filming_location cavalleria rusticana 
Cavalleria rusticana ( 1953 ) is a 3 - D Italian drama film directed by Carmine Gallone . The film is based on the opera Cavalleria rusticana and stars May Britt , Anthony Quinn , Ettore Manni and Kermia . Quinn plays Alfio , miming to the voice of Tito Gobbi . Giovanni Targioni - Tozzetti ( ___MASK81___ March 186330 May 1934 ) was an Italian librettist , best known for his friendship and collaboration with the composer Pietro Mascagni . Most of his libretti were written in collaboration with Guido Menasci . Chivalry , or the chivalric code , is a code of conduct associated with the medieval institution of knighthood which developed between 1170 and 1220 . The ideals of chivalry were popularized in medieval literature , especially the Matter of Britain and Matter of ___MASK99___ , the former based on Geoffrey of Monmouth ' s " Historia Regum Britanniae " which introduced the legend of King Arthur , written in the 1130s . Lion of the Desert is a 1981 Libyan historical action film starring Anthony Quinn as Libyan tribal leader Omar Mukhtar , a Bedouin leader fighting the " Regio Esercito " ( Italian Royal Army ) in the years leading up to World War II , and Oliver Reed as Italian General Rodolfo Graziani , who attempted to defeat Mukhtar . It was directed by Moustapha Akkad and funded by the government under Colonel Muammar Gaddafi . Released in May 1981 , the film was liked by critics and audiences but performed poorly financially , bringing in just $ 1 million net worldwide . . The film was banned in ___MASK15___ in 1982 and was only shown on pay TV in 2009 . Tito Gobbi ( ___MASK33___ October 19135 March 1984 ) was an Italian operatic baritone with an international reputation . Liguria (]) is a coastal region of north - western ___MASK15___ ; its capital is Genoa . The region is popular with tourists for its beaches , towns and cuisine . Cavalleria rusticana ( Italian for " rustic chivalry ") is an opera in one act by Pietro Mascagni to an Italian libretto by Giovanni Targioni - Tozzetti and Guido Menasci , adapted from a play and short story written by Giovanni Verga . Considered one of the classic " verismo " operas , it premiered on ___MASK81___ May 1890 at the Teatro Costanzi in ___MASK96___ . Since 1893 , it has often been performed in a so - called " Cav / Pag " double - bill with " Pagliacci " by Ruggero Leoncavallo . Carmine Gallone ( ___MASK44___ September 1885 in Taggia , Liguria , ___MASK15___  ___MASK48___ April 1973 in Frascati , ___MASK15___ ) was an early acclaimed Italian film director , screenwriter , and film producer . Considered one of Italian cinema ' s top early directors , he directed over 120 films in his fifty - year career between 1913 and 1963 . Frascati is a town and " comune " in the Metropolitan City of ___MASK96___ in the Lazio region of central Italy . It is located south - east of ___MASK96___ , on the Alban Hills close to the ancient city of Tusculum . Frascati is closely associated with science , being the location of several international scientific laboratories . Guido Menasci ( ___MASK33___ March 1867  27 December 1925 ) was an Italian opera librettist . May Britt ( born ___MASK94___ March 1934 ) is a Swedish actress who had a brief career in the 1950s in Italy and later in the United States . She paused from the screen while she was married to Sammy Davis , Jr . from 1960 - 68 . Pietro Antonio Stefano Mascagni ( ___MASK45___ December 1863  2 August 1945 ) was an Italian composer most noted for his operas . His 1890 masterpiece " Cavalleria Rusticana " caused one of the greatest sensations in opera history and single - handedly ushered in the " Verismo " movement in Italian dramatic music . While it was often held that Mascagni , like Leoncavallo , was a " one - opera man " who could never repeat his first success , " L ' amico Fritz " and " Iris " have remained in the repertoire in Europe ( especially Italy ) since their premieres . Mascagni said that at one point , " Iris " was performed in Italy more often than " Cavalleria " ( cf . Stivender ). Giovanni Carmelo Verga ( ___MASK11___ September 1840  27 January ___MASK56___ ) was an Italian realist (" Verismo ") writer , best known for his depictions of life in his native ___MASK54___ , and especially for the short story ( and later play ) " Cavalleria Rusticana " and the novel " I Malavoglia " (" The House by the Medlar Tree "). Ruggero ( or Ruggiero ) Leoncavallo ( ___MASK65___ April 18579 August 1919 ) was an Italian opera composer and librettist . Although he produced numerous operas and other songs throughout his career it is his two - act work " Pagliacci " ( 1892 ) that remained his lasting contribution , despite attempts to escape the shadow of his greatest success . ___MASK15___ , officially the Italian Republic , is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe . Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea , ___MASK15___ shares open land borders with ___MASK99___ , Switzerland , ___MASK83___ , Slovenia , San Marino and ___MASK58___ . ___MASK15___ covers an area of and has a largely temperate seasonal climate and Mediterranean climate ; due to its shape , it is often referred to in ___MASK15___ as " lo Stivale " ( the Boot ). With 61 million inhabitants , it is the fourth most populous EU member state . Antonio Rodolfo Quinn Oaxaca ( April ___MASK53___ , 1915  June 3 , 2001 ), more commonly known as Anthony Quinn , was a Mexican - born American actor , painter and writer . He starred in numerous critically acclaimed and commercially successful films , including " La Strada ", " The Guns of Navarone ", " Zorba the Greek ", " Guns for San Sebastian ", " Lawrence of Arabia ", " The Message " and " Lion of the Desert ". He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor twice : for " Viva Zapata !" in 1952 and " Lust for Life " in 1956 . Ettore Manni ( ___MASK70___ May 1927  27 July 1979 ) was an Italian film actor . He appeared in 107 films between 1952 and 1979 . Taggia is a " comune " ( municipality ) in the Province of ___MASK22___ in the Italian region Liguria , located about southwest of Genoa and about west of ___MASK22___ . It has around ___MASK84___ , 000 inhabitants .