George Ardisson

Giorgio Ardisson (31 December 1931 – 11 December 2014), often credited as best known as George Ardisson, was an Italian actor. He was known as a leading man of sword-and-sandal and Eurospy films of the 1960s.

Ardisson was born in the Rocca Canavese municipality of Turin in 1931. His father was a native of Piedmont and his mother was from Calabria. Moving to Rome in 1959, he debuted in a minor role in Mauro Bolognini's comedy film You're on Your Own. His athletic build and classically-handsome appearance made him a popular casting choice for sword-and-sandal (peplum) films, he notably co-starred in Mario Bava's Hercules in the Haunted World and Erik the Conqueror (both 1961), playing the title role in the latter.

Ardisson gained a huge success playing Agent 3S3 in the eurospy films Agent 3S3: Passport to Hell and Agent 3S3, Massacre in the Sun. According to director Sergio Sollima, he was chosen for this role thanks to his physical appearance that made him credible as American.

Later, Ardisson starred in several more spy films and spanned different genres, including Spaghetti Westerns and horror films. In an interview, he stated he turned down several leading roles because he wanted to play more challenging parts. Though his later career was largely relegated to low-budget B and Z movies, one of his more notable roles was in Moroccan director Souheil Ben-Barka's anti-apartheid drama Amok (1983).

In 2010, he was the guest of honor at the 10th Annual Piedmont Movie Festival.

A long time resident of the Cerveteri area of Rome, Ardisson died there at the age of 82 on 11 December 2014, after a long illness.