Special Birthdays

Hans Heinrich (director) would have been 115 today but died in 2003.

Giovanni Di Benedetto (actor) would have been 105 today but died in 2014.

 

 

 

 

 

Wolfgang Amerbacher [voice actor] would have been 105 today but died in 1971.

Gerard Barray (actor) would have been 95 today but died in 2024.

 

Daylight Savings Time Ends 2026

 

From the WAI! vault

 

Little Known Spaghetti Western Actors ~ Paul Ellis

[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.]

Paul Ellis was an alias used by Benjamin Italo Jose Ingenito Paralupi O'Higgins an Argentine actor who appeared in American, Spanish, Argentine and Mexican films. For the first half of his career, he worked under the names Paul Ellis and Manuel Granado.

He was born in Buenos Aires on November 6, 1896. He made his film debut in the Metro-Goldwyn film “The Bandolero” in 1924 under the name Manuel Granado. He was signed to a contract by Louis B. Mayer and listed as a Metro-Goldwyn principal player in the same year. An April 1925 article by Harry Carr for Motion Picture dubbed him 'Hollywood's New Sheik.' Like other Latino actors in silent-era Hollywood, he had adapted a WASPy screen name, which stood in contrast to his dark features, a look that was popular at the time. Despite this, he was still cast almost exclusively as secondary ethnic characters, unlike his contemporaries in silent-era Hollywood like Gilbert Roland and Barry Norton (a fellow Argentine). He was singled out for praise by The Los Angeles Herald Examiner and other Los Angeles newspapers after the 1926 premiere of “The Dancer of Paris”.

The coming of sound found Paul Ellis relegated to bit parts, though he did secure some substantial roles in Spanish-language versions of English-language films such as “La Voluntad del muerto” (1930). In 1930, he also wrote and appeared in the film “Alma De Gaucho”. Ellis also appeared in “Charros, gauchos y manolas”, a musical directed by Xavier Cugat. These films were usually released in Spanish-language territories only. He continued to appear in American films for another ten years, mostly in brief uncredited roles, though he is remembered by some for his appearance in “Marihuana” (1936), which retains a small cult following. He made his last American film, “Whistling in the Dark”, in 1941.

Still using the name Paul Ellis, he next shows up in films in 1947 in Argentina, and continued to appear in films in Argentina. He appeared in the Mexican/Argentine co-production “La Tierra del Fuego se apaga”. He died in Mar del Plata, Argentina on January 30, 1974 at the age of 77.

As Paul Ellis ha appeared in one Spaghetti western, “Rebeldes en Canada” (Rebels in Canada) as Maurice Touret in 1965.

ELLIS, Paul (aka Manolo Granada, Manuel Granada, Manuel Renaldo Granado, Manuel Granado) (Benjamin Italo Jose Ingenito Paralupi O'Higgins) [11/6/1896, Buenos Aires, Argentina – 1/30/1974, Mar del Plata, Argentina] – producer, writer, film, TV actor.

Rebels in Canada – 1965 (Maurice Touret)

Spaghetti Western Directors, Screenwriters, Cinematographers

Spaghetti Western Director ~ Joaquin Luis Romero Marchent

Joaquín Luis Romero Marchent was a Spanish film director, screenwriter, and producer known for his pioneering contributions to Spanish westerns and the Spaghetti western genre during the 1960s and 1970s. Born in Madrid on August 26, 1921, he began his career in the late 1940s as an assistant director before making his directorial debut with “Juzgado permanente” in 1954. He became particularly recognized for directing a series of Eurowesterns, including “La venganza del Zorro” (1962), “Tres hombres buenos” (1963), “Antes llega la muerte” (1964), and the cult classic “Condenados a vivir (Cut-Throats Nine”, 1972), which blended western conventions with graphic horror elements.

His work extended beyond feature films, as he also directed episodes of the acclaimed television series ‘Curro Jiménez’ during the late 1970s and contributed to its 1995 special ‘Curro Jiménez: El regreso de una leyenda’. Active from the 1940s through the 1990s, Romero Marchent collaborated frequently with family members in the industry and helped shape the development of popular adventure and genre cinema in Spain during the mid-20th century. He died in Madrid on August 16, 2012 from lung cancer ten days before his 91^st birthday.

Joaquin Luis Romero Marchent directed eleven Spaghetti westerns: “El Coyote” (The Coyote) with Fernando Soler and “La justicia del Coyote” (The Judgment of the Coyote” both in 1954, “Cabalgando hacia la Muerte” (Shadow of Zorro) in 1962, “La venganza del Zorro” (Zorro the Avenger) both in 1962, “El sabor de la venganza” (Gunfight at High Noon) and “Tres hombres buenos” (The Implacable Three) both in 1963, “Camino del sur” (Seven from Texas) in 1964, “$100,000 par el Lassiter” (Dollars for a Fast Gun) and “Aventuras del Oeste” (7 Hours of Gunfire) both in 1965, “Fedra West” (I Do Not Forgive... I Kill!) in 1967 and “Cut-Throats Nine” in 1970.

MARCHENT, Joaquín Luis Romero (aka Jose Hernandez, J.R. Marchen, Paul Marchenti) [8/26/1921, Madrid, Madrid, Spain - 8/16/2012, Madrid, Madrid, Spain (lung cancer)] – producer, director, writer, actor, son of producer, writer, film editor Joaquin Romero Marchent Gómez de Avellaneda [1899-1973], brother of director, assistant director, writer, actor Rafael Romero Marchent [1926-2020], film editor Ana Maria Romero Marchent [19??-2015], actor Carlos Romero Marchent [1944-2013], married to actress Ángela Caballero, father of Nuria Romero (Nuria Marchent), founded Centauro Films.

The Coyote – 1954 (co)

The Judgment of the Coyote – 1954 [as J.L. Romero Marchent]

Shadow of Zorro – 1962

Zorro the Avenger – 1962

Gunfight at High Noon – 1963 [as J.R. Marchent]

The Implacable Three – 1963 [as J.L. Marchent]

Seven from Texas – 1964 [as Paul Marchenti]

Dollars for a Fast Gun – 1965 [as J.R. Marchent]

7 Hours of Gunfire – 1965 [as Jose Hernandez]

Soltanto il diritto di morire – 16?? [as José Romero Marchent] [film was never made]

I Do Not Forgive... I Kill! – 1967 [as J. L. Romero Marchent]

Cut-Throat Nines – 1970

Spaghetti Western Screenwriter ~ Giorgio Ferroni

Giorgio Ferroni was an Italian film director, screenwriter, and occasional producer known for his versatile contributions to cinema across multiple genres, including documentaries, historical dramas, peplum adventures, horror, and spaghetti westerns, from the 1930s through the 1970s. Born in Perugia, Umbria on April 12, 1908, he began his career in the mid-1930s directing short documentaries such as “Pompei” (1936), which showcased his early interest in historical subjects. Ferroni gained initial experience at Rome's Cines Studios, where he worked as an assistant director to prominent filmmakers Gennaro Righelli and Carmine Gallone, honing his skills in narrative filmmaking during Italy's fascist-era cinema boom. His directorial debut in feature films came with aviation-themed works like “The Thrill of the Skies” (1939), marking his transition from shorts to dramatic storytelling amid World War II constraints. Postwar, he explored a range of genres, directing romantic dramas such as “Ritorno al Nido” (1946) and “Senza Famiglia” (1946), before venturing into mythological epics in the 1950s and 1960s. Among his most notable works are the peplum films “The Lion of Thebes” (1964) and “Hercules vs. the Moloch” (1963), which exemplified the sword-and-sandal cycle popular in Italian cinema, as well as the Gothic horror classic “Mill of the Stone Women” (1960), praised for its atmospheric tension and literary adaptations. Later in his career, Ferroni entered the Spaghetti western genre with films like “Blood for a Silver Dollar” (1965) and “Wanted” (1967, credited under the pseudonym Calvin Jackson Padget), blending action with moral complexities typical of the subgenre. Married to actress Nada Fiorelli from the 1940s until his death in Perugia on August 17, 1981, at age 73, leaving a legacy of over 20 directorial credits that reflected evolving trends in Italian popular cinema.

Giorgio Ferroni wrote screenplays for two Spaghetti westerns: “Il fanciullo del West” (The Kid of the West) with Gian Paolo Callegari, Vittorio Metz and Vincenzo Rovi and “Un dollaro bucato” (Blood for a Silver Dollar) with Giorgio Stegani in 1965.

FERRONI, Giorgio (aka Calvin J. Badget, C.J. Padget, Calvin J. Padget, Calvin Jackson Padget, Calvin Jakson Padget, Jackson Padget) [4/12/1908, Perugia, Perugia, Umbria, Italy – 8/17/1981, Rome, Lazio, Italy] – producer, director, assistant director, writer, film editor, actor, married to actress Nada Fiorelli [1919–1984] (194?-1981).

The Kid of the West – 1942 (co)

Blood for a Silver Dollar – 1965 (co) [as Calvin Jackson Padget]

Spaghetti Western Cinematographer ~ Giampaolo Santini

Gian Paolo Santini is/was an Italian producer, director, editor writer, cameraman and cinematographer, SFX expert and actor.

He produced, directed and edited one film “Un viaggio di paura” in 1992, directed another “Cronaca” in 1969, acted in two films “Il lungo giorno della violenza” in 1971 and dabbled in SFX and edited while spending the majority of his career as a cameraman on five films and mainly as a cinematographer on twelve films between 1962 and 1992.

Giampaolo Santini was a cinematographer on one Spaghetti western “Il lungo giorno della violenza” (The Bandit Malpelo) in 1971 where he also had a part as the guerilla commander.

SANTINI, Giampaolo (Gian Paolo Santini) – director, writer, cinematographer, cameraman, SFX, actor.

The Bandit Malpelo – 1971 (guerilla commander)