Telegatto (a composition of television and gatto, meaning "cat", after the trophy, which is a small statue representing a cat), was an Italian television award first conceived in 1971 following the contest Gran Premio internazionale dello Spettacolo, although the first award ceremony wasn't held until 1984. The ceremonies are known as Telegatti, the plural form of Telegatto. They were sponsored by the weekly magazine TV Sorrisi e Canzoni and broadcast on Canale 5. The prize was a golden cat statue with the network's initials on its face, inspired by a cartoon from the television series Super Classifica Show, a cult show in the 1980s and early 1990s. The award ceremony was cancelled in 2009.
On 12 March 2018, on the occasion of a press conference for the photography book dedicated to the event, and a decade after the last edition, the director of TV Sorrisi e Canzoni, Aldo Vitali, hypothesized the return of the event in Milan for October of the same year, to be hosted by Carlo Conti. The show, however, never resurfaced.
Hosts 1984: Mike Bongiorno, Cinzia Lenzi, Gabriella Golia, Fabrizia Carminati 1985: Mike Bongiorno, Cinzia Lenzi, Gabriella Golia, Alessandra Buzzi, Susanna Messaggio, Fiorella Pierobon 1986: Mike Bongiorno, Milly Carlucci 1987: Mike Bongiorno, Carol Alt, Renée Simonsen 1988: Mike Bongiorno, Gabriella Carlucci 1989: Mike Bongiorno, Heather Parisi 1990: Corrado, Elisabetta Gardini 1991: Corrado, Raffaella Carrà 1992: Corrado, Fabrizio Frizzi and Antonella Elia 1993: Corrado, Milly Carlucci 1994: Corrado, Alba Parietti 1995: Corrado, Mara Venier 1996: Corrado, Mara Venier 1997: Pippo Baudo, Milly Carlucci 1998: Pippo Baudo, Milly Carlucci 1999: Pippo Baudo, Milly Carlucci 2000: Paolo Bonolis, Raffaella Carrà 2001: Gerry Scotti, Maria De Filippi 2002: Pippo Baudo, Alessia Marcuzzi 2003: Pippo Baudo, Alessia Marcuzzi 2004: Gerry Scotti, Raffaella Carrà 2005: suspended 2006: Pippo Baudo, Michelle Hunziker 2007: Claudio Bisio, Vanessa Incontrada 2008: Pippo Baudo, Michelle Hunziker
Foreign Telegatto winners
Elton John – 1973 (special Telegatto) Paul Newman – 1976 Barbra Streisand – 1977 John Travolta – 1978 (special Telegatto) Warren Beatty – 1979 Liza Minnelli – 1982 (special Telegatto) Peter Gabriel – 1983 Bee Gees – 1984 Dallas – 1984 Linda Gray – 1984 (portrayal of Sue Ellen Ewing in Dallas) Larry Hagman – 1984 (portrayal of J. R. Ewing in Dallas) Dallas – 1985 Dynasty – 1985 Quo Vadis? – 1985 Raiders of the Lost Ark – 1985 V – Visitors – 1985 (union of V and V The Final Battle) Dallas – 1986 V – Visitors – 1986 Joan Collins for Dynasty – 1986 Paul McCartney – 1986 Dallas – 1987 North and South – 1987 Mick Jagger – 1987 Stevie Wonder – 1987 Capitol – 1987 (special award) Dynasty – 1988 Guiding Light – 1988 Dynasty – 1989 Fame – 1989 (special award) Happy Days – 1989 (special award) Loving – 1989 (special award) Tina Turner – 1989 The Young and the Restless – 1990 (special award) Eddie Asner for Lou Grant – 1990 Sylvester Stallone – 1990 The Bold and the Beautiful – 1991 Twin Peaks – 1991 Robert De Niro – 1991 Robert Mitchum – 1991 (Lifetime Achievement Award) MacGyver – 1992 Miami Vice – 1992 Madonna – 1992 Arnold Schwarzenegger – 1992 (Foreign cinema on TV) Beverly Hills, 90210 – 1993 Perry Mason – 1993 Michael Douglas – 1993 (Foreign cinema on TV) Dustin Hoffman – 1993 (Cinema on TV) Beverly Hills, 90210 – 1994 The Bold and the Beautiful – 1994 Columbo – 1994 Magnum, P.I. – 1994 Beverly Hills, 90210 – 1995 Kirk Douglas – 1995 (Platinum Award in the "Cult TV" category) Steven Seagal – 1995 (Special award for Cinema on TV) The Bold and the Beautiful – 1996 Dallas – 1996 The X-Files – 1996 Tony Curtis – 1996 (Platinum Award) Joe Pesci – 1996 (Platinum Award) The Bold and the Beautiful – 1997 (Soap opera) ER – 1997 (Foreign TV series) Johnny Depp – 1997 (Foreign cinema on TV) Eli Wallach – 1997 (Platinum Award) Murder, She Wrote – 1999 The Simpsons – 2000 James Coburn – 2000 George Clooney – 2000 Elizabeth Taylor – 2001 (Lifetime Achievement Award) Robert Wagner for Hart to Hart – 2001 (Cult TV award) Sean Connery – 2002 (Special award Cinema on TV) Peter O'Toole – 2002 (Special award Cult TV) CSI: Crime Scene Investigation – 2003 Ernest Borgnine – 2003 Susan Sarandon – 2003
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