Sofia Villani Scicolone, known as Sophia Loren, was born on September 20, 1934 in Rome. Even as a girl she showed a considerable interest in the showbiz world, first as a contestant in beauty pageants and only later in the role of actress. Her story is a troubled one, as she was not only a victim of the turbulent post-war period but also of an eternal fight with her family, caused above all by the somewhat overwhelming jealousy of her father Riccardo, a real estate businessman who dreamed of a career away from the spotlight for Sofia.

On the contrary, her mother Romilda, a piano teacher who in 1932 had won a beauty contest to go and appear in Hollywood as a double of Greta Garbo, but who had had to give up this opportunity due to the strong opposition of her parents, was therefore extremely happy with the aspirations of her daughter Sofia.