The sex symbol Sophia Loren celebrates her 86th birthday. She has enough energy to go around

The beauty from Rome

Sophia Loren, birth name Sofia Villani Scicolone, was born in where else but the vibrant Rome. Because of her captivating gaze and sensual female curves, she became a star of the global movie industry and a sex symbol in the 1960s. But this beauty certainly didn't have an easy childhood…

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An illegitimate child

She was born an illegitimate child and her mother Romilda moved from Rome back to her parents in Pozzuoli, where they spent the war. With her four years younger sister Maria, they spent their childhood in the poorest of conditions of a fishing village. In addition, Sophia became the target of ridicule, not only because of her birth out of wedlock, but also because of her very slender frame. The nickname "toothpick" was hurled at her on the daily. That's when the actress started running from the world to the cinema and dreaming of stardom. The first turning point came at the age of 14.

Princess of the sea

It was then that she was chosen as one of the twelve Princesses of the Sea in the Naples beauty contest. The prize also included a ticket to Rome, where she later went with her mother. Here she played a slave girl in the film Quo Vadis, which stands today at the very beginning of her filmography. In Rome, she subsequently auditioned for various roles, but it was not easy to make a name for herself. She made a breakthrough when she took part in a beauty contest again, where she met film producer Carlo Ponti, who became her husband a few years later. He got her a number of smaller roles at the beginning of her career. During this period she appeared in films such as Aida or The Gold of Naples. But the real success came in 1957, the year that launched a series of Hollywood films. In the first one of them (The Pride and the Passion) she starred alongside Cary Grant and Frank Sinatra.

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Movies you must see

In the following years, Sophia Loren starred in films such as The Black Orchid, The Condemned of Altona, Cid, Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow, Marriage Italian Style and Two Women. And it was the last of aformentioned film that got the charming Sophia the 1962 Oscar for Best Actress. In 1991, she received an honorary Oscar for a lifetime achievement.

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Glimpses from her privacy

Although Sophia Loren tried to live a quiet, happy life and avoid scandals, she could not avoid moments in her life where she found himself at rock bottom, her life attracting public scrutiny more than ever before. Her first marriage to Carlo Ponti was annulled due to an unregistered divorce from the film producer's previous wife. The couple even just barely escaped arrest. Sophia Loren was accused of breaking up the marriage, Ponti of bigamy. Two miscarriages were a painful blow to her private life too. She suffered them before her sons Carlo and Edoardo were born. 13 years ago, after the death of Carlo Ponti, she became a widow.

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Sophia Loren is a star whose greatness and talent we should not dismiss. Therefore, let us remember some of her quotes, which will not only bring a smile to your lips, but also give you the necessary dose of self-confidence.

"Sex appeal is 50 percent what you’ve got and 50 percent what people think you’ve got."

"I'd rather eat pasta and drink wine than be a size 0."

“There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age.”

"It's better to explore life and make mistakes than to play it safe."

More pictures of the beautiful Sophie Loren can be found in the gallery at the end of the article.

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