**Pupella Maggio** (1910-1999) was an Italian actress, known for her profound expressiveness and her ability to embody complex female characters. Hailing from the theatre, where she trod the boards with Eduardo De Filippo, her film career experienced a significant flourishing in her maturity.

Specializing in character roles, she brought to life figures of Mediterranean mothers, grandmothers, and matriarchs, often fragile but endowed with extraordinary strength and dignity. Among her most memorable performances are those of Pasqualino's mother in Lina Wertmüller's *Pasqualino Settebellezze* (1975), the blind grandmother in Giuseppe Tornatore's *Nuovo Cinema Paradiso* (1988), and the artist's mother in *Life Lessons*, an episode of Martin Scorsese's *New York Stories* (1989). Her style, always authentic and vibrant, earned her a prominent place in the Italian acting landscape.