Bice Valori

Maria Bice Valori (May 13, 1927 - March 17, 1980 Rome, Lazio, Italy) was an Italian actress, comedian and television and radio personality. Born in Rome, she studied at the Silvio d’Amico Academy of Dramatic Arts, graduating in 1948. The same year, she entered the stage company of the Piccolo Teatro of Rome directed by Orazio Costa. After playing in several classics, she specialized as a comedic actress, and had her main successes in the musical theatre genre, notably appearing in Rugantino and Aggiungi un posto a tavola. In films, she was a very active character actress, mainly cast in humorous roles. She appeared often on television, as a comedian, a presenter and an actress in series and TV-movies of some success. She also had a consistent success on radio, in which she created the character of "Sora Bice", a shrewish RAI telephone operator. She often shared the scene with her husband, the actor and comedian Paolo Panelli, whom she had married in 1952. Their daughter Alessandra is also an actress. She died in 1980, aged 53, as a result of a tumor.