The Italian Voice

Tonight I was not able to sleep properly, I did it only for a couple of hours and then I had to stand up to finish what I started yesterday afternoon: the translation and transcription of a sensational interview made two evenings ago by Striscia la Notizia, an Italian famous satirical newscast (which in reality is more serious than the real ones), to the nephew of the Padre Pio’s doctor.

I guess you all know who is Padre Pio, the Italian friar who received stigmata, who has been proclaimed Saint and who has been recently exhumed by the religious authorities.

shot by Darriuss Royce

Tonight I could not sleep because I wanted to finish my important translation and transcription to let you know what that man told at the tv, which really could cause an investigation about the wonderful things which he told about and, I guess, even convert more people than how much the Saint’s life and death already did.

I place here the original video of the interview in Italian, which lasts 7 minutes, and below you can find the whole translation, I hope that you will appreciate my work and that you will leave me your opinions about these incredible news. Enjoy!

Showman: …citizens, because it’s the moment of the exclusive interview to the nephew of the Saint Padre Pio’s doctor; in addition to some unexplainable facts which are about the exhumation of the Saint, we are about to listen to different exstraordinary revelations. Do follow carefully this shoot.

Q: Well, friends of Striscia (“Striscia la Notizia”, editor’s note), today we will tell you about Padre Pio. We are with Alberto Festa, nephew of the doctor Giorgio Festa, the Padre Pio’s doctor for 21 years. Good morning, Alberto.
A: Hello.

Q: You called us because lately..people always spread rumors about Padre Pio, but lately we talk more about him because his body has been exhumed. You called us to tell us something sensational.
A: I noticed a very strange thing.

Q: Yes…
A: In the reliquary where the Padre Pio’s body is placed, it’s very clearly visible that onto the reliquary they places some seals (red rounds, editor’s note). The seals are placed by the authorities of the Vatican, Friars Capuchin, but surely the ones of the Vatican just to seal up (red rounds, editor’s note) something which mustn’t be profaned in time. Here there is also in this quite big photo of the Padre Pio’s sister who pray, then you see…(white rounds, editor’snote).

Q: And also in this photo in black and white you see…(red rounds, editor’s note).
A: The strange thing which I noticed is that at the opening of the Padre Pio’s reliquary at his exhumation, which is called canonical inspection…

Q: There is a plate of zinc…
A: There is a plate of zinc which has been placed onto it. When they removed the plate of zinc - and it is clearly visible - uncannily you can not see the seals anymore. It is clearly visible, these seals (white rounds, editor’s note) are not present, in any way! In addition this is the official photo.

Q: And let’s talk about these books. Are they abducted?
A: Yes, i.e. this is a book which at the beginning was labeled by the Vatican. This book is of the 1933 (entitled “Among the misteries of the Science and the lights of the Faith” by Giorgio Festa, editor’s note), when a few people knew who was Padre Pio.

Q: And…what you can find in this book?
A: In this book there is a fact which is well-know not really by everybody, but..let’s say..surely by the experts about Padre Pio, that is that my uncle operated Padre Pio twice. He operated him in quite particular circumstances because he operated him into his cell, into the cell n°5, which was used as operating room without any kind of anaesthesia because Padre Pio refused the anaesthesia, also the topical one.

Q: What kind of…?
A: The first operation, which was the most important one, was due to peritonitis with complications of hernias, so it was a quite complicated operation because it also had some complications, etc. (white rounds, editor’s note). I repeat, this scenario suggests some hypothesis: could the Padre Pio’s body be moved? I tell that do not know it, but I say another thing, that there would be a proof, that is my uncle operated him…onto this Padre Pio’s body…

Q: There would be…
A: The signs must be visible…

Q: The scars…
A: They found also signs of operations also onto the mummies, so..

Q: So, theories…
A: In theory the proof would be present, now..

Q: Exact, so you say that, if the corpse has been moved somewhere else, the corpse that they found at the opening of reliquary could be another one.
A: I repeat, I do not know it, I can not affirm it.

Q: The theory is that, you told me with the cameras off, that (the body, editor’s note) could be moved even at the Vatican..?!
A: This are rumors which are spreading for several years, which surely does not come from me but, among the different hypothesis which I heard, they said also this one.

Q: You inherited a lot of objects from Padre Pio: the first glove, the lints of the operation…(relics in the frame, editor’s note)
A: Yes, a lot of objects.

Q: Very important objects, but we know that you also have a letter from Padre Pio.
A: Yes.

Q: Could you tell us about it?
A: Yes, I tell about it in complete way..finally..after long time, about which there has been a big misinformation and also, I must tell the truth, they created a ponderous journalistic and television censorship.

Q: It is ok. Now we have the chance in this moment to talk about this letter.
A: Great. Finally, finally.

Q: Ok. Can we see it?
A: Yes. This letter is a letter written by Padre Pio on March 20th, 1968, that was a few months before his death (red round, editor’s note), and it is the content which is, for me, the one which is absolutely shocking, it can be defined a spiritual testament of the friar.

Q: Do we want to read it?
A: Well, the letter is addressed to the Father Cristoforo Arrigo from Vico del Gargano and the letter quotes:-”Brother, God calls me and I put in your hands the remains which humble secrets which were given to me by faithful Christians to deliver: to Father Fortunato from Serra Capriola the bowl which, with its water, wet our Lord’s lips onto the Calvary; to Mr Manuelino, approached to the sacred altar, the lamp which enlightened the path of the Christians at the Colosseum; for you I give the little greek jar of the Apostle Peter, kept secret in me, because God’s present to my father and witness of the immense light, hold it for the poor ones in faith“.
Vice versa, I think that these poor ones in faith do not know nothing at all about this story, but not for my will, which is exactly the contrary but, I want to tell it, for the religious authorities’ will, who did not want in any way to let people talk about this story.
He gives objects which are strictly linked to Jesus Christ! The bowl which wet the Lord’s lips onto the Calvary! The jar of the Apostle Peter containing the God’s immense light!
That is..the God’s immense light in the Christianity, if you allow me…

Q: I am sorry, we’re talking about the Holy Grail…?!
A: This is what several people claim, I can not do this statement, but if you want my own opinion…

Q: Can I turn it?
A: This would be the object (little jar, editor’s note) that Padre Pio enclosed to this letter.

Q: I am sorry, Alberto. Now, we..the tv audience at home..in this moment I jump onto the chair and also the tv audience at home because, if all this would be true, you tell me that anyway this letter has received assessments, there are some assessments and the object is actually that one…
A: Yes, well, I immediately tell you.

Q: I do not know, we take everything cautiously.
A: I take it upon myself about what I am telling, but I really take it upon myself, because I show you two things. There is a report of 60 pages of the doctor Brown, who affirms absolutely (red round, editor’s note) that there is no doubt that this letter has been written by Padre Pio. But there is something more, because there is also the assessment by the doctor De Rossi, in which he claims that this object is placeable in the Roman period, that is about 2000 years old. I do not need absolutely notoriety for this thing. What I am interested in is that the Padre Pio’s devotees know that this thing exists and that…

Q: Clear.
A: …the authority does not want that this thing be revealed, they do not want..for what reason?

Q: Why?
A: You do not have to ask it to me.

Q: Did you also receive menaces, did not you?
A: Yes. I received menaces also for physical retaliation.

Q: Ok. I shake hands with you. If all this would be true…who knows?!
[Jimmy Ghione, Striscia la Notizia, Rome]

You know that I am going to move to another region of Italy. In these days I am deciding what to carry at the new flat and what not.
After deep considerations, I must admit that I am very tempted to leave the tv, especially after this last year; in fact, thanks to internet which appears to be free, at least until now, I discovered that the Italian citizens are strongly manipulated by the media which tell wrong news and systematically catch the truth.
Together with this temptation, I am wondering how could I do without my favourite tv serials, shows and documentaries, I could find them online, but yep…unfortunately I am a victim of the idiot box like many others.
So I really guess that I will carry it at the new flat, also because my parents want to change it and they would give us their old tv (which in reality is not old at all).
In this way, I will be able to follow my favourite tv programs and even to record them if I will not be home at those moments, yippee (later I will write an apposite entry about the Italian tv’s system)!!

Anyway, these thoughts today forced me to think about what it is worth the while for me at the tv in this period and I realized that there is something which I really appreciate from its very beginning.
What do you think about if I tell you that is “an enlarged family of 7, facing life in the typical Roman way (and accent)”?
Sure, they are “I Cesaroni” (which sounds like a typical Roman last name)!!

The tv serial “I Cesaroni” was inspired by the one called “Los Serrano” which was conceived for a Mediaset’s Spanish format and produced by Telecinco and Globomedia and I can add that the both the Italian and the Spanish versions had a big success.

Unfortunately the characters are written only in Italian in the dedicated page on Wikipedia, maybe soon I will translate the page in English and I will let you know; anyway, you can also visit the official website , even if it is in Italian as well.
To discover the story, you can basically know that:

- Giulio Cesaroni (actor: Claudio Amendola) is thehead of household, prototipe of the real Roman; he owns a bar called Bottiglieria Garbatella in the homonym quarter with his brother Cesare; widower of Marta with 3 boys, Marco, Rudy and Mimmo; after several years alone he met Lucia, her favourite woman of his youth and decided to marry her;
- Lucia Liguori (actress: Elena Sofia Ricci): ex wife of a rich and snob businessman called Sergio, teacher at the junior high school, relocated in Rome which was her hometown, mother of 2 girls, Eva and Alice.

Elena Sofia Ricci and Claudio Amendola in “I Cesaroni”

The events revolve around this couple, facing the daily problems of an enlarged family, first of all during the period of acquaintance of the respective families (Giulio Cesaroni with his 2 sons and Lucia Liguori with her 2 daughters, but also the other relatives, such as Giulio’s brother and Lucia’s mother, and even with their friends’ family and the neighbours), then during the cohabitation, which results to be forced for the young ones and it ends up even that the older sons of both of the parents fall in love, pressed upon the doubt if it is right to show their own feelings or if it is better to because they are stepbrothers.

Matteo Branciamore and Alessandra Mastronardi in “I Cesaroni”
play the role of the old sons, respectively of Marco and Eva

I am sure that this wonderful success of “I Cesaroni” was and is still due to the genuineness of the performing and of the story itself, because this tv serial shows the reality of a typical Roman family dealing with the daily problems caused by a wedding between two adults who already had children.
It is true because it really happens everywhere and, in addition, the Roman characters contribute to have fondness for them because of their typical way of speaking, of thinking and of acting.
The 2nd season is just finished at the tv, but in this period the cast is already busy with the recording of the new one and the producers announced even a movie at the cinema for the 2009.

You can watch some videos on Youtube about this enlarged family, simply type the word “cesaroni ” in the search bar and you will find clips, mosaics and even songs of the tv serial which are sang really by the actor and singer Matteo Branciamore who plays the role of the older boy Marco.
Just for fun, I wish you a nice prosecution of weekend with a couple of videos about “I Cesaroni”, enjoy and see you later!

The theme song of the 2nd season of “I Cesaroni”

Funny clip of the enlarged family of “I Cesaroni” and friends