Limelighters - Oriana Fallaci

Limelighters (1967) is more than a collection of celebrities' interviews made by Fallaci in the 1960s. Set out to be a collection of portraits for the newspaper she was working at the times, L'Europeo, she manages to portray not only the person, but the changing society around them. As when she discusses the infamous slap Ingrid Bergman gave to a paparazzo in Rome (paparazzi were a new phenomenon at the time), or discussing Italian communism and government with Nilde Iotti, writer of the Italian constitution and prominent lifelong member of the Italian communist party, Fallaci shows many aspects of life in the 60s. It is a portrait of society, as well as an irreverent look at the glamorous of the times, from famous directors Alfred Hitchcock and Federico Fellini, to acting legends Anna Magnani, Jeanne Moreau and Catherine Spaak, millionaires and aristocrats Don Jaime de Mora y Aragón, Cayetana d’Alba, and Baby Pignatari, sportsmen Antonio Ordoñez and Gianni Rivera, and writers Natalia Ginzburg and Salvatore Quasimodo, they all sit in front of her scrutinous eyes while with her inquisitive questions she never fails to put them on the spot. Fallaci precedes each of the 18 dialogues with a short introduction reminiscing her meeting and her impressions of the individuals. In her unique and always subjective style, she notices every shade and idiosyncrasy of the person's character. Those introductions are just as precious as the interviews themselves, as they manage to show the human side to both Fallaci and her interviewees. These interviews are critical for Fallaci herself as they provide her with the experience needed to then go on to interview the decision makers of the times (dialogues collected in 'Interview with History', 1976), yet there is no insecurity or indecision in her questions as well as in her always sharp judgement. She forms opinions of those individuals quickly, and has no fear of expressing them, as when she tells Spaak over and over again that she should respect her parents, or when she ends her interview with Hitchcock telling him he is the cruellest man she ever met. A compelling read, and one of her best books, Limelighters will appeal to anyone with an interest in 1960s society as well as in the celebrities interviewed.