Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
The Romans were the ones to introduce the culture of wine to the area around Mount Vesuvius as can be seen by what was left behind in places like Ercolano. And it is in Ercolano where a unique cooperative has been set up to cultivate a very special variety of tomatoes.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Crepax's stories were based on imagination and vision. In those years, artists contaminated one another's works, and there was even a curious connection between Crepax's Ciao Valentina and Antonioni's Blow-Up.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Coral has been made into jewelry in Torre del Greco since the fifteenth century. In that same century, a variety of grapes arrived from Catalunya, which over time has produced a wine with a unique personality.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Who was the model for Valentina? Certainly, the actress Louise Brooks who portrayed Lulu in the movie Pandora's Box directed by G.W Pabst (based on two plays by Frank Wedekind), but also Crepax's wife, Luisa Mandelli.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Gragnano is a town near Naples known for its pasta production. There are many different shapes and types, but they all are a bit rough to the touch, because they go through a bronze cutter, rather than a Teflon one. That's why the pasta holds the sauce better. Of course, everyone living in Gragnano is an expert about pasta.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Just as in Cubist art, Crepax would design his figures to be seen from various points of view simultaneously. Sometimes he would use small windows to attract attention rather than making them larger.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
This land is not only good for cultivating grapes for wine, but also the special piennolo tomatoes, that keep for several months.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Guido Crepax's son Antonio talks about the day Antonio Custra was killed in May of 1977, during an armed demonstration in Milan. This was during the so-called anni di piombo (years of lead), a period of social turmoil, political violence and upheaval that lasted from the late 1960s until the late 1980s, marked by a wave of both far-left and far-right incidents of political terrorism and violent clashes. Many demonstrators were arrested, but Antonio Crepax managed not to get loaded onto a paddy wagon.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Watermelon is another product of this special terrain on the slopes of Vesuvius. In the north, this is called cocomero, but in the south, it's anguria. There are some sensational wines from Vesuvius, too.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Crepax loved playing at battles and would change the outcomes, using his friends to fine-tune the moves. He had some famous personalities as willing participants in the games, too.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Patrizia works as an agronomist collaborating with farmers who grow heirloom vegetables of the Campania tradition. She describes a couple of different kinds of tomatoes and what they're typically used for.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Besides his much better known activity as a graphic artist, Crepax was a keen wargamer and wargame designer and collector of paper soldiers, drawn by himself.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Even though the tomato is an immigrant in Italy, it has become synonymous with Italian cooking. The soil produced by Vesuvius and the mild climate of the area around Naples and Salerno have allowed the San Marzano tomato to become King.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
One of Crepax's techniques is to use the details of everyday life to build his stories and provide context. We even see the titles of the books in Valentina's bookcase.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Among the pages of the comic strip, family members find familiar objects, drawings, and personal information from their everyday life. Although Valentina was a figment of Crepax's imagination, she was also an integral part of his family.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
Italy
Valentina's success coincided with the beginnings of feminist movements in Italy. She depicted a woman who was strong and independent, who could do anything a man could do, a departure from the stereotype of the Italian housewife.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Crepax's Valentina was an intriguing character because she openly reflected the sexual freedom of the late sixties and was attractive to both men and women. It was very "in" to be seen walking around with an issue of "Linus," an Italian comics magazine published in Italy beginning in 1965.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Filmmakers Tinto Brass and Giuseppe Tornatore comment on how some elements of expressivity are shared between comic strips and the cinema.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
Italy
In 1963 Crepax got his start in the world of comic books and two years later created his famous character, Valentina. The comic strip first appeared in the anthology comic book, "linus," founded by Giovanni Gandini, who had known Crepax as a kid.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Crepax started out with one protagonist, Philip Rembrandt, but gradually phased him out, along with his superpowers. Valentina then took over as the protagonist. Crepax talks about Milan in the sixties.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Margherita left a legacy of progress, both scientific and social. Perhaps she is still looking down on us, since an asteroid was named after her: 8558 Hack.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
This documentary is about Guido Crepax, the creator of a famous fumetto (comic strip) that came out in 1965. The main characters are Philip Rembrandt, an art critic, and Valentina Rosselli, a photojournalist.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Even though Aldo and Margherita were very different in many ways, they came together in their skepticism. Towards the end of her life, Margherita couldn't move around much, but her brain never stopped going.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
In this segment, Margherita talks about her choice not to have children and also discusses her position regarding God. She can't prove he exists nor can she prove he doesn't.
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