From the S&S archives:
Gina brightens the picture in her photojournalist role

TOKYO — "Life is too short — to enjoy it you've got to keep moving," said actress Gina Lollobrigida, after arriving at Tokyo International Airport Saturday afternoon.

Gina was commenting on her recent jet-setting travels from South Africa, to New York, to Moscow then to Tokyo in her new role as a photojournalist.

"My being a photojournalist came little by little," she said. "I was an art student at 16, when by mistake, I became an actress, but I still missed very much the painting."

Speaking in her accented English, she continued, "I need a lot of time and concentration for painting, so I turned to photographs. Some magazine saw my work and liked it so much they wanted to publish it."

Things began to happen for her after that. "Life magazine heard of my work and asked me to do a story for them, but when I gathered the material and presented it they said no — we want you now to do a book. I accepted and that was the beginning of a new life for me," she said.

"In the book, "Italia Mia," I was trying to express the spirit of Italians of all ages and I think I've accomplished it. I wanted to show the spirit of Italy my way, and I wanted the people who look at the book to have the feeling that they are in Italy and surrounded by the people."

She said she had collected photographs for three years, collecting some 21,000 and getting just the right ones to tell her story.

"I did the editing myself," she said, "and putting together the story of the book in pictures is a most delicate thing. I didn't try to do beautiful pictures, but what I try to do is to make them say something.

The 41-year-old actress said, "A funny thing is, while I was shooting for the hook I had to disguise myself — I put on hippie clothes, big glasses and stuck plum pits in my jaws so I wouldn't be recognized."

A secret that she did keep to herself was who she thought was the most interesting man in the world was. She is currently under contract to the Ladies Home Journal, in which she'll have pictures and a story of the world's most interesting men run monthly.

She did say that the first issue will be in July of this year. "I travel all over the world to choose my men," she concluded.