Mike Bongiorno

Mike Bongiorno
Mike Bongiorno
	Mike Bongiorno in 1972
Born	Michael Nicholas Salvatore Bongiorno; May 26, 1924; New York City, U.S.
Died	September 8, 2009 (aged 85); Monte Carlo, Monaco
Occupation	Presenter
Years active	1946–2009
Spouses	; Rosalia Maresca (m. 1948; div. 1952) ; Annarita Torsello (m. 1968; div. 1970) ; Daniela Zuccoli (m. 1972)
Children	3

Michael Nicholas Salvatore Bongiorno (Italian pronunciation: [bɔnˈdʒorno, - bonˈ-]; May 26, 1924 – September 8, 2009) was an Italian-American television presenter. After a few experiences in the US, he started working on RAI in the 1950s and was considered to be the most popular host in Italy. He was also known by the nickname il Re del Quiz ("The Quiz King"), and the peculiarity of starting all his shows with his trademark greeting: Allegria! ("Cheers!", "Joy!").^[1]

Early years

Bongiorno was born in

Sicilian-American lawyer of partial Arbëreshë origin.^[2] During World War II, he abandoned his studies and joined a group of Italian partisans. He was captured and spent seven months in the San Vittore prison in Milan and was then deported to a German concentration camp. He was liberated before the end of the war due to an exchange of war prisoners between the United States and Germany. He returned to New York and in 1946 started work at the radio headquarters of Il Progresso Italo-Americano

(The Italian-American Progress) newspaper.

Career

Bongiorno returned to Italy in 1953. He appeared on the first day of official public TV transmissions in Italy with Arrivi e partenze (Arrivals and Departures) on the TV channel RAI . From 1955 to 1959, he hosted the quiz show Lascia o raddoppia?, the Italian version of USA's The $64,000 Question. Another program was Campanile Sera (Bell Tower Evening, 1959–1962), in which southern and northern Italian towns challenged each other with questions, and practical games played by citizens in the same towns.

In 1963, Umberto Eco wrote an essay entitled Phenomenology of Mike Bongiorno, a bestseller in which he used advanced academic theories to shed light on Mike Bongiorno and his way of communicating. Eco held that Bongiorno was so good at portraying himself as no better than average in every respect that 100% of his audience could feel good about themselves.

Beginning in 1963, he hosted the first of eleven editions of the

Sanremo Festival. Then he hosted the quiz programs Caccia al numero (Number Hunt, 1962), La Fiera dei Sogni (Dream Fair, 1962–1965) and Giochi in Famiglia (Games in Family, 1966–1969). But the greatest success came with the quiz program Rischiatutto (1970–1974), an adapted Italian version of Jeopardy!, with 20 to 30 million watchers every Thursday night, the highest audience in the history of Italian TV.^{[citation needed]} Other programs hosted by Bongiorno were the news talk show Ieri e Oggi (Yesterday and Today, 1976) and the quiz programs Scommettiamo? (Wanna Bet?

, 1976–1978), inspired by horse-racing, and a remake of Lascia o raddoppia? in 1979.

Bongiorno with Pippo Baudo, Corrado Mantoni, and Enzo Tortora

Bongiorno moved to Tele Milano (now

Wheel of Fortune

).

From 1991 to 2001, Bongiorno hosted Bravo, Bravissimo, a festival featuring preteen musicians, dancers and singers from all over the world. He won 24

SKY Uno

called RiSKYtutto (a modern edition of his popular show Rischiatutto), which had been scheduled to air in the autumn of 2009.

Death

On September 8, 2009, at the age of 85, Bongiorno died of a

Triennale in Milan before a state funeral was held in the Milan Cathedral on September 12, 2009. Many Italian TV stars such as Rosario Fiorello, Pippo Baudo, Fabio Fazio, Sandra Mondaini, Alba Parietti, Paola Barale, Carlo Conti, Gerry Scotti, Marco Columbro

and several other entertainers attended the service which was held by Bishop Erminio De Scalzi.

Bongiorno was buried in the family tomb, at Dagnente Cemetery, near

Arona in Piedmont. On January 25, 2011, the tomb was ransacked and his body, along with the coffin, was stolen.^[4]

On December 8, 2011, Bongiorno's body was recovered from a field near Milan.

Acting roles

Year	Title	Role
1955	Motivo in maschera	Mike
	Girls of Today	Sandro
	Il prezzo della gloria	Ruggero Grimaldi
1956	Totò lascia o raddoppia?	Himself
1956	I miliardari	Marco
1961	The Last Judgment	Himself
1968	Il cenerentolo	TV Presenter
1972	Life Is Tough, Eh Providence?	Mike Goodmornig
1974	We All Loved Each Other So Much	Himself
1982	Sogni mostruosamente proibiti
2000	20 - Venti

Honours and awards

Honours

In 1996, Bongiorno was made a Commander of the

Kingdom of Italy, and Head of the House of Savoy

.

On May 26, 2004, on occasion of his 80th birthday, Bongiorno was appointed a Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic by the then Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi.^[5]

Honorary degree

In the autumn of 2007, Bongiorno received an Honorary degree in Television, Film and Multimedia production from the IULM University of Milan.

Awards

1984 Telegatto - Best TV quiz, for presenting television quiz "Superflash" on Canale 5
1985 Telegatto - Best TV quiz, for presenting television quiz "Superflash" on Canale 5
1986 Telegatto - Best TV quiz, for presenting television quiz "Superflash" on Canale 5
1987 Telegatto - Best TV quiz, for presenting television game show "Pentathlon" on Canale 5
1988 Telegatto - Best TV quiz, for presenting television game quiz "Telemike" on Canale 5
1989 Telegatto - Best TV quiz, for presenting television game quiz "Telemike" on Canale 5
1990 Telegatto - Best TV quiz, for presenting television game quiz "Telemike" on Canale 5
1991 Telegatto - Best TV quiz, for presenting television game quiz "Telemike" on Canale 5
1992 Telegatto - Best quiz and game shows, presenting "
Wheel of Fortune
1993 Telegatto - Best quiz and game shows, presenting "La Ruota Della Fortuna", the Italian version of Wheel of Fortune
1994 Telegatto - Best quiz and game shows, presenting "La Ruota Della Fortuna", the Italian version of Wheel of Fortune
1995 Telegatto - Best quiz and game shows, presenting "La Ruota Della Fortuna", the Italian version of Wheel of Fortune
1996 Telegatto platinum, for a lifelong career (for the 50-year career in television)
1997 Telegatto - Best Music Program, for hosting "
Festival della canzone italiana
"
2003 Telegatto - What's on TV, for hosting "Grand Prix International TV"
2006 Telegatto platinum, for a lifelong career
2008 Premio Club Santa Chiara, for a lifelong career
2011 Premio America of the
Italy-USA Foundation
in memory

References

^ Xuereb, Charles (10 September 2009). "'A personality that shaped TV entertainment for decades'". Times of Malta. Retrieved 2009-09-10.
^ "Mike Bongiorno war vielleicht albanischer Herkunf". 2009-09-04. Retrieved 2018-11-06.
^ "Laurea Magistrale Honoris Causa in Televisione, cinema e produzione multimediale a Mike Bongiorno" (in Italian). IULM University. Archived from the original on 2010-12-29. Retrieved 2009-09-09.
^ "Arona, trafugata la bara di Mike Bongiorno" (in Italian). 25 January 2011. Retrieved 2011-01-25.
^ "ONORIFICENZE - Dettaglio del decorato" (in Italian). Retrieved 2009-09-10. ^{[dead link]}

External links

Mike Bongiorno at
IMDb

[1] Xuereb, Charles (10 September 2009). "'A personality that shaped TV entertainment for decades'". Times of Malta. Retrieved 2009-09-10.

[2] "Mike Bongiorno war vielleicht albanischer Herkunf". 2009-09-04. Retrieved 2018-11-06.

[3] "Laurea Magistrale Honoris Causa in Televisione, cinema e produzione multimediale a Mike Bongiorno" (in Italian). IULM University. Archived from the original on 2010-12-29. Retrieved 2009-09-09.

[4] "Arona, trafugata la bara di Mike Bongiorno" (in Italian). 25 January 2011. Retrieved 2011-01-25.

[5] "ONORIFICENZE - Dettaglio del decorato" (in Italian). Retrieved 2009-09-10. ^{[dead link]}

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