Trivia

A child prodigy, he played the violin from the age of four, piano from the age of six.

Italian pianist and composer of film scores and musicals, a graduate of the Conservatorio Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome.

He started out as a pianist, playing jazz and dance music. He appeared with many jazz stars, among them Duke Ellington, Chet Baker, Louis Armstrong, Stéphane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt.

"Roma nun fa' la stupida stasera", written for the 1962 stage musical "Rugantino", became his most famous song. The title, translated from the Roman dialect, literally means "Rome, don't act silly this evening.".

Began his career as a jazz musician with the orchestra of Rocco Grasso in 1937.

He had five children: Graziella, Marina Ubalda (1954-2000) from his relationship with Silvana Puntieri; Maurizio (b.1960) from his relationship with model Mirella Pettinari; Howard Andrew Rugantino (b.1963) from his marriage to Pier Angeli; and Piergiorgio (b.1973) from his marriage to Maria Paola Trovajoli.

Awarded the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic in February 2000.