Carlo Pedersoli (31 October 1929 – 27 June 2016), known professionally as Bud Spencer, was an Italian actor, professional swimmer and water polo player. He was known for action-comedy and spaghetti Western roles with his long-time film partner and friend Terence Hill. The duo "garnered world acclaim and attracted millions to theater seats".^[1] Spencer and Hill appeared in 18 films together.

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Quick Facts Born, Died ...

Bud Spencer
Spencer in Flatfoot (1973)
Born	Carlo Pedersoli (1929-10-31)31 October 1929 Naples, Italy
Died	27 June 2016(2016-06-27) (aged 86) Rome, Italy
Resting place	Campo Verano, Rome, Italy
Alma mater	Sapienza University of Rome
Occupations	Actor professional swimmer water polo player
Years active	1950–2010
Spouse	Maria Amato ​ (m. 1960)​
Children	3
Awards	David di Donatello Special Award
Website	budspencerofficial.com

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In his youth, Bud Spencer was a successful athlete and swimmer for the Gruppo Sportivo Fiamme Oro.^[2] He obtained a law degree and registered several patents. Spencer also became a certified commercial airline and helicopter pilot, and supported and funded many children's charities, including the Spencer Scholarship Fund.^[3]

Son of Alessandro Pedersoli, from Lombardy, and Rosa Facchetti from Chiari, Lombardy, Carlo Pedersoli was born on 31 October 1929 in Santa Lucia, a historical rione in Naples^[4] and in the same building as the writer Luciano De Crescenzo. He played several sports and showed an aptitude for swimming, winning prizes. De Crescenzo was a classmate of his. In 1940, due to his father's work, he moved to Rome, where he attended high school and joined a swimming club. He finished school before his seventeenth birthday with the highest marks and enrolled at Sapienza University of Rome, where he studied chemistry. In 1947, the family moved to South America^[5] and Pedersoli discontinued his studies. From 1947 to 1949, he worked in the Italian consulate in Recife, Brazil,^[6] where he learned to speak fluent Portuguese.^[7]

Quick Facts Personal information, National team ...

Carlo Pedersoli

Carlo Pedersoli in 1950
Personal information
National team	Italy
Born	(1929-10-31)31 October 1929 Santa Lucia, Naples, Italy
Died	27 June 2016(2016-06-27) (aged 86) Rome, Italy
Height	193 cm (6 ft 4 in)
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Strokes	Freestyle, water polo
Club	Società Sportiva Lazio Nuoto

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Pedersoli returned to Italy in 1949, and played water polo in Rome for Società Sportiva Lazio Nuoto and won the Italian swimming championships in freestyle and mixed relay teams. As a professional swimmer in his youth, Spencer was the first Italian to swim the 100 m freestyle in less than one minute when on 19 September 1950 he swam the distance in 59.5 s in Salsomaggiore.^[8] In 1949 he made his international debut and a year later he was called up for the European championships in Vienna where he swam in two finals, finishing fifth in the 100 m and fourth in the relay 4 × 200 m.^[9]

In the 1951 Mediterranean Games in Alexandria (Egypt), he won a silver medal in the same 100 m freestyle event.^[10][11] Pedersoli participated in the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Finland, reaching the semi-finals in the 100 m freestyle (58.8 s heats, 58.9 s semi final).^[12] Four years later, in Melbourne, he also entered the semi-finals in the same category (58.5 s heat, 59.0 s semi final).^[10][13]

As a water polo player, he won the Italian Championship in 1954 with S.S. Lazio^[10] and the gold medal at 1955 Mediterranean Games in Barcelona with the Italian national team. His swimming career ended abruptly in 1957.^[14]

On 17 January 2005, he was awarded the Caimano d'oro (Gold Caiman) by the Italian Swimming Federation.^[15] On 24 January 2007, he received swimming and water polo coach diplomas from the Italian Swimming Federation's president Paolo Barelli.^[16]

Pedersoli's first film role was in Quel fantasma di mio marito, an Italian comedy short released in 1950.^[17] In 1951 he played a member of the Praetorian Guard in Quo Vadis, an epic film shot in Italy made by MGM and directed by Mervyn LeRoy.^[17] During the 1950s and early 1960s, Spencer appeared playing minor parts in Italian including Mario Monicelli's movie A Hero of Our Times, with Alberto Sordi and the 1954 war film Human Torpedoes with Raf Vallone.

In 1960, after the Summer Olympic games, Pedersoli married Maria Amato, daughter of Italian film producer Giuseppe Amato.^[18] He signed a contract with RCA Records to write lyrics for singers such as Ornella Vanoni and Nico Fidenco and soundtracks. In the following years, his son Giuseppe was born (1961), followed by Cristiana (1962), his contract with RCA expired and his father-in-law died (1964). Pedersoli became a producer of documentaries for the national public broadcasting company RAI.^[19]

In 2005, he entered politics, unsuccessfully standing as regional councilor in Lazio for the Forza Italia party. Spencer stated: "In my life, I've done everything. There are only three things I haven't been – a ballet dancer, a jockey and a politician. Given that the first two jobs are out of the question, I'll throw myself into politics."^[30] The opposition criticized him for engaging in politica spettacolo ("showbiz politics").^[31]

Spencer married Maria Amato in 1960, with whom he had three children: Giuseppe (1961), Cristiana (1962) and Diamante (1972). After appearing in Più forte, ragazzi!, Spencer became a jet airplane and helicopter pilot.^[32] He founded Mistral Air in 1984, an air-mail company that also transports pilgrims, but later sold it to Poste Italiane.^[33] Spencer's grandson, Carlo Pedersoli Jr., is a mixed martial arts fighter currently signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship.^[34]