biography

Giuliano Gemma Born in Rome on September 2, 1938, actor Giuliano Gemma (sometimes billed as Montgomery Wood) enjoyed a lengthy career as an actor. Gemma's film career began in the 1950s while he was still a teenager. Due to his athletic abilities, by the time he was 18 he had begun working as a stuntman in Italian films. After a couple of years, Gemma began finding more work as an actor than as a stuntman. His first credited film appearance was in the comedy Venice, the Moon and You (1958). In the early 1960s, he graduated to starring roles in sword and sandal epics, including My Son, the Hero (1962; with Serge Nubret), Goliath and the Sins of Babylon (1963; with Mark Forest), and Two Gladiators (1964; with Richard Harrison).

Giuliano GemmaSerge Nubret and Giuliano Gemma

LEFT: Giuliano Gemma in a late 1960s portrait. RIGHT: With Serge Nubret in My Son the Hero

When gladiator films began to die out, Gemma transitioned to spaghetti westerns, and one of the earliest in the genre was his film A Pistol for Ringo (1965; with Fernando Sancho), the first in a long line of westerns for the actor. His films often had comedic elements, which you can see in his Eurospy thriller Kiss Kiss - Bang Bang (1966; with Daniele Vargas) and the spaghetti western Alive or Preferably Dead (1969). When the spaghetti western craze died out in the early 1970s, he branched out into giallos, including Dario Argento's Tenebrae (1982; with John Saxon, Anthony Franciosa, and Daria Nicolodi).

the films of giuliano gemma

My Son, the Hero (1962)

Giuliano GemmaGiuliano GemmaSerge Nubret and Giuliano Gemma

LEFT and CENTER: As Krios in My Son, the Hero. RIGHT: With Serge Nubret

Goliath and the Sins of Babylon (1963)

Giuliano GemmaGiuliano GemmaGiuliano Gemma and Mark Forest

LEFT: As Xandros in the sword and sandal epic Goliath and the Sins of Babylon. RIGHT: With Mark Forest

Angelique (1964)

Giuliano GemmaGiuliano Gemma and Michele Mercier

From the French romantic adventure film Angelique. LEFT: Gemma as Nicolas. RIGHT: With Michele Mercier

Hercules Against the Sons of the Sun (1964)

Giuliano GemmaMark Forest and Giuliano Gemma

LEFT: Giuliano Gemma in Hercules Against the Sons of the Sun. RIGHT: With Mark Forest

Arizona Colt (1966)

Giuliano GemmaGiuliano GemmaGiuliano Gemma

As the title character in the engaging spaghetti western Arizona Colt

Day of Anger (1967)

Lee Van Cleef and Giuliano GemmaGiuliano Gemma and Lee Van Cleef

From the spaghetti western Day of Anger with Lee Van Cleef

The Cats (1968)

Giuliano Gemma, Rita Hayworth, and Klaus Kinski

Giuliano Gemma and Klaus Kinski are brothers and partners in crime in the Warner Bros. thriller The Cats. Also pictured is Rita Hayworth, in one of her final film roles

The Master Touch (1972)

Giuliano GemmaGiuliano Gemma and Kirk Douglas

LEFT: From the crime thriller The Master Touch. RIGHT: With Kirk Douglas

Even Angels Eat Beans (1973)

Giuliano GemmaBud Spencer and Giuliano Gemma

LEFT: As Sonny in the comedy Even Angels Eat Beans, released in the U.S. by 20th Century Fox. RIGHT: With co-star Bud Spencer

Charleston (1974)

Giuliano Gemma and Ricky Bruch

With Ricky Bruch in the Italian comedy Charleston

Safari Express (1976)

Giuliano Gemma

As John Baxter in the comedy Safari Express

later years

Into his 70s, Giuliano Gemma was still in demand as an actor in Germany and his native Italy, where he appeared in films and on television. He was also an artist whose beautiful sculptures can be seen at the Official Giuliano Gemma Web Site (see the link below). Sadly, he passed away on October 1, 2013, from injuries sustained in an automobile accident outside of Rome. Gemma, who was 75 years old, is survived by his wife, daughter Vera, and son Giuliano.

filmography

FILM
Deauville (2010) with Isabella Rossellini, Hector Elizondo, and Claudia Cardinale
The Final Inquiry (2006) with Max von Sydow and Dolph Lundgren
Pope John Paul II (2005) with Jon Voight, Ben Gazzara, and Christopher Lee
Mad Love (2002)
La donna del delitto (2000)
Game over (1999)
Un uomo perbene (1999)
Premier de cordee (1999)
Un bel di' vedremo (1997)
Laura (1995)
Una storia italiana (1992)
Jewels (1992) with Annette O'Toole
La moglie nella cornice (1991)
There Are No Men Left (1991)
Firenze no kaze ni dakarete (1991)
Non aprite all'uomo nero (1990)
Ready to Fight (1987)
The Opponent (1987) with Ernest Borgnine and Daniel Greene
Chateauroux district (1987) with Guy Marchand
Let's Hope It's a Girl (1986) with Liv Ullmann
Tex and the Lord of the Deep (1985) with William Berger
Claretta (1984) with Claudia Cardinale
Circle of Passions (1983) with Max von Sydow
Supermarket (1983)
The Odd Squad (1982)
Tenebre (1982) with Anthony Franciosa and John Saxon
La baraonda (1981)
The Warning (1980) with Martin Balsam
Passioni popolari (1980)
Military Coup in Kolwezi (1980) with Mimsy Farmer
A Man on His Knees (1978)
Silver Saddle (1978)
Circuito chiuso (1978)
Corleone (1977) with Claudia Cardinale and Tony Kendall
Battle Force (1977) with Helmut Berger, Samantha Eggar, John Huston, Stacy Keach, Orson Welles, Henry Fonda, and Rik Battaglia
I Am the Law (1977) with Claudia Cardinale and Rik Battaglia
California (1977) with William Berger
The Desert of the Tartars (1976) with Vittorio Gassman, Fernando Rey, and Max von Sydow
Safari Express (1976) with Ursula Andress, Jack Palance, and Raf Baldassarre
Africa Express (1975) with Ursula Andress and Jack Palance
White, the Yellow, and the Black (1975) with Eli Wallach and France Nuyen
Charleston (1974) Ricky Bruch
Somewhere Beyond Love (1974)
Even Angels Eat Beans (1973)
Il maschio ruspante (1973)
The Magnificent Dare Devil (1973) with Michael Forest
The Smugglers (1972) with Senta Berger and Sybil Danning
The Master Touch (1972) with Kirk Douglas
Humpty Dumpty Gang (1972) with George Eastman, Giacomo Rossi-Stuart, and Marisa Mell
In Love, Every Pleasure Has Its Pain (1971)
The Scalawag Bunch (1970) with Mark Damon
Corbari (1970) with Tina Aumont
When Women Had Tails (1970) with Senta Berger
The Price of Power (1970) with Fernando Rey and Van Johnson
Alive Or Preferably Dead (1969)
The Island (1968)
The Cats (1968) with Rita Hayworth, Klaus Kinski, Margaret Lee, and Claudine Auger
Day of Anger (1967) with Lee Van Cleef
Wanted (1967) with Daniele Vargas
Fort Yuma Gold (1967) with Dan Vadis
Arizona Colt (1966)
Long Days of Vengeance (1966)
Adios, Gringo (1966)
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (1966) with George Martin and Daniele Vargas
One Silver Dollar (1965)
La ragazzola (1965) with Margaret Lee
The Return of Ringo (1965) with George Martin
Erik, the Viking (1965) with Gordon Mitchell
A Pistol for Ringo (1965) with George Martin
Angelique: The Road to Versailles (1965) with Michele Mercier
Hercules Against the Sons of the Sun (1964) with Mark Forest
Two Gladiators (1964) with Richard Harrison
Revolt of the Praetorians (1964) with Richard Harrison
Angelique (1964) with Michele Mercier
Goliath and the Sins of Babylon (1963) with Mark Forest
Scheherazade (1963) with Marilu Tolo and Fernando Rey
The Leopard (1963) with Burt Lancaster, Terence Hill, and Alain Delon
The Shortest Day (1962) with Vittorio Gassman and Jean-Paul Belmondo
My Son, the Hero (1962) with Pedro Armendariz and Serge Nubret
Battle of the Worlds (1961) with Claude Rains
I Love, You Love (1960)
Messalina (1961)
You're On Your Own (1959)
The Cossacks (1959) with Edmund Purdom, John Drew Barrymore, Giorgia Moll, and Pierre Brice
My Wife's Enemy (1959) with Marcello Mastroianni and Luciana Paluzzi
Ben-Hur (1959) with Charlton Heston and Stephen Boyd
Venice, the Moon and You (1958)

giuliano gemma trailers now showing

Watch the trailers for Giuliano Gemma's 1965 spaghetti western The Return of Ringo and 1982 giallo Tenebrae

giuliano gemma film now showing

Watch Giuliano Gemma's 1965 spaghetti western The Return of Ringo
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This page premiered January 7, 2004.
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