don't say yes until I finish talking

 

Anne Bancroft in The Graduate

Darryl F. Zanuck   (1902 - 1979)

American film producer and studio executive

Now, see -- just last week on May 10th we were discussing how entertainers in the Depression - World War II generation many times changed their names to something non-ethnic-sounding...Smith, Jones, Bennett, Martin....Dino Paul Crocetti became Dean Martin, for example.

Watching The Graduate recently on Amazon Prime, decided to quick-click on Anne Bancroft, who played Mrs. Robinson -- she was born Anna Maria Louisa Italiano.

        [Wikipedia] -- "At Darryl Zanuck's insistence, she chose the less Mediterranean surname of Bancroft."

"Less Mediterranean."  Good grief.

        Now, in the modern era -- when The Sopranos was on HBO, 1999 - 2007, the cast was dominated by actors with "Mediterranean surnames."  People weren't changing to Smith or Jones.

James Gandolfini

Michael Imperioli

Lorraine Bracco

Tony Sirico

Drea de Matteo

Edie Falco

Dominic Chianese

Joe Pantoliano

Vincent Pastore

Vincent Curatola

Frank Vincent

John Ventimiglia

Sharon Angela

Aida Turturro

Federico Castelluccio...

        Times change.

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