Farewell to Pippo Baudo, Italy mourns its king of entertainment.

Al Bano didn't mince his words: "He was everything to me. I have so many personal memories with him, I could say countless. I'm not dwelling on the Sanremo I won, but on my first. Beautiful and indelible memories. Pippo was simply everything to me, and I can never thank him enough for what he did."

And then there's Luciana Littizzetto, who called him "a wonderful activator of lightness. I kiss you again, Pippo, kind man. You opened up new avenues, you were generous, attentive, bold, and prudent. Thank you."

For Alessandro Gassmann, "With Pippo Baudo, the last presenter of that era, where grace and culture existed, has passed away. He passed through my family, and I think he will be remembered as an honest and humane person. Goodbye, Pippo."

From music to intimate memories : Jalisse emphasized the fundamental role he played in their career. "Thank you, Pippo, you were the first to believe in Jalisse in November 1995 when you chose us and the song Vivo at Sanremo Giovani. You believed in us so much that you advised us to finish the song with Alessandra's final high note, an absolute gem that only appears on TV and not on the album."

Sabrina Ferilli relied on a few clear words: "I owe a lot to this man. Thank you."

And then Giorgia, who had a very close relationship with Baudo: "Pippo, how can I write now to say goodbye, to express everything you were and will continue to be in my memory and heart? Photos and words won't be enough. I'm comforted by the fact that we shared these things right up until the end, with all the love we could muster. You created us; we're all sad today. To Tiziana, to your family, and to Dina, a big hug."

Among the most intense memories is that of Katia Ricciarelli, his partner of eighteen years and wife from 1986 to 2004. "I'm deeply shocked by this news. We no longer saw each other, but you can't forget 18 years together. I didn't believe it was true, given the many false rumors about his death. Regardless of what happened between us and how it ended, we married for love. And I've always said that Pippo was number one and an extraordinary person from a professional standpoint."

A complex, yet ever-present love: "Beyond our history, some things can be overcome, so much so that when we saw each other in Verona after a long time of not speaking, we hugged as if nothing had ever happened. This is what it means to be intelligent people. Let's say that today marks the end of another chapter in my life. And when the time comes, I hope to meet up with Pippo again for a laugh."

Baudo himself, long ago, said that "television without an audience doesn't exist." Today, that could be reversed: Italy without Pippo Baudo is hard to imagine. The memories, the applause, the songs he discovered and launched, the artists who owe their careers to him: it all comes together in one great collective farewell.

A king is gone, but his Sundays, his evenings, his wit, his grace remain. And the image of a man who made Italian television a great popular spectacle remains.

(Unioneonline/Fr. Me.)