Calcata in Rome

Before leaving New York for Rome I had lunch with an Italian friend of mine. He heard that I would be there for Pasquetta (the day after Easter when Italians do something fun like have a picnic or go on a day trip somewhere) offered to put me in contact with his friend that lives outside of Rome. My friend in New York told me that his friend Giovanni was once a big actor around Italy but something happened which I don't quite understand and he fell from fame. Now he is happy and gay and owns a cafe in this little hippy town outside of Rome. I couldn't wait to meet him.

This little hippy town is called Calcata. Not Calcutta. And definitely not cacata. Calcata, once an ancient Etruscan city is now filled with hippies and artists. Within five minutes of being there I saw white person with dreds and got the sense of where I was.

No one has heard of this place besides similar types in Rome. My conservative cousins in Naples had no idea what I was talking about when I told them I went to Calcata. It is not in the guide book and only one bus goes there from an obscure bus stop in the northern part of Rome.

So I get to Calcata on Pasquetta morning and call up this friend-of-a-friend, Giovanni. Within five minutes of meeting him I had his life story. Throughout the day he kept telling me stories of his past fame, which he didn't entirely need to do since I got the idea from all the old newspaper and magazine clippings on his cafe's walls. He talked about how people came to Calcata to see him and how his cafe became famous because of a New York Times article three years ago. He couldn't believe that I hadn't seen the article. I felt like I was on an episode of Surreal Life. I kept thinking Peter Brady or Jordan Knight would pop of a bush.

Giovanni, besides being an actor (and actually a quite good one when I finally saw his movies) is also a talented artist. He completely decorated his house to fit his style. Queens Marie, in all her gaudy and sparkly glory, could never compete with something this intense. It looked like the Gremlins met Rainbow Brite and they had fantastic sex hanging from a chandelier exploded all over the walls. The rooms had a mirrors and chandeliers and carpet that clashed together to give a sense of a warped Italian Renaissance painting. Which made his house the perfect set for a twisted movie.

So Giovanni and I get back to Rome and offers his house for crashing purposes. More specifically he offered his a bed in his walk in closet. Actually more like a mattres in a lightless narrow room. In Rome Giovanni was very different: Calcutta seemed to be some sort of monument to the past while his life in Rome was completely forward moving. He is now a producer/director more than an actor and divides his time between developing his own work, finding work in other projects and staying grounded in what he wants to do. I came to know him as exceedingly sweet and gentle person who for all his quirks has a life not unlike my own. He is hustling everyday to make his vision a reality. When I saw this I felt quite shitty about poking fun at him because the only difference between him and me is that he already had his fifteen minutes of fame and I am still trying to create mine.