Marriage to Carlo Ponti
Her private life was plagued with stories of affairs and bigamy but she stayed married to Italian film producer Carlo Ponti for 50 years, until his death in 2007.
The couple first met when Sophia was only 16 years old. Carlo offered her a contract, became her mentor, and made sure Sophia reached stardom in Italy before she was 25.
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”It was love at first sight for both of us. We met at a beauty contest in Rome when I was 16, and he was on the jury. He saw me sitting at a table with friends and sent me a note asking me to join the contest,” she said.
Sophia and Carlo tied the knot in 1957, but Carlo’s earlier divorce was not recognized in Italy, and they got charged with bigamy. Carlo was 21 years her senior and he was still married to his first wife when they initially wed.
As a result, Sophias and Carlo’s marriage was annulled in 1962. The couple solved the issue by becoming French citizens and marrying legally.
They went on to have two sons; Carol Jr., who is an orchestra conductor, and Eduardo, who is a filmmaker. Today, Sophia has four grandchildren.
Sophia Loren poses for a photo on May 30, 2001 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Joe McNally/Getty Images)
Sophia’s love life has been in the spotlight many times; for example, she once turned down a marriage proposal from Cary Grant.
Her stunning looks were something she never focused on, staying true to herself and ensuring she provided the secure home life for her kids that she never had.
“My character is my best feature,” she told the Telegraph newspaper. “I was really a nobody, a little girl, unhappy, in desperation because of the life I was living with my family and no father.”
There’s still so much we don’t know about this screen goddess as she burns her personal diary every year, but we do know she is devoted to her family and her work, still acting at 88 years old.
Sophia Loren in 2021 / Getty Images for Fashion Media
In 2020, Sophia Loren appeared in her first starring role in over a decade. In the American-Italian drama film The Life Ahead, directed by her son Edoardo Ponti, Sophia portrays Madam Rosa, a Holocaust survivor, and former sex worker.
”I [tapped] into my own experiences during the war and [found] Madame Rosa’s truth and honesty by uncovering my own,” Sophia said.
The Oscar-winning Italian actress is also a businesswoman nowadays. Two restaurants in Italy bear her name, one in Florence and one in Milano. The latter opened its doors in 2022, and Sophia attended the opening.
“In my life I have had many passions, one of them is undoubtedly food” – Loren is quoted on the restaurant website.
”No director has ever managed to put me on a diet and I have never given up a good plate of pasta in favour of the figure.”
Italian actress Sophia Loren seen at the opening of her restaurant Sophia Loren Restaurant in Milan. (Photo by Mairo Cinquetti/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
The career that this screen goddess has built for herself despite her tough childhood and the knockbacks she endured is inspirational.
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