LAST NIGHT, I drove into Chicago for a showing of The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago … which was one of the most amazing nights I’ve had in years. I was lucky enough to be able to attend a special private reception before the film, where I met and talked to director Sergio Martino – who is one of my absolute favorite Italian directors (there’s a character named after him in my novel Five Deaths for Seven Songbirds.)
I don’t get fanboyish over many people – I was a music critic for 20 years, so I’ve met a lot of “stars” over the years. But this… this was special. There was a language barrier, but he speaks some English, so I was able to talk to Sergio one-on-one for awhile about his career. He signed a couple of posters for me and talked a little bit about ’70s film production in Italy, which is one of my favorite periods in cinema. It’s also the period in which Sergio made his best films, including The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh and Torso, which I drove down to see the night before last (he did an introduction for that film on the stage as well).
A couple years ago, I found Sergio through Facebook. He agreed to look at my forthcoming “giallo homage” novel and after reading, he was kind enough to give me a wonderful promotional blurb for Five Deaths for Seven Songbirds. I never imagined at that point that I would ever get to meet him in person!
Here’s what he wrote about Five Deaths and is printed on the back cover of the hardcover edition:
“I read this story with ever-increasing interest. The dynamics and tension felt reminiscent of my thriller films from the 70s and 80s, which have been appreciated by many American directors such as Quentin Tarantino. It would make a great film for lovers of the genre. Ottimo intrigo!”
Last night, somebody brought him a bottle of J&B to sign, which was genius – J&B appears in almost every giallo film. It’s like there was no other alcohol in Italy in the 1970s.
The film showing itself was great – I’ve seen The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh several times and rank it as one of the best giallo films ever made – but I’ve never seen it before on the big screen. It was so much fun to be in a packed house where people reacted with laughter and cheers and clapping. They even had a live organist playing over trailers prior to the show!
And afterward, Stephanie Sack, who was instrumental in bringing Sergio to the States, interviewed him about his films and talked about the “family” connection he had with his producer (brother Luciano) and lead actress in several films Edwige Fenech (sister-in-law).
While he knows enough English to talk one-on-one a bit, he had an interpreter for the on-stage interview, who was amazing. (I don’t know how she kept up with him on both nights – she was also there to translate for him when he talked about Torso the night before).
He told some great stories about his career, including visiting Chicago over 50 years ago and getting the “key” to the Playboy Mansion. All in all, a super memorable night!
