Synopsis

Gregorio Finimondi was the name given to him at the foundling hospice in February 1886. Adopted by a couple from Chiusa Pesio (Cuneo), he had been raised on milk and chestnuts, yet he had grown as strong as a ram. A legendary strength, a courage known to everyone in the village. In 1912, he left for Libya and became a hero. The entire nation cheered him, he was carried in triumph, and girls tore their hair out for him. Then his enthusiasm waned, and he emigrated to Argentina. He did not make his fortune. He returned to his hometown and was called up for military service: it was the First World War. In the trenches, he gave up: he fled, surrendered to the Austrians. No one understood why he did it, but he was captured, tried, and sentenced to life imprisonment. He spent six years in the Portolongone penitentiary, from which he was released following the amnesty of 1921. He married and emigrated to France. He had plenty of determination and a fortune. He opened disreputable clubs, bars, and dance clubs on the French Riviera, mingling with anarchists and policemen. And he became rich. He started a family, became a widower, married a second time, and enjoyed his wealth and offspring. Finally, he died when he decided to do so, in 1969.