There is a town in Italy where more than half the population is called Tucci. For actor Stanley Tucci, who accompanies his elderly parents to his ancestral homeland in Calabria, southern Italy, it was “very emotional”.
The Tucci family made a “pilgrimage” to the town of Marzi, tucked away at the tip of Italy’s boot, in one of the latest episodes of CNN’s “Searching for Italy.”
It was the first time the actor and his parents had visited the city since he was 12, the actor says.
Tucci, a common name in this corner of Italy
“It was very emotional,” Stanley Tucci said: “You know, my dad is 92, my mom is 86, and they never thought they’d ever walk again and see those people, and we managed to make it happen. They felt very good, it was very emotional.”
During the show, the Tucci family wanders the streets of Marzi – some of which are named after other Tuccis – in search of the home of their grandfather, Stanislaw Tucci. Tucci’s father, also named Stanley, had difficulty remembering the exact location, and the “hunt” was also made more difficult by the fact that Tucci is a common name in this corner of Italy.
“More than half the population of Marzi has the same name as us”
“As it turns out, being a Tucci isn’t that remarkable here,” Tucci recounts in the episode that will air on CNN Sunday night: “More than half the population of Marzi has the same name as us, which turns out to be a big problem as my father wants to find his father’s house”.
Tucci stated that he was not sure that he had found the true ancestral home.