Pier Francesco Pingitore

Pier Francesco Pingitore (born 27 September 1934) is an Italian director, screenwriter, playwright and author, and co-founder of Il Bagaglino theatre company.

Early life
Pier Francesco Pingitore was born on 27 September 1934 in Catanzaro.

Career
Pingitore started his career as a journalist.

In 1965, with Mario Castellacci, Luciano Cirri, and Piero Palumbo, he co-founded "Il Bagaglino" theatre company (originally named "Bragaglino" as a tribute to Anton Giulio Bragaglia) in Rome. After local success, from 1973 the stage company gained success on television with the RAI variety show Dove sta Zazà? and with its numerous successor shows. Other members of the company included Leo Gullotta.

In 1966, Pingitore released the song "Avanti ragazzi di Buda".

In 1968, Pingitore made his film debut directing a documentary about the protests of the European youth. From 1975 to 1983 and again in 1992 he wrote and directed a series of satirical comedies starring Pippo Franco along with several members of Il Bagaglino, targeting various aspects of Italian society including political scandals, football, school, and the music industry.

Honours
In 2020, it was announced that Pingitore would be awarded the Knight's Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit for writing "Avanti ragazzi di Buda".