French-born Italian actress and film producer.
Fenech moved from Nice to Rome in 1967 for her first Italian film “Samoa, regina della giungla” by Guido Malatesta. In 1968, she came under contract with Austrian director Franz Antel and from the late 1960s to early 1970s, she acted in various films of Antel (including his acclaimed “Frau Wirtin” series) as well as Franz Marischka’s.
Fenech starred in many genres of cinema but her greatest commercial success came with ‘commedia sexy all’italiana’ films, particularly including earlier works “Ubalda, All Naked and Warm” and “Giovannona Long-Thigh,” as well as the following: “l’insegnante” (school teacher), “la soldatessa” (soldier), “la poliziotta” (policewoman) series and other films that featured Fenech in stereotypical professions, which further bolstered Fenech’s position as the most popular actress of the genre. She often paired with Carlo Giuffrè and later with Renzo Montagnani in commedia sexy films.
Fenech was also a regular in ‘giallo’ films. Her works in this genre include “Five Dolls for an August Moon,” “The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh,” “Your Vice Is a Locked Room” and “Only I Have the Key,” “All the Colors of the Dark,” “The Case of the Bloody Iris,” and “Strip Nude for Your Killer.”
In the 1980s, she became a television personality, typically appearing with Barbara Bouchet on a chat show on Italian television.
After many years of work in movie production, she produced, among others, “The Merchant of Venice” (2004) with Al Pacino, and Fenech accepted Quentin Tarantino’s offer to star in another movie, “Hostel: Part II.”
Fenech was born to a Maltese father and Sicilian mother. She was married to Italian film producer Luciano Martino from 1971 to 1979. In the mid-1990s, she was engaged to the well-known Italian industrialist Luca di Montezemolo. Her son Edwin, born in 1971, has worked at her production company and also at Ferrari Japan and Ferrari China.
Link to Wikipedia biography