ROME – Raffaele La Capria, one of the most significant figures of late 20^th century Italian literature, died on Monday evening at the Santo Spirito hospital, his family said.

 The award-winning novelist was born in Naples in 1922 and lived in Rome from 1950, after spending extended amounts of time in France, England, and America. 

 His most famous work “Ferito a morte”, a testimony of the Neapolitan and Italian 1950’s, won Italy’s most prestigious award, the Strega Prize in 1961, and is now considered by many critics to be a classic of Italian literature. 

 He also received the Campiello Prize (2001), the Chiara Prize (2002), the Alabarda d’Oro Prize (2011), and the Brancati Prize (2012). 

  Naples was always at the heart of his works, a city he was enamoured with, as he sought to examine its vices and virtues. La Capria left his will to Neopolitans and to Naples, as a last tribute to the city. 

 As well as writing fiction, he was also a journalist and worked for “Il Mondo”, “Tempo presente” and “Corriere della Sera”, and from 1990 was the co-director for the literary magazine “Nuovi Argomenti.” 

 Alongside director Francesco Rosi, he co-wrote the film “Le mani sulla città” in 1963, which won the Leone d’Oro at the Venice Film Festival. He also collaborated with director, Lina Wertmüller on the screenplay for the film “Ferdinand and Carolina” in 1999.

 His other novels include: “Un giorno d'impazienza" (1952), "Amore e psiche" (1973), "La neve del Vesuvio" (1988), "L'amorosa inchiesta" (2006); saggi, quali "Letteratura e salti mortali" (1990), "L'occhio di Napoli" (1994), "La mosca nella bottiglia" (1996), "Napolitan Graffiti" (1998), “Lo stile dell'anatra” (2001), and the essay-interview "Me visto da lui stesso. Interviste 1970-2001 sul mestiere di scrivere" (2002) on the craft of writing. 

He has also translated plays by authors such as Jean-Paul Sartre, Jean Cocteau, TS Eliot, George Orwell.

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