Silvia Monti, an Italian actress who later became known as the wife of industrialist Carlo De Benedetti, died on Aug. 11 in Lugano, Switzerland, after suffering from a neurodegenerative illness. She was 80.
Born Silvia Cornacchia on Jan. 23, 1946, in Bassano del Grappa, in the province of Vicenza, she rose to prominence in 1974 with a role in the Alberto Sordi comedy "Finché c'è guerra c'è speranza". Despite the film's success, she chose to leave acting soon after.
Monti was first married to Count Luigi Donà dalle Rose, the founder of Porto Rotondo, for 25 years before their 1994 divorce. She married De Benedetti on July 10, 1997, and the couple settled in Lugano, where they lived in recent years.