Word: annunzio
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...Annunzio, by Anthony Rhodes. An entertaining biography of the fabulous Italian poet-soldier, whose antics intoxicated Italy with blood, glory and poppycock, and did much to prepare the nation for the grim Mussolini hangover...
...Casanova role, D'Annunzio seemed at his most laughable-as was demonstrated by his celebrated affair with Actress Eleonora Duce. For once, his histrionics met their match; when she found another woman's hairpins in his guest room, she threatened to burn down his villa "because the temple has been profaned. Flame alone can purify it." But there was nothing preposterous about the poet when he left his muse and Duse to go to the wars. In 1915 D 'Annunzio was living on his fame in Paris, a revered symbol of Italy's risorgimento. but also...
...time, all Europe seemed to have accepted D'Annunzio's cruel philosophy, but he was at least willing to pay a Cinna's price and be torn for his bad verses. He survived 50 actions and almost as many uniforms-for the poet used his prestige to transform himself at will into a cavalry lieutenant, an infantry officer, a combat airman, and he conferred on himself the navy title of comandante. He lost the sight of one eye landing his aircraft and sank a merchantman from a torpedo boat. To the end he remained the most bellicose...
...been D'Annunzio's rant and rave that prepared the way for Mussolini. But after he took power in 1922. the warrior poet lived out his life as the chief object of interest in a museum full of works of art. historic relics and junk. He died in 1938. not long before World War II brought Italy "the fountains of blood and tears" the poet had promised, and history made its final savage exegesis of his life-work-the butchered bodies of Mussolini and his mistress strung up by the heels...
...some time before the poet's death, mercifully perhaps, D'Annunzio had been slightly mad. Mussolini and the poet's neglected widow were the chief mourners...