Virna Lisi dead: Italian actress dies, aged 78

The screen actress worked with Frank Sinatra and Tony Curtis

Virna Lisi has died aged 78.

The Italian actress rose to fame in the Sixties, when she appeared opposite stars such as Frank Sinatra in Assault on a Queen and Jack Lemmon in How To Murder Your Wife.

She also appeared in Not With My Wife, You Don't alongside Tony Curtis.

Lisi cut ties with Paramount in the Sixties, after becoming concerned that she was being typecast as a dumb blonde. She rejected the chance to play the lead in Roger Vadim's classic Barbarella, which was eventually played by Jane Fonda.

She then took a break from acting during the Seventies and returned to Europe, but went onto win best actress at Cannes for 1994 French historical epic La Reine Margot.

In 2004, she was given an honorary Italian Globe in 2004 for her cinematic achievements.

She is survived by a son, Corrado Pesci, and three grandchildren.