Biography
Annibale Ninchi (20 November 1887 – 15 January 1967) was an Italian actor, playwright and drama teacher. Born in Bologna, he trained at the drama school of Luigi Rasi in Florence and made his stage debut with Ermete Zacconi. He became a leading figure in Italian theatre, working with actors including Emma Gramatica and Ruggero Ruggeri, and formed his own theatrical company in 1919.
Ninchi appeared in films from 1909. He played the title role in Carmine Gallone's Scipione l'Africano (1937) and later took character roles in Federico Fellini's La Dolce Vita (1960), as Marcello's father, and 8½ (1963), as Guido's father. After the Second World War he taught at the Pesaro drama school and the Accademia Nazionale di Arte Drammatica Silvio D'Amico, and worked on stage with directors including Luchino Visconti and Vittorio Gassman. He was the progenitor of a well-known family of actors.
