austria-Hungary on September 9, 1907, to a Jewish family, he immigrated to the United States in 1912 with his parents, settling in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Juran earned a bachelor's degree in architecture from the University of Minnesota and a master's in architecture from MIT, and spent a summer on scholarship at L’École des Beaux-Arts in France, practicing as an architect before entering the film industry in 1937 as an art director at RKO and later 20th Century Fox.

In 1941, Juran shared the Academy Award for Best Art Direction (Black-and-White) for “How Green Was My Valley”, directed by John Ford, and received a nomination for “The Razors Edge” in 1946. He transitioned to directing in 1952 with “The Black Castle” and gained prominence in genre films, collaborating with stop-motion animator Ray Harryhausen on “20 Million Miles to Earth” (1957), “The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad” (1958), and “First Men in the Moon” (1964). Other notable directorial efforts include the cult classic “Attack of the 50 Foot Woman” (1958, credited as Nathan Hertz) and “Hellcats of the Navy” (1957) starring Ronald Reagan. Juran also worked in television and received a Life Career Award from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films for his enduring influence on the genres.

Juran died in Palos Verdes Estates, California on October 23,2002 at the age of 95.

JURAN, Nathan H. (aka Nathan Hertz, Jerry Juran, Nathan Hertz Juran) (Naftuli Hertz Juran) [9/1/1907, Gura Humora, Bukovina, Austria-Hungary – 10/23/2002, Palos Verdes Estates, California, U.S.A.] – producer, director, assistant director, writer, married to actress Anne Rose Tarnoff [1910-1998] (1930-1937) father of Warren R. Juran [1934-19??], married to Julia Moorer [1907-1992] (1944-1992), married to Catherine W. Davis [1928-2017] (1994-2002) honored with the Lifetime Career Award by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films, U.S.A. [1999].

Land Raiders – 1969

 

Spaghetti Western Screenwriter ~ Enzo Dell Aquila

 

Vincenzo ‘Enzo’ dell Aquila was born in Naples, Italy in 1935. He wrote screenplays for fifteen films between 1964 and 1975 sometimes using the alias Vincent Eagle. He also directed seven films from 1963 to 1988 and was an assistant director on 1965’s “Te lo leggo negli occhi”.

After graduating in 1962 from the Centro sperimentale di cinematografia, where he studied with Fernando Di Leo and directed the short film Un cuore per odiarvi, Dell'Aquila directed an episode of the sketch comedy ‘Gli eroi di ieri, oggi, domani’ in 1963 and then devoted himself mainly to screenwriting. Until 1969, he mainly wrote spaghetti western scripts; One of his two independent productions also falls under this genre in 1967. In the early 1970s, Dell'Aquila moved to television, where he was responsible for the program ‘L'altra domenica’. In 1981, he directed ‘Rosso Tiziano’ for Rai.

Enzo is often given credit for the concept of 1965’s “For a Few Dollars More” directed by Sergio Leone and starring Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef and Gian Maria Volonte.

Dell, AQUILA, Enzo (aka Vincent Eagle) (Vincenzo dell’Aquila) [1935, Naples, Campania, Italy -     ] – director, assistant director, writer.

7 Guns for the Mac Gregors – 1965 (co) [as Vincent Eagle]

And Then a Time for Killing – 1966

A Golden Sheriff – 1966 (co)

Up the MacGregors! – 1966 (co) [as Vincent Eagle]

Professionals for a Massacre – 1967 (co)

Bury Them Deep – 1968 (co)

Tequila Joe – 1968 (co)

Sartana the Gravedigger – 1969 (co)

Western Boy’s Story – 196? [film was never made]

I ragazi di Rio Grande – 19?? (co) [film was never made]

 

Spaghetti Western Cinematographer ~ Pietro Noribidelli

Pietro Noribidelli is/was an Italian cameraman and cinematographer. Pietro has been a costume designer for the TV movie ‘Ybris’ in 1984, a cameraman on four films and television shows between 1956 and 1965. He’s best known as a cinematographer working on eight films and TV series between 1962 and 1990.

I can find no biographical information on him.

MORBIDELLI, Pietro (aka P. Morbidelli) [Italian] – cinematographer, cameraman.

Tex and the Lord of the Deep – 1985

Spaghetti Westerns & American Myth: The Wild West Through Italian Eyes [Part 4 of 4]

The Collector

By Katrina Funk

October 4, 2025 

Challenging the Myth of the American West

The Italian interpretation of the Western can perhaps be attributed to differing cultural backgrounds. Italian film directors lacked the inherent cultural knowledge of the American West and its nuances, something American directors possessed. However, this lack of inherent cultural knowledge led to the creation of a different and perhaps more realistic and honest depiction of the American West.

Italian directors were under no obligation to perpetuate the myth of the West and the sentimental American nostalgia for the era. Italian Westerns did away with the code of morality present in American Westerns, instead making every character an island, independent, and chiefly interested in their own survival at any cost.

In American Westerns, Native Americans were usually portrayed as sadistic villains, the plight of frontier towns and their residents. In contrast, Spaghetti Westerns rarely featured Native Americans, and when they did, they were portrayed as neutral characters, neither good nor evil. Instead, Italian Westerns, many of which took place in the Southern United States and Mexico, focused on relations between Mexicans and “gringos,” white characters.

The Downfall of the Spaghetti Western & Its Enduring Legacy

Just as the American Western had fallen into decline following criticism of its simplistic portrayals of the West, Spaghetti Westerns, despite their popularity, soon followed suit. Popular culture began to collectively move on from the Western genre as a whole, which had saturated the film industry for decades. In addition, Spaghetti Western’s low-budget reputation, which had been an asset during the early days of the sub-genre, eventually led to quality issues such as sloppy editing and poorly written scripts.

However, the legacy of the Spaghetti Western endures. Leone’s Dollars Trilogy, which includes films A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, continues to be a cult classic. In each film, Eastwood reprises his character of the Man with No Name, whose signature squint is recognized the world over.

Though the era of the true Spaghetti Western has come and gone, contemporary filmmakers continue to be inspired by the revolutionary subgenre. American director Quentin Tarantino’s neo-Westerns Django Unchained and The Hateful Eight incorporate many themes present in spaghetti Westerns, such as morally ambiguous characters, bleak depictions of natural landscapes, and graphic violence. Tarantino’s homage to the genre with The Hateful Eight did not stop at thematic and aesthetic similarities. Tarantino enlisted Ennio Morricone to compose the film’s soundtrack, convincing the composer to return to the genre after decades. In 2016, Ennio Morricone won the Oscar for Best Original Score for his work on The Hateful Eight.

The Spaghetti Western will forever be canonized in film history. With its wide variety of influences and unique portrayal of the American West, its legacy will continue to live on and inspire future generations of film lovers and filmmakers.

Bud Spencer relives in '... And They Still Eat Beans', the cast of the most tiring film: mystery about the presence of Terence Hill

Libero Italia

August 5, 2026

 Funny, desecrating, unconventional and especially Friends: Bud Spencer and Terence Hill in '... “And They Still Eat Beans.” Mystery about the presence of the former "Don Matteo" 

Every time a steaming pan appears on the screen followed by an epic fistfight, the memory immediately returns to Bud Spencer and Terence Hill. “And They Still Eat Beans, a titanic film project that celebrates a timeless myth and transforms the passion of supporters into a tangible product, like the crown on the head of a King.

Produced by SC Movie Production and directed by Daniel Mercatali, the documentary draws inspiration directed from the book The beans anyway... were crap by Marcello Vicini, who edited the script by actively participating in the production. To make this film even more special is its popular soul: the film was born in fact through a large fundraiser promoted by fans, becoming a work entirely built from below. An intense journey between past and present that for the realization of photography has relied on the talent of Davide Mancori, flanked by the visual and multimedia inserts signed by Alberto Baldisserotto, author already known to the general public for the comic project Trinity & Bambino.

The full cast and locations of the documentary about Bud Spencer and Terence Hill

We already know that recreating the spirit and setting of that cinema has required a huge commitment. The filming spread over a traveling set that touched Italy, San Marino, France and Spain, reconstructing historical glimpses with spectacular visual fidelity. The plot of the film, then, rests on an extraordinary group of witnesses who have experienced firsthand the golden age of spaghetti western and Italian comedy.

Among the interventions there is that of the unforgettable Sal Borgese, memorable face of Anulu in “Who Finds a Friend Finds a Treasure”, flanked by Yanti Somer, splendid co-star of ...Trinity is STILL My Name”. But the historical memory of the set relives through the detailed stories of the screenwriter Ernesto Gastaldi, while the musical component makes use of the unmistakable imprint of the master Franco Micalizzi, composer of the soundtrack. There is also no shortage of direct testimonies in the field thanks to the stuntmen Ottaviano Dell’Acqua, Franco Moruzzi and Pietro Torrisi, flanked by the memories of the famous art manifesto signed by the painter Renato Casaro. To complete this rich cast are added the contributions of great names of our show such as Enrico Vanzina, Jerry Calà, Gigi and Andrea, Andy Luotto and Renato Cestiè.

What do we know about the presence of Terence Hill and the trailer’s release

All these precious interventions integrate harmoniously within a montage full of new sequences and period reconstructions that make the story dense, even if we can only ask ourselves the same question.

In the midst of so much richness of content, it remains to dissolve the greatest and most exciting conundrum for all cinephiles. The potential presence of Terence Hill in the final editing remains still shrouded in a thick halo of mystery, fueling expectations and hopes from the entire community of enthusiasts. Meanwhile, the first images spread through the official trailer already show the extraordinary care employed in the project, giving an exciting preview of a tiring film to make but fundamental to preserve a timeless legend.

Special Birthdays

Manuel Requena (actor) would have been 136 today but died in 1969.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Carlo Nieman (actor) would have been 105 today but died in 2019.