Antonio Margheriti

• Name — Antonio Margheriti • Born — 19 September 1930 • Birthplace — Rome, Kingdom of Italy • Died — 4 November 2002 • Place of death — Monterosi, Italy • Other Names — Anthony M. Dawson Antony Daisies • Occupation — Film director screenwriter

Antonio Margheriti was born in Rome on 19 September 1930. Margheriti was the son of a railroad engineer and began his film career in 1950 working with Mario Serandrei. He then began making short documentaries beginning with Vecchia Roma in 1953. In 1954, Margheriti was credited with special effects in films such as Pino Mercanti's I cinque dell'Adamello and La notte che la terra tremo. By 1955 he was credited in screenplays such as Classe di ferro.

Margheriti grew up reading science fiction comics, and when he was offered the film Assignment: Outer Space, he signed on as director. Being required to use an Anglo-Saxon pseudonym so the film could be sold internationally, he chose Anthony Daisies, a rough translation of his real name. However, he was later told that the name was unsuitable for the American market because in the United States, "Daisies" could be interpreted as having homosexual undertones. He then changed it to "Anthony Dawson", being unaware of the British actor of the same name. To avoid any confusion, he had to change again his pseudonym to "Anthony M. Dawson". Margheriti followed up his first film with Battle of the Worlds starring actor Claude Rains, which was in turn followed by The Golden Arrow with Tab Hunter and some more peplum-style films such as The Fall of Rome and Giants of Rome. Other genres tackled in the 1960s included horror—Castle of Blood, The Long Hair of Death and The Virgin of Nuremberg and the Eurospy films: Bob Fleming... Mission Casablanca and Operazione Goldman. Margheriti then returned to science fiction with his Gamma I series, originally filmed for the Italian television series Fantascienza but afterwards released theatrically. Margheriti followed these films with some westerns, including Take a Hard Ride and And God Said to Cain. In the 1980s, Margheriti created films following the success of Platoon and Raiders of the Lost Ark, such as The Last Hunter and Hunters of the Golden Cobra, which both starred David Warbeck. Warbeck also starred in Tiger Joe, a film overshadowed by tragedy when Margheriti's long time cinematographer, Riccardo Pallottini, died in a plane crash while attempting to get the film's last shot. He delved into the genre of films inspired by The Wild Geese with Code Name: Wild Geese and Commando Leopard starring Lewis Collins as well as Conan the Barbarian (1982) with Yor, the Hunter from the Future, which was shot in Turkey and was picked up by Columbia Pictures for an American release to 1400 theaters. Margheriti died on 4 November 2002.

Margheriti's specialty in films was low budget efforts that fell into genres such as action and science fiction. To make films in short amounts of time, Margheriti applied techniques such as shooting with several cameras simultaneously, allowing him to record master shots, close-ups, and more. This often led him to light films very carefully, and allowed him to create several films per year.

• Note: The films listed as N/A are not necessarily chronological. • Title — Year — Credited as — Notes — Ref(s) Reference(s) • Director — Screenwriter — Screen story writer — Other • Assignment: Outer Space — 1960 • Battle of the Worlds — 1961 • 1962 • 1963 • Castle of Blood — 1964 • Devil of the Desert Against the Son of Hercules • Hercules, Prisoner of Evil • Giants of Rome • Wild, Wild Planet — 1966 • Lightning Bolt • 1968 • 1969 — Producer • 1970 • 1971 • Treasure Island — 1972 • 1973 • Rudeness — 1975 • Death Rage — 1976 • The Rip-Off — 1978 • 1980 • Cannibal Apocalypse — 1980 • Car Crash — 1981 • Yor, the Hunter from the Future — 1983 • Tornado: The Last Blood — 1983 • Code Name: Wild Geese — 1984 • Jungle Raiders — 1985 • Presentimento • Classe di ferro • Gambe d'oro • Promesse di marinaio • Roulotte e roulette • Solitudine • War of the Planets • Bob Fleming... Mission Casablanca • Dynamite Joe • Io ti amo • Vengeance • Mr. Superinvisible • House of 1000 Pleasures • Novelle galeotte d'amore dal Decamerone • Mr. Hercules Against Karate • Manone il ladrone • Fantasma en el Oeste • Hunters of the Golden Cobra • Tiger Joe • Commando Leopard • Alien degli abissi • Indio • Indio 2 - La rivolta