Who is Daniela Bianchi and where is she today? Wiki Bio
Daniela Bianchi was born in Rome, Italy, on 31 January 1942, so her zodiac sign is Aquarius and she holds Italian nationality. She is a former actress and a former model, who gained recognition after starring in the film “From Russia with Love” released in 1963. Daniela retired from acting in 1968 but came back in 2012 for her final role in the film “We’re Nothing Like James Bond”.
Childhood and education
Daniela was raised in Rome in a wealthy family, her father was serving in the Italian Army as a Colonel and her mother was a housewife, while her grandmother held the title of a Marchesa which is the first title below Princess.
Daniela started dancing ballet at the age of five and it was expected of her to become a ballet dancer someday, however, as she started modelling and acting, her figure changed and she was no longer able to continue with ballet. She attended a public high school in Rome where she was mostly focused on improving her acting skills and after she matriculated with very bad grades, she decided to focus on modelling and acting rather than to study at college.
At the age of 18 in 1960, she competed in the Miss Rome beauty pageant winning it, and Daniela then competed in Miss Universe 1960 becoming runner-up.
Career as an actress
She launched her career as an actress in 1958, making an uncredited appearance in the film “Love is My Profession” while her official debut role came in 1961 in the film “Midnight Folly”. In 1962, she portrayed Donatella in the movie “Always on Sunday” as well as Elvira in the film “The Sword of El Cid”.
She gained recognition after being cast to portray Tatiana Romanova in the James Bond film “From Russia with Love” released in 1963, which stars Sean Connery and Robert Shaw and follows James who is trying to steal an encryption device belonging to the Soviet Union in competition with the SPECTRE organization.
Daniela was competing against over 200 girls for the role of Tatiana, and Richard Maibaum, the screenwriter of James Bond movies, later stated how Daniela has always been the Bond girl he loves the most as she was always doing as she pleased including eating chocolate and laughing at director’s bad jokes. After the movie was released, Daniela was far richer than most of her friends, as she had her own flat in Rome and owned a beach house as well, plus an expensive car.
She made her debut TV series appearance in “Dr. Kildare”, appearing in three episodes in 1964 while the 1965 saw her star as Nadia in the film “Snow Job” (original name “Slalom” in Russia).
She played Isabella Dominici in “Weekend, Italian Style” in 1966, while the same year saw her appear in several movies including “Operation Gold”, “Operation Lady Chaplin”, and “Requiem for a Secret Agent”.
She played Arabella in the film “Your Turn to Die” and Maya Rafis in “Operation Kid Brother” both released in 1967, while three of Daniela’s last roles before her retirement were in “Dirty Heroes” in 1967, “The Last Chance” in 1968, and a return in “We’re Nothing Like James Bond” in 2012.
(Most of the names of movies and TV series have been translated from their original Italian title to English)
Facts about her role in the film “From Russia with Love”
Daniela’s lines in the movie “From Russia with Love” weren’t really hers, her English accent was so heavy that she couldn’t be understood most of the time. Instead, another Italian girl who spoke English well was hired to voice-over the lines instead of Daniela, as they did not want another actress for the role.
Daniela has remained the only Italian girl to play James Bond’s main girl, while two other actresses from Italy named Monica Bellucci and Luciana Paluzzi played side roles in other James Bond films.
Love life and relationships
Daniela met Alberto Cameli in 1967 while she was shooting for the film “The Last Chance”, and the two started dating in January 1968. Alberto was the president of a cargo shipping company in Italy, and he proposed to Daniela in 1969 while their big wedding attended by over 400 people was held in 1970. Daniela gave birth to their son Filippo named after Alberto’s father sometime in the ‘70s – they stayed married for the next 48 years until 2018 when Alberto died.
Alberto’s father Filippo is to be credited with the launch of the cargo shipping company which Alberto was still running at the time of his death, and after Filippo died in November 1980, his entire fortune and his company was passed over to Alberto.
Daniela was in several short-term relationships before meeting Alberto, and there were rumors that she was dating several of her actor colleagues, however, these rumors were never addressed by her nor the supposed actors in question.
Hobbies and other interests
Daniela has been a fan of ballet since she was a young girl, while she is also interested in other dances such as contemporary and salsa. She was physically very active while she was younger as she was spending most of her free time outdoors walking and cycling, while also going to the gym several times per week, however, she never followed a strict diet as she couldn’t resist pizza and chocolate.
She has her own favorites when it comes to famous actors and actresses, some of whom are Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Edie Falco, while some of her favorite movies include the trilogy “The Godfather”, “Scarface”, and “Taxi Driver” as she is a big fan of the mafia films. Some of her favorite TV series are “Gomorrah” and “Breaking Bad”. She is a lover of animals and has a pet dog; she enjoys reading books in her spare times with her favorites being those based on true stories such as “Empress Orchid”, “Arthur and George”, and “See What I Have Done”.
Appearance and net worth
Daniela is 78 years old. She has long blonde hair and blue eyes, is 5ft 7ins (1.7m) tall, and weighs around 136lbs (62kgs). As of March 2020, her net worth is estimated at $22 million.