Wanda Osiris

David Traversa
I don't know why, Wanda Osiris came to my mind remembering her in "La strada", playing the character living next door to Gelsomina's shack --she was that awesome presence of a large woman dressed in a loose wraparound standing on high platform shoes-- and Gelso's nightly companion in their search for sex clients in the Rome slums. Anybody remembers her? She called my atention a few days ago when in an italian new film, one of the characters mentions her as if she was a dayly acquaintance that everybody should know about.
But looking at her filmography, she only appeared in five or six films..., that goes back a long time..., and I was surprised that they don't include her appearance in "La strada".
I suppose one could say that she could have been the personification of "Fat is beautiful", as very few fat people could fit that denomination.
Her screen persona was that of a very warm and sensible tramp, although her looks could be quite intimidating. Almodovar would've loved her. She came close in looks to Divine, but in her case no sex change was involved.