Culture and entertainment: the big names who left us in 2022

2022 was a year that mourned the death of many characters from the world of culture and entertainment. Among others, the farewells to Piero Angela , to the actress Angela Lansbury , to the singer Olivia Newton John , to the actress Monica Vitti , to the singer Catherine Spaak , to the journalist Donatella Raffai , to the journalist Eugenio Scalfari .
But there are also other great characters who have left us in the last 12 months.

The adventure of the Artemis mission kicked off on November 16, with the launch of the rocket for the return of man to the Moon . However, due to a strange twist of fate, whoever did the commentary in Italy on the first moon landing in 1969 did not witness this new milestone: on February 1, 2022, the journalist Tito Stagno died.

His story live on Rai on 20 July 1969 has never been forgotten: « He touched! He has now touched the lunar surface » his words to an entire listening nation, to confirm that NASA's mission had been successful: man was on the Moon .

The secretary of the German entrepreneur Oskar Schindler is also gone. The famous "Schindler's List" , the list of Jews to be saved from Nazi concentration camps was written by Mimi Reinhardt , who died on April 8, 2022. Thanks to her work and her lists, over 1300 people survived the extermination camps. The woman, an Austrian of Jewish origins, had lived in Israel for several years and died at the age of 107.

In 2022, on April 13, the photographer Letizia Battaglia dies. With his shots he told the crimes of the mafia and the stories of the women of Palermo . He also immortalized the death of the president of the Sicily Region Piersanti Mattarella , rescued by his brother Sergio, now president of the Republic. And she was also the first European woman to receive the “Eugene Smith” photojournalism award in 1985 in New York.

On July 18, one of the greatest and most important exponents of pop art passed away: Claes Oldenburg , author of the famous giant sculptures depicting clothespins, forks, spoons, famous in the United States. The Swedish artist and sculptor, then a naturalized American, began his career in the 1960s by focusing his research and artistic production on contemporary food consumerism . He begins his production of plaster sculptures depicting food, then focuses on serial reproductions of commonly used objects. From the meeting with the artist Coosje Van Bruggen, from the second half of the 70s, the monumental works installed in urban spaces are born. His name is also linked to Italy: it was he, in fact, who created the iconic needle and thread in Piazzale Cadorna in Milan .

On September 13, the world of cinema mourned the passing of Jean-Luc Godard , the director of the Nouvelle Vague who signed over 150 films including "A bout de souffle", "Le Mépris", "Pierrot le fou". "He wasn't sick, he was just exhausted," reported the French newspaper Libération. The French filmmaker died in Switzerland, resorting to assisted suicide.

On September 27, Bruno Arena died , an Italian comedian much loved by the public and one of the two beating hearts of the duo "Fichi d'India" . His parody of the TV presenter Benedetta Parodi is famous, grappling with recipes and cooking. «I would have put two eggs in it», thus ended the gag with the words of his right-hand man Max Cavallari, with which they snatched a smile from all of Italy.

“It's changing out there. Just like last time. There's a storm coming, Harry. And we must all be ready." Thus, in the film "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix", Robbie Coltrane (born Anthony Robert McMillan, pronounced one of the most famous phrases of the saga dedicated to the wizard of Privet Drive. With his Hagrid, Coltrane became familiar to millions of fans of JK Rowling's stories. The same ones who, on October 14 , mourned her passing. Also noteworthy is her participation, in the role of Sergeant Peter Godley, in the film "The True Story of Jack the Ripper - From Hell”.

We met him thanks to Tom Hanks , protagonist in 2004 of Steven Spielberg's film "The Terminal" , the film inspired by the true story of Mehran Karimi Nasseri an Iranian refugee who lived for almost 20 years in the Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, where he was found lifeless on November 12 . Nicknamed himself "Sir Alfred Mehran", he defined himself as stateless, and remained in the French airport from 26 August 1988 to July 2006.

November 25th was the day of the last farewell to the American singer who enchanted with her hits "Flashdance...what a feeling" and "Fame" , with which she won the Oscar twice. Irene Cara died at the age of 63 at her home in Florida and the cause of her death is still unknown. "His legacy will live on forever through his music and films," said his agent Judith A. Moose.

2022 was also the year of farewell to Lando Buzzanca . Born Gerlando , he died on December 18 after signing important pages in the history of cinema and television, with over 100 films in his curriculum. The debut comes in the 60s with Pietro Germi in “Divorzio all'italiana” , to then work with directors such as Elio Petri , Luciano Salce , Steno and Lucio Fulci . In 2008 he was awarded the Golden Globe for Best Actor for "I Viceré" by Roberto Faenza .