Pier Angeli

Pier Angeli was an Italian actress and model whose career spanned from the late 1940s to 1971. Born in Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy, she began acting as a teenager, taking an uncredited role in the Italian production 'The Million Dollar Nickel' in 1948. Her twin sister, Marisa Pavan, also pursued acting. Angeli's early years included small parts in films like 'Tomorrow Is Too Late' and stage work, but she gained international recognition in the 1950s when Hollywood came calling.

She appeared in notable films such as 'The Silver Chalice,' 'Somebody Up There Likes Me' opposite Paul Newman, and 'Battle of the Bulge.' Despite these successes, her career saw ups and downs, with periods of few roles. She divided her time between Italy and the US. Angeli married Vic Damone in 1954, a union that lasted four years and produced a son, and later married Armando Trovajoli in 1962, with whom she had another child before their separation.

In 1971, she made her final screen appearance in the low-budget sci-fi film 'Octaman.' That same year, she died of a barbiturate overdose in her Beverly Hills home at age 39. Her legacy includes a body of work that reflects the transition of European actresses into Hollywood stardom.