Bud Spencer

Bud Spencer
Spencer in June 2015
Born	Carlo Pedersoli (1929-10-31)31 October 1929 Naples, Italy
Died	27 June 2016(2016-06-27) (aged 86) Rome, Italy
Other names	Bud Spencer
Occupation	Actor Professional swimmer Water polo
Years active	1951–2010
Height	194 cm (6 ft 4 in)
Spouse(s)	Maria Amato (m. 1960–2016)
Children	3

Carlo Pedersoli

Carlo Pedersoli in 1950
Personal information
National team	Italy
Born	(1929-10-31)31 October 1929 Naples, Italy
Died	27 June 2016(2016-06-27) (aged 86) Rome
Height	1.92 m (6.3 ft)
Weight	125 kg (276 lb)
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Strokes	Freestyle, water polo
Club	Società Sportiva Lazio Nuoto

Carlo Pedersoli (31 October 1929 – 27 June 2016), professionally known as Bud Spencer, was an Italian actor, professional swimmer and water polo player. He is known for action-comedy roles with his long-time film partner Terence Hill. The duo "garnered world acclaim and attracted millions to theater seats". Spencer and Hill appeared in, produced and directed over 20 films together.

A successful swimmer in his youth, he obtained a degree in law and registered several patents. Spencer also became a certified commercial airline and helicopter pilot, and supported and funded many children's charities, including the Spencer Scholarship Fund.

Son of Alessandro Pedersoli and Rosa Facchetti, Carlo Pedersoli was born on 31 October 1929 in Santa Lucia, a historical rione in Naples and in the same building as the writer Luciano De Crescenzo. Pedersoli started school in 1935, along with De Crescenzo. He played several sports and showed an aptitude for swimming, winning prizes. In 1940, due to his father's work, he moved to Rome, where he attended high school and joined a swimming club. He finished school before his seventeenth birthday with the highest marks and enrolled at Sapienza University of Rome, where he studied chemistry. In January 1947, the family moved to South America and Pedersoli discontinued his studies. From 1947 to 1949, he worked in the Italian consulate in Recife, Brazil, where he learned fluent Portuguese.

Pedersoli returned to Italy in 1949 to play water polo in Rome for Società Sportiva Lazio Nuoto and won the Italian swimming championships in freestyle and mixed relay teams. As a professional swimmer in his youth, Spencer was the first Italian to swim the 100 m freestyle in less than one minute when on 19 September 1950 he swam the distance in 59.5 s in Salsomaggiore. In 1949 he made his international debut and a year later he was called up for the European championships in Vienna where he swam in two finals, finishing fifth in the 100 m and fourth in the relay 4 × 200 m.