Stories of Italians who left from afar and built the future and innovation
Leading figures of Italian emigration
Amedeo Peter Giannini
Amadeo Peter Giannini was born on May 6, 1870, in San José, California, to Italian immigrant parents seeking a better future in the United States. As part of the great wave of immigration that would transform America, Giannini grew up with a simple yet revolutionary idea for his time: money should serve people, not the […]
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Anthony T. Rossi
Anthony T. Rossi, born Antonio Pasquale Rossi, was born on September 13, 1900, in Messina, Sicily. In 1917, at just 17 years old, he emigrated to the United States, settling in Florida, where he began a new life defined by hard work and entrepreneurial vision. Like many Italian immigrants, he started from modest circumstances but […]
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Edward Re
Edward Domenico Re (1920–2006) was one of the most respected figures in the U.S. judiciary, serving as Senior Judge of the United States Court of International Trade and as a distinguished law professor. Born in Salina, in the Aeolian Islands, he emigrated to the United States at the age of eight with his family, in […]
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Fratelli Materia
The Materia family represents an important chapter in the history of Sicilian emigration to Argentina, particularly in the fishing and industrial sectors. Their story is reconstructed in Roberto Pennisi’s book Italianos en el puerto de Mar del Plata and is notable because it revolves around a figure who, despite never emigrating himself, became the true […]
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Joseph Barbera
Joseph Roland Barbera was born on March 24, 1911, in New York City to parents of Sicilian descent. Raised in Brooklyn, in a working-class neighborhood largely populated by Italian-American families, he grew up immersed in an environment shaped by hard work, humor, and imagination—elements that would later define his creative style. Even before imagining success, […]
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Lee Iacocca
Lido Anthony Iacocca, known to everyone as Lee Iacocca, was born on October 15, 1924, in Allentown, Pennsylvania, to Italian immigrant parents. Raised in a family that deeply understood the value of sacrifice and hard work, Iacocca carried with him throughout his life the pragmatic and determined mindset that would define his career. After World […]
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Lucio Fontana
Lucio Fontana was born on February 19, 1899, in Rosario, Argentina, to Italian parents. The son of the sculptor Luigi Fontana, he grew up in an environment where art was not an abstract concept but a daily practice, rooted in material, gestures, and experimentation. In 1905, he returned to Italy with his family, but his […]
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Manuel Fangio
Juan Manuel Fangio was born on June 24, 1911, in Balcarce, Argentina, into a family of Italian descent. His parents, Loreto Fangio and Herminia D’Ettorre, came from Castiglione a Casauria, in the province of Pescara, bringing with them to South America a culture of hard work, discipline, and perseverance that would profoundly shape their son’s […]
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René Favaloro
René Gerónimo Favaloro was born on July 14, 1923, in La Plata, Argentina, into a family of Italian descent. He grew up in a modest environment where education and social commitment were core values. After earning his medical degree, he initially chose to work as a rural doctor, dedicating years to serving the poorest communities, […]
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Salvatore Ferragamo
Salvatore Ferragamo was born in 1898 in Bonito, a small town in the province of Avellino, Italy. From a young age, he showed an extraordinary passion for shoes and craftsmanship: while other children played, he observed, learned, and experimented. After his initial experience as an apprentice shoemaker in Italy, at just 16 years old, in […]
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