Giulietta Masina; Fellini’s Widow, Star of ‘La Strada,’ ‘Nights of Cabiria’

ROME —  Giulietta Masina, the wife and leading lady of the late movie director Federico Fellini, died Wednesday. She was 74.

Miss Masina was being treated for a tumor at the Columbus Clinic, where she had been admitted in October, the hospital said.

The wide-eyed actress appeared in some of Fellini’s best-known films, including “La Strada,” “The Nights of Cabiria” and “Juliet of the Spirits.”

She returned to the screen in 1985 after an absence of almost 20 years to star with Marcello Mastroianni in Fellini’s “Ginger and Fred.”

Fellini died in October after a stroke, and a badly shaken Miss Masina was hospitalized for exhaustion.

Her best-known role was as Gelsomina, the haunting waif who became the exploited companion of circus strongman Anthony Quinn in “La Strada,” which won the Oscar as best foreign film in 1956.

Miss Masina, born near Bologna, was the daughter of a schoolteacher, and began acting with a university drama group. She got her first break in 1942, starring on an Italian radio show in a play written by Fellini, who was a fellow student.

They were married the following year and remained inseparable until Fellini’s death Oct. 31.

She made her film debut in a bit part in Roberto Rossellini’s “Paisa” in 1946. Two years later, Miss Masina won the Italian critics award as best supporting actress for her role in Alberto Lattuada’s “Without Pity.”

She won the Cannes Film Festival best actress award for her role as a prostitute in “The Nights of Cabiria” in 1956.

Miss Masina is survived by a sister, Mariolina. The funeral was scheduled for today at Rome’s Church of the Artists, news agencies said.