RIP Francesco Scardamaglia

Italian author and screenwriter Francesco Scardamaglia died in Rome on October 17, 2010. He was one of Italy’s most successful writers of historical fiction. Francesco was the son of producer, Elio Scardamaglia [1920-2001] and was born in Varese, Italy on February 23, 1945. Francesco started in films writing the screenplay for peplums such as “Goliath and the Sins of Babylon” starring Mark Forest and “Seven Rebel Gladiators” starring Roger Browne. Then in 1968 he wrote three Euro-western screenplays: “The Moment to Kill” with George Hilton and Walter Barnes, “The Wild and the Dirty” (aka “Johnny Hamlet”) with Chip Corman and Gilbert Roland which was followed by “Kill Them All and Return Alone” with Chuck Connors. He’s also remembered for a series of stories written for Bud Spencer and Terence Hill such as “Watch Out We’re Mad” (1974), “Charleston” (1977), “They Called Him Bulldozer” (1978), “The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid” (1979), “Bomber” (1982). In the later years he turned to television writing such teleplays as “Pope John XXIII”, (2002) “Madre Teresa” (2003), “Renzo & Lucia” (2004) and “Puccini” (2009).