[Sky Dumont and Cosima von Borsody]
Actor Sky du Mont (from "The Shoe of Manitou"
and "Canoe of Manitou") was once married to actress Cosima von
Borsody, the daughter of Hans von Borsody [1929-2013] (from "Viva
Juanito" and "Buffalo Bill, Hero of the West"). She would have been two years old when her
father was in "Buffalo Bill, Hero of the West" and may have seen the
film on TV.
[Hans and Cosima von Borsody]
[These daily posts will cover little known actors or people that have appeared in more recent films and TV series. Various degrees of information that I was able to find will be given and anything that you can add would be appreciated.]
Giacomo de Michelis was born in Rome, Italy on December 12, 1935. He’s known more for his work as an artist and painter than for his work in the cinema. as a child he became passionate about art because of his grandfather who was a stonemason, in his career he has done numerous exhibitions getting to know various artists including Salvator Dali and Pablo Picasso. He ended up in a coma due to the Crotone earthquake in the 1980s where over 200 works were lost in his exhibition, and the L'Aquila earthquake in 2009 where about 170 of his works were also lost at that time. In 2012, he decided to release new works after an eight-year hiatus. His paintings have been sold to numerous famous people and movie stars including Kirk Douglas, Franck Sinatra, Sean Connery and Charles Bronson. He wrote several poems in Italian including the best known "At the funeral of the battone".
Giacomo de Michelis died in Rome on October 26, 2013 at the age of 78.
Giacomo appeared in nine films between 1972 and 1979 among which was one Spaghetti western as Torreto/Turiddo in 1972’s “Spirito Santo e le cinque magnifiche canaglie” (Gunmen and the Holy Ghost) in 1972 with Torreto/Turiddo.
de MICHELIS, Giacomo [2/12/1935, Rome, Lazio, Italy –
10/26/2013, Rome, Lazio, Italy] – film, TV actor, painter, poet.
Gunmen and the Holy Ghost – 1972 (Torreto/Turiddo)
Spaghetti Western Director – Alfonso Balcazar
Alfonso Balcázar Granda was born in Barcelona, Spain on March 2, 1926. The son of a furrier of Valladolid origin who had made his fortune in Barcelona, in 1950 he decided to leave the prosperous family business to dedicate himself to film production with his brother Jaime. The new activity was inaugurated with the financing of “Catherine of England” (1951), a film that was almost unfinished due to the bankruptcy of the original production company and which was followed by some titles of modest budget and clearly commercial vocation, such as the football comedy “Eleven Pairs of Boots” (1954). In the middle of the decade, co-productions with European countries and Mexico began, although it should be noted that from the administrative point of view they were not entirely "transparent" operations, in the sense that, for example, the credits did not refer to Mexican producers or French or Italian companies were created that, in the end, they were simple branches of Balcázar in Paris (Jam Films) or Rome (Enalpa). Alfonso progressively delegated the productive tasks to his brother to devote himself to directing, making his debut in 1959 with “La encrucijada”, a drama about the Civil War that offered a relatively impartial vision of the conflict and without excessive concessions to the propaganda of the victors. As Alfonso was aware that he lacked adequate professional training, from the first moment he surrounded himself with a team of efficient collaborators, especially scriptwriters such as Miguel Cussó or José Antonio de la Loma and assistants such as Paco Pérez-Dolz or the Italian Romolo Guerrieri
In the 1960s he dedicated his career to the western genre that was dominating the European cinemas. He and his brother were two of the biggest names in Spanish western film productions.
Alfonso Balcazar directed some 30 films between 1959 and 1983, wrote for 50 during that same time period and produced 21 films.
Alfonso directed eight Spaghetti westerns and was sometimes credited as Al Bagran: “Doc, manos de plata” (The Man Who Came to Kill), “Los pistoleros de Arizona” ($5,000 on One Ace), “Que viva Carrancho!” (The Man from Canyon City) all in 1965, “Dinamite Jim” (Dynamite Jim) in 1966, “Clint, el solitario” (Clint the Stranger) in 1967, “Sartana no perdone” (Sonora) in 1968, “Hijos de pobres, pero deshonestos padres… le llamaban Calamidad” (Now They Call Him Sacramento” and “Judas... ¡toma tus monedas!” (Watch Out Gringo! Sabata Will Return) both in 1972.
BALCAZAR, Alfonso (aka Albagran, I. Albagran, Al Bagran,
A. Balcazar, Alfred Balcazar) (Alfonso Balcázar Granda) [3/2/1926, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain – 12/28/1993, Sitges,
Barcelona, Cataluña, Spain] – producer, director, writer, brother of producer,
director, assistant director, writer Jaime Jesús Balcázar (Jaime Jesús Balcázar Granda)
[1934- ], married to Celestina
Bertrand Bertrand [1929-2005] (1949-1993) father of seven children, founded P.C. Balcazar Productions, Filmax Distribution Co. and
built Espulgues City Studios.
The Man Who Came to Kill - 1965
$5,000 on One Ace –
1965 [as Al Bagran]
The Man from
The Tavern of Sin –
1965 [Film was never made.]
Dynamite Jim – 1966
Clint the Stranger –
1967
Now They Call Him
Watch Out Gringo!
Sabata Will Return – 1972 (co) [as Al Bagran]
Spaghetti Western Screenwriter – Piero Anchisi
Piero Giovanni Anchisi was born on June 29, 1928, in Gattinara, Piedmont, Italy. He was known as an actor and screenwriter, where he worked in 1973 as a screenwriter and writer in the biographical film entitled “Giordano Bruno” directed by Giuliano Montaldo. In 1976, again with director Giuliano Montaldo, he starred in the film “L'Agnese va a morire” in the part of Toni and in 1984 he wrote the screenplay for “One Hundred Days in Palermo” directed by Giuseppe Ferrara.
From 1965 to 2006 Anchisi acted in thirty-five films and television programs. He wrote 13 screenplays from 1968 to 1999.
Anchisi died in Rome on September 15, 2012, at the age of 84.
He co-wrote the screenplays for three Spaghetti westerns: “Il pistolero dell’Ave Maria” (The Forgotten Pistolero) with Ferdinando Baldi, Vincenco Cerami, Federico De Urrutia and Mario di Nardo, “L'odio è il mio Dio” (Hate is My God) with Vincenzo Cerami, Claudio Gora both in 1969 and “Il pistolero cieco” (Blindman) with Tony Anthony, Lloyd Battista, Vincenzo Cerami and Ferdinando Baldi in 1971
ANCHISI, Piero (aka Piergiovanni
Anchisi, Pietro Anchisi, Piero Anghisi, Piero Archisi) (Piero Giovanni Anchisi)
[6/29/1928, Gattinara, Piedmont, Italy – 9/15/2012, Rome, Lazio, Italy] –
writer, actor.
The Forgotten
Pistolero – 1969 (co)
Hate Is My God 1969
(co) [as Pietro Anchisi]
Blindman – 1971 (co)
Spaghetti Western Cinematographer - André Bac
André Bac was a French director, screenwriter and cinematographer/cameraman born in Paris, France on December 14, 1905. He was a cinematographer and cameraman on 100 plus films and television programs from 1933 to 1973. He also directed the 1957 short film “Sérénade à l'aventure”
For a man with such a large resume little is known about him.
André Bac died in Paris on May 31, 1989, at the age of 83.
Bac was the cinematographer on one Spaghetti western “Terreur en Oklahoma” in 1951.
BAC, André (aka
Bac, A. Bac, Jane Dee, Molly, Sofi, Susie, Ulyana, Vera) [12/14/1905, Paris,
Terreur en
La muerte tenia u precio
Author: Carlos Aguilar
Country: Spain
Publisher: Calamar Ediciones
Language: Spanish
Pages:
ISBN: 978-84-96235-96-0
EAN: 9788496235960
Available: now
In 1965, For a Few Dollars More perfected the revolution
begun by A Fistful of Dollars, consolidating Sergio Leone’s distinctive style
and forever transforming the Western. Blending the American identity of the
genre with influences from Japanese and Mediterranean cinema, Leone created a
hypnotic masterpiece that achieved enormous international success. This
exceptional book examines in detail every stage of the film —from
pre-production to its critical and industrial impact— in a commemorative
edition marking its 60th anniversary. Richly illustrated with numerous
previously unpublished images, it also pays tribute to the landscapes of
Almería and the legendary town of Tabernas, today known as Oasys–Mini
Hollywood.
Tap Talk
By Gary Williams
Jul 26, 2021
Considered by Canadian film scholars as strictly a Mexican production, just filmed in Canada, EL HOMBRE DESNUDO ("THE NAKED MAN") is a "Weird Western" by almost anyones definition.
The project was shot near Vancouver, British Columbia in 1973 with a mostly Mexican crew and an American, Mexican, and Canadian cast. Top billed Barry Coe was American, and the flick's hero Jose Alonso and heroine Irma Lozana are Mexican, buttressed by a supporting cast which included an unbilled Helen Shaver in her first screen appearance.
Alonso portrays a character without a name, much in the manner of the earlier Euro-westerns. In reviews he is referred to as "the stranger," or "nameless drifter." Barry Coe is the sadistic killer outlaw Moe (and yes, that does seem a strange moniker for a vicious killer & rapist - this isn't a comedy). Beautiful Irma Lozana is Lisa Hastings, who falls in love with the Stranger.
The story takes place in a wintry Canada where Moe and
his gang are massacring settlers to steal their land.
Our Stranger comes to their aid while also following his own agenda of finding and killing the man who raped and murdered his Indigenous mother years before. He can identify the culprit, having marked his buttocks with a hot branding iron.
In a final confrontation, the Stranger forces Moe to
strip naked in the mud and snow. Of course he bears the tell-tale mark. Rather
than simply dispatching Moe with a head or heart shot, the Stranger chooses to
shoot off Moe's manhood, in a quite graphic scene. This can be seen in an 81 second clip which is currently up on YouTube.
EL HOMBRE DESNUDO wasn't released until March 11, 1976,
in Mexico only. I
have been unable to find any evidence of a theatrical
release in any other country. The film was first released on VHS in Mexico
under its original title and garnered a later Mexican VHS release as BALACERA
DE MUERTE.
There has been a long unavailable DVD release, again from Mexico, with the original title.
Mexican lobby cards emphasize the exploitative aspects of
the film,
prominently stating sex, violence, blood, and showing scenes of topless actresses from the film.
Our hero the Stranger, Jose Alonso, went on to act in a
real Euro-western
in 1975 in director Javier Elorrieta's SI QUIERES VIVIR...DISPARA ("IF YOU WANT TO LIVE...SHOOT"), billed 11th in the cast in the role of Reverendo. He was credited as Jose Alonzo Vaz. Before headlining EL HOMBRE DESNUDO Alonso was a student of Aleoandro Jodorowsky and performed with the Emilio Corballido Theater group in Mexico City.
Most of the filming took place at Barkerville, a
Provincial government historic site near Vancouver, which dates from circa
1857, with original and reconstructed buildings from the time of the Great
Cariboo (sic) Gold Rush.
Supposedly this was the first time the province had
allowed a foreign film company to use the facility. You can view the
Barkerville website and see
buildings looking much as they did in EL HOMBRE DESNUDO in 1973.
The climactic scene shown on YouTube looks much like it
could have come from a Euro-western such as CUT-THROATS 9 (1972). EL HOMBRE
DESNUDO is a work which bears little resemblance to other Canadian and Mexican
westerns of its time. It seems much more grounded in the European western
style. I still have trouble accepting this was directed by Rogelio A. Gonzalez
Jr., the helmer of NAVE DE MONSTRUOS ("SHIP OF MONSTERS"),
and other classic Mexican SF/horror
titles (and he was co-screenwriter as well).
NOTE - Many thanks to Canadian Euro-western expert, and good friend, Mike "Ferg" Ferguson, for invaluable information, assistance, and encouragement - all opinions and errors are strictly my own.
EL HOMBRE DESNUDO (THE NAKED MAN)
Uranio Films
Director: Rogelio A. González Jr.
Producer: Ing Jose Lorenzo Zakany
Screenplay: Rogelio A. González, Salvador Macias Pérez,
Myriam S. Price
Cinematography: Fernando Colin
Editing: Carlos Savage
Cast: José Alonso, Barry Coe, Irma Lozano, Céline La
Frenière, Sam Moses, Barney O’Sullivan, Terry Kelly, Kathleen Payne, Hagen
Beggs, Don Gran Bery, Dax Logan, John Scott, Ivor Harries, James Nelson, Maxim
Hamel, Hans Hiardie, Helen Shaver, Ty Haller
Submitted by Michael Ferguson
Silvana Bacci (actress) is 80 today.
Jean-Pierre Bouxou (actor) would have been 80 today
but died in 2025.
[These daily posts will cover little known actors or people that have appeared in more recent films and TV series. Various degrees of information that I was able to find will be given and anything that you can add would be appreciated.]
Danielle A. De Metz was born Danielle A. Foletto in Paris, France on July 27, 1938. She appeared in 42 films and television appearances from 1959 to 1972. Her film work includes “Return of the Fly” (1959), “Valley of the Dragons” (1961), “The Magic Sword” (1962), “Gidget Goes to Rome” (1963), “The Party” (1968), and “Raid on Rommel” (1971). Television appearances include: ‘Dr. Kildare’, ‘The Man from U.N.C.L.E.’, ‘The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.’, ‘The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis’, ‘The Tab Hunter Show’, ‘My Three Sons’, ‘I Dream of Jeannie’, ‘77 Sunset Strip’, ‘Combat!’, ‘Lock-Up’, ‘Perry Mason’, ‘I Spy’, ‘Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea’, ‘Boris Karloff Presents’, ‘Alfred Hitchcock Presents’ and ‘Have Gun - Will Travel’.She was nominated for an Emmy for a guest part on ‘The Man from U.N.C.L.E.’ in 1964.
Movie columnist Louella Parsons reported that film director Jean Negulesco met De Metz when he was in Paris, France, and told her to contact him if she came to Hollywood, California. When she came and called him, he had no role available, so he put her in school at 20th Century Fox. She felt her talent was being wasted by Hollywood and was quoted as saying. “I would like to work more and do better things. But if not, I take care of my son, my dogs, my husband, & I go ice skating to work off my frustrations. I am frustrated in my career - but in nothing else.
De Metz married George De Metz in Paris in 1956. They divorced January 23, 1961. She then married Alan Luber (1962-196?). Then in Los Angeles, California she married Alan "Lanny" Sher in March 1962-1971. She then marries lawyer Samuel Y. Kupper in Los Angeles in 1972
Danielle appeared on only one Spaghetti western as Manuela in 1962’s “Il segno di Zorro” (The Sign of Zorro) starring Sean Flynn.
de METZ, Danielle (aka Danielle DeMetz, Daniele
Demetz, Danielle Demetz, Danielle de Metz) (Danielle A. Foletto) [7/27/1938, Paris,
Île-de-France France - ] – film, TV
actress, married to language expert George De Metz [1926- ] (1956-1961), married to Alan Luber
(1962-196?), married to writer Fred Richards II (1965-1967) mother of David
Richards [1966- ], married to Alan
‘Lanny’ Sher [1939- ] (1968-1971),
married to lawyer Samuel Y. Kupper [1939-
] (1972-1984).
The Sign of Zorro – 1962 (Manuela)