ANTONELLO FALQUI – Television Director

(Roma, 1925 – 2019)

A student of film direction at the Experimental Center for Cinematography (1947-49), after a few experiences as Assistant Director, in September of 1952 he began working at the Milan studios of the newly established RAI, where he was responsible for one of the first shows with Mike Buongiorno, Arrivi e partenze (arrivals and departures) (1955). Falqui’s name is remembered for the creation of the most important TV shows of the 1950s and 60s: from Il Musichiere (the music game) (1957) directed by a dynamic Mario Riva, that starts the explosion of popularity of music themed quiz shows; to Studio Uno (studio one) (1961-65) with Mina, the Kessler twins, the Quartetto Cetra, Walter Chiari, Rita Pavone; to the three editions of Teatro 10. A visit to American TV studios in the beginning of the 1960 allowed him to renovate the “variety” genre and to reach elevated levels of quality, as in the editions of Canzonissima of 1968 with Mina, Walter Chiari and Paolo Panelli and of 1969 version with Johnny Dorelli, Raimondo Vianello and the Kessler twins. With the same qualified staff of collaborators of his RAI programs, he edited numerous advertising shows (Carosello) for the Barilla pasta directing Mina with proven ability and recreating in a time frame of a few minutes the atmospheres of the Saturday night shows. Sai che ti dico? (Do you know what I say?), Due come noi (Two people like us), Studio 80, Come Alice (like Alice), Al Paradise (Golden Rose Award for best variety show in 1983) are only some of the numerous programs directed by Falqui up until the mid 1980s. Falqui represented the passage from a provincial home made-phase of the first shows to a period of great professionalism for the Italian television in a period marked by complex and articulated shows based on creativity of filming and of discographies, on the appeal of great characters and on the richness array of sets.

Giancarlo Gonizzi