Italian presenter Fabrizio Frizzi passes away

Fabrizio Frizzi, one of the most famous Italian television presenters for the last 30 years, passed away on Sunday.

Frizzi, 60, was presenting Rai Uno’s L’Eredita until last Saturday. 

His family confirmed his passing in a note signed by his wife Carotta, his brother Fabio and his family

"Thanks Fabrizio for all the love you have given us," the note said. "With Fabrizio he leaves a piece of us, our history, our daily life." 

Frizzi died during the night at the Sant-Andrea hospital in Rome, after suffering a cerebral haemorrhage, after having been sick for some time. In October 2017, Frizzi  had had ischemia during the recording of an episode of  L'Eredità. He had been admitted to Policlinico Umberto I of Rome for a few days and had returned to lead L'Eredità in December . He said he was ill and would talk about his illness if he could get well.

Last February, when he turned 60, Frizzi said, "It's not over yet. If I recover, I will tell everything in detail, because I will become a witness to the research. Now it's the research that's helping me."

Born in Rome in 1958, Frizzi began his career in 1980, to host children's programmes like Il barattolo and Tandem.

"Un dolore immenso.
Con #FabrizioFrizzi scompare un uomo straordinario: un pezzo di noi, della nostra storia, del nostro quotidiano”https://t.co/oIEuciLNfO#Rai pic.twitter.com/IaywwETvzz

— Ufficio Stampa Rai (@Raiofficialnews) March 26, 2018

He later hosted several successful TV-programmes, including  Scommettiamo Che, I fatti vostri, Luna Park, Europa Europa, Domenica In and 15 editions of Miss Italia.

In April 2014, Frizzi became the third host of the Italian game show L'eredità, replacing the departing Carlo Conti. The pair then co-hosted the show from there on out until October 2016, when Frizzi became solo presenter. In 2015, he was appointed Commendatore della Repubblica by President of the Italian Republic, Giorgio Napolitano.

He was also the official Italian voice of Woody the Cowboy, one of the main characters in Pixar's famous Toy Story franchise.

Frizzi was previously married to fellow television presenter Rita Dalla Chiesa, ten years his senior. He later married his second wife, the nearly 25 years younger TV presenter Carlotta Mantovan, whom he had known during the 2001 selections of Miss Italia.