Raffaele "Raf" Vallone (17 February 1916 - 31 October 2002) was an Italian footballer and international film star.

Born in Tropea, Calabria, the son of a lawyer, Vallone attended Liceo classico Cavour in Turin, and studied Law and Philosophy at the University of Turin and entered his father's law firm. He played professional football at a young age, playing in Serie A for Torino. He won the Coppa Italia with his team in season 1935-1936. He subsequently became the editorial head of the culture section of L'Unità, then the official newspaper of the Italian Communist Party, and also a film and drama critic for the Turin newspaper La Stampa. During World War II, Vallone served with the Communist resistance.

His first film appearance was as a sailor in We the Living (1942), but Vallone was not initially interested in an acting career. Nevertheless, he was cast as a soldier competing with Vittorio Gassman for the love of Silvana Mangano in Riso amaro (Bitter Rice) (1949). The film became a neo-realist classic and Vallone was launched on an international career. In 2001 he published his autobiography, L'alfabeto della memoria, with Gremese (Rome). Vallone was married to actress Elena Varzi from 1952 until his death. They had three children, two of whom are actors, Eleonora Vallone and Saverio Vallone. He died in Rome on 31 October 2002.

Filmography

• We the Living (1942)
• Bitter Rice (1949)
• The White Line (1949)
• No Peace Under the Olive Tree (1950)
• The Forbidden Christ (1950)
• Path of Hope (1950)
• Il bivio (1950)
• Le avventure di Mandrin (1951)
• Anna (1951)
• Rome 11:00 (1952)
• Carne inquieta (1952)
• Red Shirts (1952)
• The Eyes Leave a Trace (1952)
• Perdonami! (1953)
• La spiaggia (1953)
• The Sign of Venus (1953)
• Gli eroi della domenica (1953)
• Destini di donne (Destinées) (1953)
• Delirio (1953)
• Thérèse Raquin (1953)
• Orage (1954)
• Domanda di Grazia (Obsession) (1954)
• Human Torpedoes (1954)
• Il segreto di Suor Angela (Le Secret de soeur Angèle) (1955)
• L'isola delle capre (Les Possédées) (1955)
• Andrea Chenier (1955)
• Rose Bernd (1957)
• Guendalina (1957)
• Uragano sul Po (Liebe) (1956)
• La venganza (1957)
• The Violet Seller (1958)
• La trappola si chiude (Le Piège) (1958)
• La Garçonniere (1960)
• Tra due donne (Recours en grâce) (1960)
• Two Women (1961)
• El Cid (1961)
• A View From the Bridge (1962)
• Phaedra (1962)
• The Cardinal (1963)
• The Secret Invasion (1964)
• Una voglia da morire (1965)
• Harlow (1965)
• Nevada Smith (1966)
• Se tutte le donne del mondo (1966)
• Volver a vivir (1967)
• Flash 03 (1967)
• La Esclava del paraíso (1968)
• The Desperate Ones (1968)
• The Italian Job (1969)
• La morte risale a ieri sera (1970)
• The Kremlin Letter (1970)
• Cannon for Cordoba (1970)
• A Gunfight (1971)
• The Summertime Killer (1972)
• Un tipo con una faccia strana ti cerca per ucciderti (1973)
• La Casa della paura (1973)
• Honor Thy Father (1973) (TV)
• Catholics (1973) (TV)
• Small Miracle (1975) (TV)
• Simona (1975)
• The Human Factor (1975)
• Decadenza (1975)
• Rosebud (1975)
• That Lucky Touch (1975)
• The Other Side of Midnight (1977)
• The Devil's Advocate (1978)
• The Greek Tycoon (1978)
• An Almost Perfect Affair (1979)
• Retour à Marseille (1980)
• Lion of the Desert (1981)
• Sezona mira u Parizu (1981)
• A Time to Die (1982)
• The Scarlet and the Black (1983) (TV)
• Power of Evil (1985)
• Christopher Columbus (1985) (TV)
• Der Bierkönig (1990) (TV)
• The Godfather Part III (1990)
• Julianus barát III (1991)
• Julianus barát II (1991)
• The First Circle (1991) (TV)
• A Season of Giants (1991) (TV)
• Julianus barát I (1991)
• Mit dem Herzen einer Mutter (1992) (TV)
• Toni (1999)
• Vino santo (2000) (TV)

[ Source: Wikipedia ]