From the WAI! vault

 

Little Known Spaghetti Western Actors ~ Désirée Edlund

[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.]

Désirée Edlund was born Anna Kristina Désirée Edlund on August 20, 1945 in Östersund, Jämtlands län, Sweden. She studied on the pedagogic and professional dancer track at the Ballet Academy 1962–1965 and the music-dramatic track at the Statens scenskola in Malmö 1965–1968. She also attended TV producerproduction training at the Dramatic Institute in Stockholm in 1976. In 1992 she took a real estate exam and in 1993–1997 she studied labor law.

After completing her studies in Malmö, she was engaged as a soloist at the Stora teatern in Gothenburg 1968–1972 as well as at the Stockholm City Theatre, the Riksteatern and the Oscarsteatern in Stockholm. Her career then continued on Gotland where she was a music producer at Regionmusiken in Gotland County in 1988 as well as director and artistic director of Visby Summer Theater 1984–1988. She was a music producer and program presenter for Länsmusiken in Örebro 1988–1991 and then culture director at Stockholm County Council 1990–1999.

Désirée appeared in three films between 1964 and 1985.

For the TV audience, she became nationally known as the host of Nya Tiotusenenkronorsfrågan in 1972.

Désirée Edlund appeared in one Euro-western, “Wild West Story” as a dancer in 1963.

EDLUND, Désirée (aka Desirée Edlund, fröken D. Edlund) (Anna Kristina Désirée Edlund) [8/20/1945, Östersund, Jämtlands län, Sweden -     ] – producer, film, TV actress, singer.

Wild West Story – 1963 (dancer)

Spaghetti Western Directors, Screenwriters, Cinematographers

Spaghetti Western Director ~ Guy Lefranc

 Guy-André Lefranc was born in Paris, France on October 21, 1919. Assistant director to Marcel Carné for Le Quai des brumes and then editor, Guy Lefranc was taken prisoner during the Second World War. At the Liberation, he directed “Knock” with Louis Jouvet. His subsequent films were often slapstick comedies that were mostly popular with the public, but which seem to have been forgotten today. In parallel to his career as a director, he assisted several big names in cinema such as Robert Bresson and Jean Grémillon. His most notable collaboration remains” Le Corporal épiné” by Jean Renoir, in which he appears in the credits as assistant director and as a screenwriter, drawing on his memories of captivity. After directing, in 1976, the mini-series ‘Marie-Antoinette’ for television, he ceased all activity.

Lefranc died in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Yvelines, France on February 1, 1994 at the age of 74.

Guy Lefranc directed one Euro-western, “Fernand cow-boy” (Fernand Cowboy) in 1956.

LEFRANC, Guy (Guy-André Lefranc) [10/21/1919, Paris, Île-de-France, France – 2/1/1994, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Yvelines, France] – director, assistant director, writer, film editor

Fernand Cowboy – 1956

 

Spaghetti Western Screenwriter ~ Jean Durand

Jean Durand was a pioneering French film director, screenwriter, and actor of the silent era, best known for his prolific contributions to early cinema, including over two hundred films characterized by physical burlesque, absurd comedy, and innovative stunts. Born in Paris on December 15, 1882, Durand began his career in the city's café-concerts and music halls before transitioning to film in 1908, initially working briefly at Pathé and then producing more than forty films—most now lost—at Société Lux.

In 1910, Durand joined Gaumont as a replacement for Roméo Bosetti, quickly rising to become the studio's third-most-important director after Louis Feuillade and Léonce Perret, where he helmed fast-paced comedies and genre-blending works that influenced later slapstick traditions, such as the Keystone Cops and Marx Brothers. His signature style emphasized acrobatic burlesque, wrecked scenery, and adrenaline-fueled absurdity, often featuring a team of performers called "Les Puittes," including actor Gaston Modot. Notable among his output were the successful Onésime series (1912–1915), which pioneered extreme physical comedy and stunts, as well as the Calino and Zigoto burlesque series starting in 1910 and 1912, respectively.

Durand also directed original westerns filmed in the Camargue region of France, collaborating with performer Joë Hamman on spectacular adventures that parodied the genre while incorporating his humorous flair, such as “Pendaison à Jefferson City” (1911) and “Le Railway de la mort” (1912). Though many of his films were lost over time, representing less than a third of his total work surviving today, recent rediscoveries and scholarly attention, including Francis Lacassin's 2004 book À la recherche de Jean Durand, have elevated his status as an unjustly forgotten auteur of 1910s cinema. His career, marked by genius and recklessness, spanned the vibrant early silent era until the impact of World War I, after which he faded from prominence.

Jean Durand directed and wrote over 200 films during the silent era, primarily between 1908 and 1929, though records are incomplete due to the loss of many nitrate prints and incomplete documentation from early production companies like Pathé, Lux, and Gaumont. His works span burlesque comedies, Western parodies, and later dramas, with fewer than a third surviving today.

Jean Durand married actress Berthe Dagmar on December 11, 1917, in Paris. They remained married until Durand died on March 10, 1946, at the age of 63.

Jean Durand wrote screenplays for seven Euro-westerns: “Les aventures d’un cowboy à Paris” (The Adventures of a Cowboy in Paris), “Amitié de cow-boy” (Amitie the Cowboy), “L’amour du ranch” and “La main coupée” all in 1910, “Cent dollars mort ou vif” in 1911, “Le railway de la mort” (The Railway of Death) in 1912 and “Onésime sur le sentier de guerre” (Onésime on the Warpath) in 1913.

DURAND, Jean [12/15/1882, Paris, Île-de-France, France – 3/10/1946, Paris, Île-de-France, France] – journalist, cartoonist, producer, director, assistant director, writer, actor married to director, dancer, director, actress Berthe Dagmar (Albertine Blanche Augusta Marie Hamon) [1881-1934] (1917-1934).

The Adventures of a Cowboy in Paris – 1910

Amitie the Cowboy – 1910

L’amour du ranch – 1910

La main coupée - 1910

Cent dollars mort ou vif – 1911

The Railway of Death - 1912

Onésime on the Warpath - 1913

 

Spaghetti Western Cinematographer ~ Gabor Pogany

 

Gábor Pogány was a Hungarian-born Italian cinematographer known for his prolific contributions to Italian and international cinema across several decades

Born in Budapest on October 28, 1915, Pogány established his career in Italy after emigrating there, where he worked as director of photography on numerous films until his death in Rome on October 30, 1999 two days after turning 84.

He is particularly recognized for his cinematography on acclaimed works such as Vittorio De Sica's “Two Women” (La Ciociara, 1960), which starred Sophia Loren in her Oscar-winning role, as well as adventure and action films including “Valdez Is Coming” (1971), “Hornet's Nest’ (1970), “Bluebeard” (1972), and “The Two Missionaries” (1974).

His versatile style supported a wide range of genres, from dramatic classics to popular Italian comedies and co-productions, making him a key figure in mid-20th-century European filmmaking.

Gabor Pogany was a cinematographer on two Spaghetti westerns: “La morte non conta i dollari” (Death at Owell Rock) in 1966 and “¡Que viene Valdez!” (Valdez Is Coming!) in 1970.

POGANY, Gabor (Gábor Pogány) [10/28/1915, Budapest, Hungary – 10/30/1999, Rome, Lazio, Italy] – cinematography, cameraman.

Death at Owell Rock – 1966

Valdez Is Coming! – 1970

New Book Release Casamonica quando un nome pesa piu di una colpa

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Casamonica quando un nome pesa piu di una colpa 

(Casamonica - When a name weighs more than a fault)

Author: Riccardo Stefano Cascone

(2025)

 

Country: Spain

Publisher: Independently published

Language: Italian

Pages: 316

ISBN-13 ‏ :  979-8272298508

ASIN: B0FYMKMPJ9

Released: October 30, 2025

 

In an Italy often imprisoned by its prejudices, where names become brands and individual stories are lost in the media echo of sensationalism, this book was created to restore complexity to a narrative too often reduced to the essentials.

The author, contacted directly by Luciano Casamonica, becomes a witness and intermediary of an unpublished and surprising story, which combines the personal story of a man with the collective memory of an entire people.

Divided into four chapters, the volume opens with a personal introduction: the human and professional journey that led the author to accept the proposal to write the authorized biography of Luciano Casamonica, infant prodigy of Italian cinema, unwitting protagonist of a life that

has often surpassed the most daring screenplay. It is the first step in a narrative journey that combines research, listening and the desire for understanding.

The second chapter delves into the thousand-year history of the Gypsy people, tracing their migrations, cultural roots and persecutions suffered: a story that spans centuries and continents, useful for understanding the profound dynamics that led to the formation of a rich, resistant and still misunderstood culture.

This is followed, in the third chapter, by the beating heart of the book: the life of Luciano Casamonica.

Born into a family destined for media notoriety, Luciano distinguished himself from an early age for a natural talent that led him to the film set. Between unpublished anecdotes, intimate reflections and crucial passages of his existence, the reader is invited to closely observe a personal path that escapes clichés, tracing the portrait of a man before a surname.

The volume closes with a broader look at the news events that involved the Casamonica family. With a measured tone and devoid of sensationalism, the author analyzes the events that have contributed to forming the collective imagination around this name, restoring, where possible, complexity and context to events often reduced to title.

"Casamonica - When a name weighs more than a fault" is a work that combines the strength of the biographical story with the rigor of historical research. An invitation to careful reading, to suspend judgment, to rediscover the human in the folds of the narrative.

Spaghetti Western Locations for “Companeros”.

We continue our hunt for filming locations for “Companeros”. Next, we se two automobiles and a covered wagon outside a prison. Across from the prison we The Swede observing them from a second story balcony inside a saloon. While Vasco below is watching a roulette wheel spin. Vasco asks the croupier how the game is played and he tells him you bet on a number and if you win you get 36 times you wager. Vasco wants to bet, with the dollar, Yodlaf gave him when they first met, on #69 but the croupier tells he can’t. Just the Yodalf appears and tells Vasco since there are two of them to put his money on #2. It comes up #33. Vasco pulls his gun and places it on the croupier’s cheek while The Swede lights his cigar with a match struck in the croupier’s nose. The croupier suddenly states he made a mistake the winner is #2. The Croupier closes the game and leaves while The Swede counts out $36.00. From across the room a saloon girl calls out, “Yod sweety. That money belongs to me.” They embrace and kiss. Yodlaf introduces Vasco to Zaira Harris. The Swede says he must see someone in town and leave Zaira with Vasco.

Filmed on a Madrid sound stage.

 

For a more detailed view of this site and other Spaghetti Western locations please visit my friend Yoshi Yasuda’s location site: http://y-yasuda.net/film-location.htm and Captain Douglas Film Locations http://www.western-locations-spain.com/

Special Birthdays

Angel Alvarez (actor) would have been 120 today but died in 1983.

Karin Gregorek (actress) would have been 85 today but died in 2023.

Spaghetti Western Trivia – “My Name is Nobody’s” dueling cinematographers.

 

While the majority of the film was shot in Spain and New Mexico, director Sergio Leone joined the crew for five days in New Orleans, Louisiana, where some sequences were filmed. During this period, tensions arose on set between the cinematographer [Armando Nannuzzi]

and director Tonino Valerii, but the actors, including Fonda & Hill, completed their scenes successfully.  Their relationship became more intense, and Nannuzzi eventually left the film.  It appears that Giuseppe Ruzzolini

came over, completed the US scenes and returned to Spain and lensed that footage as well [Ed and Wikipedia].

Armando Nannuzzi is usually listed alone for photography: USA

Other sources have the cinematography for the New Orleans sequences handled only by Giuseppe Ruzzolini.

Two years later Leone got Giuseppe Ruzzolini to shoot the 'Nobody' sequel "The Genius" aka 'Nobody is the Greatest' (1975).

 

By Michael Ferguson