Farewell to Pippo Baudo, the king of Italian television.

His last public appearance was at Pierfrancesco Pingitore's 90th birthday party, where he was smiling despite being in a wheelchair, immortalized in several shots surrounded by many friends. Pippo Baudo, the "king of presenters," died last night at the age of 89. The news, learned by ANSA from sources close to the family, was confirmed by his longtime lawyer and close friend, Giorgio Assumma.

A monument to Italian television, Baudo was born in Militello in Val di Catania on June 7, 1936. A long and distinguished career, he was awarded the honor of Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, the highest recognition, which President Sergio Mattarella presented to him at the Quirinale Palace on September 22, 2021. He is 89 years old and holds many records, such as the historic one of having hosted 13 Sanremo Festivals, five of them consecutive (from 1992 to 1996), like fellow legend Mike Bongiorno and Amadeus. A guest on La tv fa 70, the program hosted by Massimo Giletti on Rai 1 to mark the 70th anniversary of Italian television, Baudo had scolded Amadeus, unwilling to believe that 2024 would truly be his last Festival. History will turn out differently; it is known that Ama will move to Nove, but when he agreed to host his first festival, he ran to Baudo for advice.

Baudo's immense love for music (even for classical opera, he dreamed of being a conductor: "A dream I never managed to realize: I envied the skill of Pippo Caruso, with whom I formed a strong friendship. Conducting so many musicians is truly an indescribable feeling: I only know how to play the piano"), a proverbial flair for spotting talent, from Laura Pausini to Lorella Cuccarini, and a passion for entertainment are some of the traits that made Baudo a legend, or rather, SuperPippo, as he was affectionately known. He had a great regret: "not having worked with Raffaella Carrà," as he emotionally admitted when the showgirl queen of TV died.

Over 150 programs, including Settevoci, Canzonissima, Domenica in, Fantastico, Serata d'onore, Novecento, several films, and even songs written for other artists: "Pippo nazionale" has a career spanning over 60 years and has attracted several generations of artists to his shows. He was also the director of the Catania Stabile. A law graduate and in love with the world of entertainment, he moved to Rome to pursue his dream of the small screen. His debut, legend has it, was by chance on Sunday afternoon in 1966 with Settevoci. It was a springboard. In 1967, he appeared on Sabato Sera with Corrado, Enzo Tortora, and Mike Bongiorno, and in 1968 he had his first of many appearances at Sanremo: he presented with Luisa Rivelli and that same year also hosted Un disco per l'estate, another successful show. Show after show, Baudo became the host par excellence, cultured and courteous.

Canzonissima, Luna Park, countless editions of Domenica In, the beloved festival he dominated for a lifetime between 1968 and 2008, and then Fantastico with debutants Parisi and Cuccarini in the 1980s, the golden years of his golden career, and then Serata d'onore and Novecento, formats often created by him. An exceptional talent scout, he brought to the forefront, among many others, Al Bano, Gigi D'Alessio, Alessandra Martinez, Tosca D'Aquino, Beppe Grillo, the Solenghi-Lopez-Marchesini Trio, Eros Ramazzotti, Barbara D'Urso, Andrea Bocelli, Giorgia, Irene Grandi, Gianluca Grignani, and Anna Tatangelo, but not Fiorello, whom he rejected at an audition and would forever regret. In 1991, his home in Santa Tecla, Sicily, was bombed for having lashed out against the Mafia during a commemoration of Judge Chinnici (fortunately, the villa was empty that night).

In 1986, he even risked an international crisis with Iran during his program "Fantastico 7" (Fantastic Seven) because of a sketch by the trio Lopez, Solenghi, and Marchesini about Ayatollah Khomeini. That same program featured a monologue by then-comedian Beppe Grillo against Craxi, which cost the Ligurian native his exile from RAI. "Fantastico 7" was also a disaster for him: criticized by then-RAI president Enrico Manca, who called Baudo "national-popular," a resentful Pippo moved to the emerging Fininvest, only to terminate his contract the following year, selling his central Rome building to Silvio Berlusconi as a penalty. Baudo explored difficult issues of contemporary history and culture in his programs, giving space to books, theater, and arthouse films, and conducting interviews with writers, directors, and actors (such as Moravia, Fallaci, Arbasino, and Montanelli). Among the anecdotes Pippo recalled over the years, "when Benigni touched my private parts during his monologue at Sanremo. A parliamentarian asked a question saying that it had been sexual assault and that I should file a complaint."

Baudo had five relationships - Mirella Adinolfi (with whom he had Alessandro, recognized after years), Angela Lippi (with whom he had his daughter Tiziana), Alida Chelli, Adriana Russo and Katia Ricciarelli, whom he married in pomp in Catania in 1986 (and from whom he divorced in 2007).

Rai celebrated his 60-year career with Happy Birthday...Pippo in prime time on Rai1 in 2019 with all his colleagues affectionately celebrating him.