1. John Kitzmiller was an American actor who worked in his native land, as well as Italy and the United Kingdom.
11 Facts About John Kitzmiller
1. 2.
John Kitzmiller was the first Black actor to win the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor in 1957 for his role in the Slovenian film Valley of Peace.
3.
John Kitzmiller was born in Battle Creek, Michigan, the younger of two children born to John B and Mary E Kitzmiller.
4.
In high school John Kitzmiller was a member of the Chemistry Club, and he later attended the University of Michigan, receiving a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering in 1937.
5.
John Kitzmiller was commissioned in the US Army reaching the rank of captain in the Corps of Engineers.
6.
John Kitzmiller was stationed in Italy in 1943, serving with the 92nd Infantry Division during the Italian campaign of World War II.
7.
John Kitzmiller was discovered in 1946 by Luigi Zampa and Carlo Ponti while playing poker at an officers' club.
8.
John Kitzmiller made Italy his permanent residence and ultimately starred in more than fifty European films, often portraying characters fighting racism.
9.
John Kitzmiller played the leading role of "Jerry" in the film Senza pieta, from a screenplay by Federico Fellini, Alberto Lattuada and Tullio Pinelli.
10.
John Kitzmiller received awards commemorating both his role as an actor and as a soldier.
11.
John Kitzmiller died in Rome of a liver ailment at the age of 51.