My journey ends here...
RIZZO Willy
Date of birth : October 22, 1928, Naples, Italy.
Date of death : February 25, 2013, Paris (
).
,
).Story
He made his first photographs during his childhood, photographing his class-mates of the Italian high-school, located rue Sedillot, Paris, with the Bow Agfa his mother had offered him.
In 1944 he bought a Rolleiflex at the black market, and met the unknown photographer, Gaston Paris.
He started his career in Paris, visiting the cinema studios of Billancourt and Joinville, he took pictures of movie starlets and stars for magazines such as Cine Mondial, Point de Vue then Images du Monde.
He went to Tunisia where he made a report about tank carcass, which was bought by Life magazine.
In 1945-1946 he covered the Nuremburg trial.
After the war, he was hired by the weekly France Dimanche who had a huge success by specializing in celebs private life. He was sent to Cannes to cover the first film festival in 1946.
He would have an incredible record with princess, playboys, starlets and stars who paraded in front of his camera.
In 1947 he went with the Blackstar English agency, first in New York where he lived with the town's rythm, including meeting again Edith Piaf who performed at the Versailles or his friends at El Morocco.
He looked carefully at Richard Avedon's and Erwin Blumenfeld images. He discovered the already mythic California and made reports about stars such as Gregory Peck, Richard Widmark, Gary Cooper, Anne Baxter.
Up to 1970 he photographed most of the great stars, including Brigitte Bardot (
), Maria Callas, SarahVaughan, Coco Chanel (
).Back to France in 1949, he was hired for the creation of Paris Match magazine, for which he made the first
colored cover with Winston Churchill (
).He would also make the cover of March 1958 with costume designer Yves St Laurent along with his favourite
model, Victoire (
).In 1959 he became the artistic editor of Marie-Claire magazine, and collaborated with the greatest fashion maagazines, including Vogue.
He married Paule, a former model from Chanel, with who he had two children, Sophie and Philippe.
They divorced at the beginning of the 1960'.
In November 1968 he married actress Elsa Martinelli (
);
they settled in Rome where he started his work as a designer, first for
his personal needs. He managed to create his own collection, influenced
by great name like Le Corbusier. He created his own company.At the end of the 1970', the fall of Cinecitta and the rise of terrorism ended his Roman stay.
He sold his company and settled again in Paris where he came back to his first passion, photography.
On July 4, 1980 he married Dominique Miara (
) with who he had three children (
), Willy Jr,Camilla and Gloria (
).Link with Marilyn
He took Marilyn in pictures in February 1962, at his friend, Jackie Collins' home. The article would be published in
Paris-Match magazine, dated June 23, 1962 (
).
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With Julius, the hairdresser, assistant of George Masters
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K&K-
04/2006 - Contact