Spanish postcard by Archivo Bermejo, no. C-202, 1964. Caption: actor of the Eastmancolor film Les parapluies de Cherbourg/The Umbrellas of Cherbourg by Radio Films. Retail price: 5 Ptas.
Spanish postcard by Archivo Bermejo, no. C-254, 1965. Caption: actor of the Eastmancolor film Les parapluies de Cherbourg/The Umbrellas of Cherbourg by Radio Films.
Spanish postcard by Postal Oscarcolor, no. 396.
Spanish postcard by Postal Oscarcolor, no. 476. Photo: RCA Victor / 20th Century Fox.
The Umbrellas of Cherbourg
Francesco 'Nino' Castelnuovo was born to humble beginnings in Lecco, Lombardy, in 1936. He had two older brothers, Pierantonio and Clemente. His working life began with a series of stints in various jobs, including house painting, as a mechanic, and as a workman. He moved to Milan where he worked as a sales agent and took drama classes at the Piccolo Teatro in Milan.
He debuted on-screen as a mime in the RAI children's television show Zurli il mago del giovedì/Zurli the Wizard of Thursday. His film debut followed two years later in Un maledetto imbroglio/The Facts of Murder (Pietro Germi, 1959). He also had a small supporting part in Luchino Visconti's classic Rocco e i suoi fratelli/Rocco and His Brothers (1960).
When the American television show Disneyland travelled to Italy in 1962, he appeared with Annette Funicello in two episodes of the mini-movie, Escapade in Florence, singing, playing the guitar, and adding the Italian verses to the jovial tarantella 'Dream Boy'.
His career gained traction with a co-starring role opposite Catherine Deneuve in the romantic musical drama Les parapluies de Cherbourg/The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (Jacques Demy, 1964) though his scenes were subsequently re-dubbed by José Bartel. Nominated for the American Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, the film gained the attention of both film critics and the public and won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival in February of the same year.
Castelnuovo's greatest popularity came via the small screen, as Renzo Tramaglino, the key protagonist of the mini-series I promessi sposi/The Betrothed (Sandro Bolchi, 1967), a period piece set during the Spanish occupation of Lombardy in the 17th century and based on a best-selling novel by Alessandro Manzoni. Other appearances have included both American and Italian-produced Westerns like The Reward (Serge Bourguignon, 1965) with Max von Sydow, and the Zapata Western Un esercito di 5 uomini/The 5-Man Army (Don Taylor, Italo Zingarelli, 1969) starring Bud Spencer. It featured a script by a young Dario Argento and a score by Ennio Morricone.
French postcard by La Cinémathèque française, no. CF 5004, 1998. Photo: Ciné Tamaris / Collection C.T. Catherine Deneuve and Nino Castelnuovo in Les parapluies de Cherbourg (Jacques Demy, 1964).
Vintage postcard. Nino Castelnuovo and Christine Delaroche in Un monde nouveau/A New World (Vittorio De Sica, 1966).
German postcard. Nino Castelnuovo in Gott schützt die Liebenden/God protects the lovers (Alfred Vohrer, 1973).
A low-budget Italian space opera produced in the wake of Star Wars
Nino Castelnuovo appeared as Armand Duval opposite Danièle Gaubert in Camille 2000 (1969), directed by Radley Metzger. The film is based on the 1848 novel and 1852 play 'La Dame aux Camélias' by Alexandre Dumas, fils. It was adapted by Michael DeForrest.
His later films included L'emmerdeur/A Pain in the Ass (Édouard Molinaro, 1973) with Jacques Brel and Lino Ventura, and the Gothic horror film Il prato macchiato di rosso/The Red-stained Lawn (Riccardo Ghione, 1973),
By the early 1970s, Castelnuovo acted primarily on stage, and in serial television. From 1977 to 1982, he was seen as the athletically sound spokesman in commercials for the corn-oil company Cuore. One of his few later film performances was a supporting part in the Science Fiction film Sette uomini d'oro nello spazio/Star Odyssey (Alfonso Brescia, 1979). It was the last of four low-budget Italian space opera films produced in the wake of Star Wars by Italian director Alfonso Brescia under the pseudonym Al Bradley.
His final fling on the international scene was a small role as D'Agostino in The English Patient (Anthony Minghella, 1996) as an archaeologist, recalled in flashback scenes by the lead character Almásy (Ralph Fiennes). He continued to be active on the Italian theatre stage. In 2002, he starred in a production of the 1931 comedy play 'The Front Page'. Castelnuovo retired in 2016. His last film was The Legacy Run (Massimiliano Mazza, 2016) with sports personalities Daniela Scalia, Luca Tramontin, and Marco Baron.
Nino Castelnuovo passed away after a long illness in Rome in 2021. He was 84. Castelnuovo had a son, Lorenzo, with actress Danila Trebbi. Since 2010, he has been married to actress Maria Cristina Di Nicola.
French postcard by Sonis for Cine Tamaris, Paris. Poster design by Chico. Nino Castelnuovo and Catherine Deneuve in Les parapluies de Cherbourg/The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (Jacques Demy, 1964).
French postcard by Encyclopédie du ciné, Paris. Poster design: Constantin Belinsky. French affiche for Le colt cantarono la morte e fu... tempo di massacro/ Massacre Time/ Django the Runner/ Colt Concert (Lucio Fulci, 1966), with Franco Nero, George Hilton and Nino Castelnuovo. The French title was Le temps du massacre/ Les Colts chanterent la mort et ce fut... le temps du massacre.
Nino Castelnuovo in a commercial for the corn oil company Cuore. Source: Tutto Spot 80 (YouTube).
Sources: I.S. Mowis (IMDb), Wikipedia, and IMDb.
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