Little Known Spaghetti Western Actors ~ Nicolau Breyner

[These daily posts will cover little known actors or people that have appeared in more recent films and TV series. Various degrees of information that I was able to find will be given and anything that you can add would be appreciated.]

Nicolau Breyner was born João Nicolau de Melo Breyner Moreira Lopes on July 30, 1940, in Serpa, Portugal. He spent over 55 years in his career as an actor, producer, director and one of the most popular figures of national fiction. He is the cousin of the writer Sophia de Mello Breyner Andersen [1919-2004]

After his childhood in Serpa, he came to Lisbon with his family, having attended the Camões High School and the Faculty of Law. He soon gave up Law, eventually graduating in Theatre at the National Conservatory. He made his acting debut in the play “Leonor Telles”, by Marcelino Mesquita, at Teatro da Trindade. Soon after, it became popular in comedy, both in the revue and on television, demonstrated in programs such as ‘Nicholas in Wonderland’, ‘I Show Nico’ and ‘Euronic’. Recently he appeared on “Esta Noite Choveu Prata” (Tonight it Rained Silver) by Pedro Bloch, produced by Sérgio de Azevedo.

Breyner appeared in over 40 films from 1961-2012. Besides being an actor and receiving three Golden Globe Awards he was a co-author of the first Portuguese soap opera, ‘Vila Faia’ “Beech Village”.

Breyner was married to Mafalda Maria de Alpoim Vieira Barbosa [1947-    ] (19??-19??). He then married actress Sofia Sá da Bandeira (Sofia de Freitas Branco de Sá da Bandeira) [1963-    ] (1996-2001). He fathered two daughters Mariana Fidalgo Ramos de Melo Breyner Lopes [1986-    ], Constanca Fidalgo Ramos de Melo Breyner Lopes [1991-    ] with writer Cláudia Fidalgo. He then married producer, actress Mafalda Bessa (Mafalda Gomes de Amorim Bessa) [1968-    ] (2006-2016).

In 1995 he unsuccessfully ran for political office for the office of Mayor of Serpa

Nicolau was awarded Grand-Officer of the Order of Merit [2005], Grand-Officer of the Order of Prince Henry [2016].

 He died at home in Lisbon, Portugal of "natural causes" on March 14, 2016, of a heart attack.

Breyner appeared in the Euro-western Bonanca & C.a (1969) as Adão.

BREYNER, Nicolau (João Nicolau de Melo Breyner Moreira Lopes) [7/30/1940, Serpa, Portugal - 3/14/2016, Lisbon, Portugal (heart attack)] – producer, production manager, director, writer, theater, film, TV actor, married to Mafalda Maria de Alpoim Vieira Barbosa [1947-    ] (19??-19??), married to actress Sofia Sá da Bandeira (Sofia de Freitas Branco de Sá da Bandeira) [1963-    ] (1996-2001), father of Mariana Fidalgo Ramos de Melo Breyner Lopes [1986-    ], Constanca Fidalgo Ramos de Melo Breyner Lopes [1991-    ] with Cláudia Fidalgo Ramos,  married to producer, actress Mafalda Gomes (Mafalda Gomes de Amorim Bessa) [1968-    ] (2006-2016), awarded Grand-Officer of the Order of Merit [2005], Grand-Officer of the Order of Prince Henry [2016].

Bonança & C.a - 1969 (Adão)

New German Blu-ray, DVD release of “Django - Unbarmherzig wie die Sonne”

“Django - Unbarmherzig wie die Sonne”

(Death Sentence)

(1968)

 

Director: Mario Lanfranchi

Starring: Robin Clarke, Richard Conte, Enrico Maria Salerno, Adolf Celi

 

Country: Germany

Label: Explosive Media

New 2K master

Resolution: 1080p

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

Languages: German, English

Subtitles: German, English

Running time: 99 minutes

Extras: audio commentary with Mario Lanfranchi; interview featurette with the director; trailer; gallery

ASIN: ‎B0CTC1JQ1V

Available: April 25, 2024

Starosta má starosti

Starosta má starosti – Czechoslovakian title

[The Mayor is Worried – English translated title]

 

A 1989 Czechoslovakian television production [Ceskoslovenská Televize (Prague)]

Producer: ?

Director: Jitka Němcová

Story: Luboš Johanis

Teleplay: Luboš Johanis

Photography: Jan Matiášek

Music: Jaroslav Uhlíř

Running time: 31 minutes

 

Cast:

Sheriff - Josef Laufer

Shirley - Miroslava Pleštilová

Louis Jones - Ondřej Havelka

Judge - Svatopluk Beneš

Frank Finley - Karel Greif

Billy Denis - Josef Bek

Daisy - Gabriela Osvaldová

James O’Brien - Karel Šíp

Tom Brady - Jaroslav Uhlíř

With: Václav Vydra, the youngest, Petr Meissel, Jan Fiala, Hana Bažantová

 

The mayor of a small western town tries to intimidate a journalist who comes across a case of corruption by using medieval judicial law, which he intends to use as a judicial precedent, which American law allows.

Special Birthdays

Stjepan Hrgović (actor) would have been 80 today but died in 2021.

Martin Koolhoven is 55 today.

RIP Margaret Lee

 

British actress Margaret Lee died on April 24^th according to an announcement by her son producer Roberto Malerba. Born Margaret Gwendolyn Box in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England on August 4, 1943, she was a popular leading lady in Italian films in the 1960s and 1970s. She is the mother of production manager/producer Roberto Malerba [1964- ] (from her marriage to Gino Malerba) and production manager/producer Damian Anderson [1973- ]. She was educated at the Italia Conti Theatre School in London, graduating in 1960. She moved to Rome shortly afterwards to pursue a career in films. Her film debut came in the sword and sandal adventure “Fire Monsters Against the Son of Hercules” (1962), where she played the female lead alongside Reg Lewis, but it was a string of popular comedies that initially made Lee a star in Italy. With a blonde, fluffy look modelled after Marilyn Monroe, Lee spent the first half of the 1960s appearing in numerous Italian comedies and parodies – several of which starred the popular comedic duo Franco and Ciccio. Few of these films received much, if any, distribution in English-speaking territories but they were highly successful in Italy and made Lee a well-known film actress. Lee appeared in three Spaghetti westerns: “The Two Sergeants of General Custer” in 1965 as Beth/Betty ‘The Lynx’ Smith; “Djurado” in 1966 as Mitzy. She was to appear in a 1964 western entitled “I Shot Johnny Ringo” but the film was never made and “Bano de sangre” (Blood Bath) in 1971 but it was never released.

Little Known Spaghetti Western Actors ~ Carlo Bressan

[These daily posts will cover little known actors or people that have appeared in more recent films and TV series. Various degrees of information that I was able to find will be given and anything that you can add would be appreciated.]

Carlo Bressan was an Italian theater and film supporting actor who was born in Bari, Puglia, Italy on June 30, 1912. During his busy career he was able to appear in fourteen films from 1938 to 1959. He also wrote and produced for television. 

Carlo appeared in only one Euro-western in 1942’s “Una signora dell'ovest” (The Girl of the Golden West) in an uncredited role.

Bressan died in Rome, Italy sometime in 1994.

BRESSAN, Carlo [6/30/1912, Bari, Puglia, Italy – 1994, Rome, Lazio, Italy] – producer, writer, theater, radio, film, TV, voice actor.

The Girl of the Golden West – 1942

A new U.S.A. / Austrian film release “A Town Called Purgatory”

Gruesome Magazine

By Tony Timpone

March 21, 2024

Two genres collide (bloodily!) in A Town Called Purgatory, the new film from the team behind the award-winning 2017 festival fave The Night Watchmen, and Gruesome just landed this exclusive clip. A horror western, A Town Called Purgatory will make its U.S. premiere this Saturday at New Jersey’s Garden State Film Festival with cast and crew attending.

“When COVID-19 had shut down the world in 2020, it was the right time to develop a script,” recalls A Town Called Purgatory’swriter, producer, and star Dan De Luca, who wore the same production hats on The Night Watchmen. “The film would have to be easily made under the new restrictions and COVID protocols.

“Well, as we all realize, nothing is easy in the film world, and the next thing we knew we were on a plane to Austria in the middle of COVID to film an American Western,” De Luca continues. “A ‘Strudel Western,’ if you will. While the world was in limbo, we made A Town Called Purgatory.”

The movie, directed by former Sopranos actor Matt Servitto, takes place in the haunting aftermath of the Civil War. Principled Yankee Lawman Beau Riffen (Purgatory/Night Watchmen co-writer, producer, and star Ken Arnold) joins forces with Cody Parnum (De Luca), a tormented ex-Confederate tracker. Their quest to apprehend notorious train robbers leads them to Purgatory, a town eerily deserted. Amidst the silence, they cross paths with a lone African American trapper and a prisoner harboring secrets who whispers of an ancient menace. As the shadows of Purgatory tighten, an impending confrontation with The Skinwalker, a creature from Native American legend, beckons, testing bonds of trust and humanity in their gripping fight for survival.

The impetus for A Town Called Purgatory came about after Arnold finished starring in a Western called The Marshal. “The idea sat well with both of us with our love for horror and an eternal boyhood dream to don cowboy hats and holsters,” says Arnold, who has nearly 100 film and TV acting credits under his (cowboy) belt, from Men in Black 3 to Law & Order.

“The inspiration for the film came from a blend of classic Spaghetti Westerns and horror folklore, aiming to work in a unique genre fusion that hasn’t been widely explored,” Arnold continues. “The development from story to screenplay involved extensive brainstorming sessions over video calls, sharing articles and videos that we had read and watched until our visions aligned. We were both passionate about keeping the narrative tightly woven around the characters, which is not often deeply explored in most low-budget horror films, making sure to delve deep into the actual struggles of Americans during the time right after the Civil War from multiple perspectives.” The filmmakers also wanted to fill a genre vacuum. “Recognizing the scarcity of horror Westerns, we saw an opportunity to carve a niche within the genre,” Arnold says. “And honestly, we’re just real big fans of both genres. Only a handful of horror Westerns have been able to create a suspenseful horror film that is visually compelling, fun, and with an emotionally.

A Town Called Purgatory – International title

 

A 2021-2024 U.S.A., Austrian co-production [Contender Films, Non Nomen Films, Studio BOH (Baltimore), Seven Oceans Films (Baden), Studio BOH]

Producers: Andre Fontana, Bob Ryan, Bill Steffey, John Steffey Jr., Ken Arnold, Dan DeLuca, Matt Servitto, Frederik Füssel,

Director: Matt Servitto

Story: Ken Arnold, Dan DeLuca

Screenplay: Dan DeLuca

Cinematography: Frederik Füssel [color]

Music: Cazz Cerkez

Running time: 87 minutes

 

Cast:

Frank Sparks – Matt Servitto

Beau Riffen – Ken Arnold

Reverend Silas Fist – Jeff Ricketts

Cody Parnum – Dan DeLuca

Nicodemus Black – Kevin Jiggetts

Anna Place – Maria Lohn

Hannah Montasse – Monica Gregorio

Henry Sparks - Claudius von Stolzmann

Hashke' Moon-Shadow – Marco Valenta

Skinwalker – Oliver Kasiske

John Sparks – Sam Kozeluh

Vincente Cortina – Florentino Gregorio

Ajei Moon-Shadow – Cat Jimenez

Stunt coordinator - Josef Schützenhofer

Stunt consultant - Markus Weilguny

Stunts - Esther Schneider

On the vast, sun-bleached plains of post-Civil War America. Yankee Lawman Beau Riffen and ex-Confederate Cody Parnum, men from opposing sides of a recently ended conflict, find a common purpose in their relentless pursuit of a notorious band of train robbers. Their journey is fraught with the tension of unspoken pasts and the country's struggle to mend its deep wounds. However, their mission takes an unexpected turn when a chilling encounter on the plains robs them of their horses and sense of security.

Weary and on edge, Beau and Cody stumble upon what appears to be salvation - a town named Purgatory. Yet, the eerily quiet streets and abandoned homes hint at a sinister event. The tension escalates when they meet the only inhabitants: a mysterious African American trapper, whose guarded nature hides a wealth of knowledge, and a ragged prisoner, whose ramblings suggest a descent into madness. Both men are pieces of a disturbing puzzle.

As night descends, the true horror of Purgatory reveals itself. The group faces the terror that haunts the town - an evil entity known in whispered folklore as "The Skinwalker" or Yee Naaldlooshii. With no escape, Beau, Cody, the trapper, and the prisoner must confront their inner demons and prejudices. Amidst the fear, they slowly piece together the town's tragic history and the origin of the creature stalking them.

As they prepare for a final stand against the Skinwalker, revelations come to light. The group's newfound trust in one another becomes their most potent weapon. In a heart-pounding confrontation, they face the embodiment of Purgatory's darkest secrets.

 

Trailer link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JpbW781w7Y