Luigi Ornaghi

Luigi Ornaghi (Treviglio, 9 December 1931 - Treviglio, 10 December 2006) was an Italian actor and farmer.

Biography

Born in , a frazione of Treviglio, Ornaghi spent his life working in the fields. He was chosen by Ermanno Olmi to play Batistì, the protagonist of the film The Tree of Wooden Clogs, because the director decided to cast real farmers from . After the film, Ornaghi came back to his work as a farmer.

There were two exceptions: in 1979, when Ornaghi and other actors from The Tree of Wooden Clogs appeared in Ratataplan, in a sort of cameo; the second was in 1995, when he reprised the role of Batistì in a hardcore pornographic version of Olmi’s film, titled L'albero delle zoccole, that drew scathing criticism from Olmi himself.

He continued working as a farmer until his death from a heart attack on 10 December 2006, the day after his 75th birthday, while working in the fields.

Filmography Cinema

1978: The Tree of Wooden Clogs, directed by Ermanno Olmi 1979: Ratataplan, directed by Maurizio Nichetti 1995: L'albero delle zoccole, directed by Leo Salemi