Giorgio Ardisson (31 December 1931 – 11 December 2014), often credited as best known as George Ardisson, was an Italian actor. He was known as a leading man of sword-and-sandal and Eurospy films of the 1960s.
Life and career Ardisson was born in the Rocca Canavese municipality of Turin in 1931. His father was a native of Piedmont and his mother was from Calabria. Moving to Rome in 1959, he debuted in a minor role in Mauro Bolognini's comedy film You're on Your Own. His athletic build and classically-handsome appearance made him a popular casting choice for sword-and-sandal (peplum) films, he notably co-starred in Mario Bava's Hercules in the Haunted World and Erik the Conqueror (both 1961), playing the title role in the latter.
Ardisson gained a huge success playing Agent 3S3 in the eurospy films Agent 3S3: Passport to Hell and Agent 3S3, Massacre in the Sun. According to director Sergio Sollima, he was chosen for this role thanks to his physical appearance that made him credible as American.
Later, Ardisson starred in several more spy films and spanned different genres, including Spaghetti Westerns and horror films. In an interview, he stated he turned down several leading roles because he wanted to play more challenging parts. Though his later career was largely relegated to low-budget B and Z movies, one of his more notable roles was in Moroccan director Souheil Ben-Barka's anti-apartheid drama Amok (1983).
In 2010, he was the guest of honor at the 10th Annual Piedmont Movie Festival.https://web.archive.org/web/20170820202644/http://www.civonline.it/articolo/cerveteri-va-piemonte-grazie-allrsquoeroe-mascherato-zorro
Death A long time resident of the Cerveteri area of Rome, Ardisson died there at the age of 82 on 11 December 2014, after a long illness.
Partial filmography
You're on Your Own (1959) - Walter Morgan, the Pirate (1960) The Last of the Vikings (1961) - Guntar Hercules in the Haunted World (1961) - Teseo Erik the Conqueror (1961) - Erik Zorro in the Court of Spain (1962) - Riccardo Di Villa Verde / Zorro A Queen for Caesar (1962) - Achilles Twist, lolite e vitelloni (1962) - Massimo Mauri Katarsis (1963) - Gugo, the poet Grand Canyon Massacre (1964) The Long Hair of Death (1965) - Baron Kurt Humboldt Agent 3S3: Passport to Hell (1965) - Walter Ross, Agent 3S3 Hercules and the Princess of Troy (1965, TV Movie) - Leander Juliet of the Spirits (1965) - Dolores' model Operation Counterspy (1965) - Lord George Moriston Agent 3S3: Massacre in the Sun (1966) - Walter Ross, Agent 3S3 Countdown to Doomsday (1966) - Jeff Milton Date for a Murder (1967) - Vince Dreyser (1967) - Patrick Gordon Either All or None (1968) - Amen / Johnny May God Forgive You... But I Won't (1968) - Cjamango McDonald Zorro the Fox (1968) - Don Diego di Alcantara / Zorro Una ragazza di Praga (1969) - Adam Kryl Django Defies Sartana (1970) - Sartana A Suitcase for a Corpse (1970) - Clive Ardington Chapaqua's Gold (1970) - Doc Harrison (1970) - Tommy L'uomo più velenoso del cobra (1971) - Tony Garden La vergine di Bali (1972) - David Rank Sixteen (1973) - Giorgio Commissariato di notturna (1974) - Amedeo Furlan aka il Laureando La nipote (1974) - Piero / Luigi's friend Ciak si muore (1974) - Inspector Menzel Il torcinaso (1975) - Police Chief La guerre du pétrole n'aura pas lieu (1975) - Trudot Faccia di spia (1975) - Patrick Una vergine in famiglia (1975) - Ivan Fnrnesi Lo stallone (1975) - Guido, padre di Daniela L'ingenua (1975) - Piero Spazin Il signor Ministro li pretese tutti e subito (1977) - Pietro Santini Polizia selvaggia (1977) L'assassino speranza delle donne (1977) Eyes Behind the Stars (1978) - Agent for 'The Silencers' Supersexymarket (1979) Il viziaccio (1980) Las verdes vacaciones de una familia bien (1980) - Mario Nicosia Eroina (1980) - The Trafficant Carcerato (1981) - The Police Commissioner Don't Look in the Attic (1982) - Casati Pin il monello (1982) Apocalisse di un terremoto (1982) - Anthony Starace Amok (1983) - Le chef de la police La donna del mare (1984) - Alfred Wanfel I mercenari raccontano (1985) Cattivi Pierrot (1985) - Victim Delitti (1987) - Chief of Police La trasgressione (1987) Cross of the Seven Jewels (1987) - Boss from Sicily La tempesta (1988) La vendetta (1989) - Agent Roberts Viaggio di nozze in giallo (1990) Una donna da guardare (1991) - prof. Mueller Shadow Warriors (1992) - Ninja Master (final film role)
References
Further reading Matt Blake. Giorgio Ardisson: The Italian James Bond. The WildEye Press, 2014. .
External links