January 2019

Sergio Leone on the set of Once Upon a Time in America

Sergio Leone was born on January 3, 1929 in Rome, Italy. His first experiences related to cinema were also as an extra actor but already in the 1940s he started working as an assistant director or director of the second unit, often without being credited, somtimes in major productions such as “Bicycle Thieves”, “Quo Vadis” and “Ben-Hur”, and as a screenwriter.

Sergio Leone died on April 30, 1989 of a heart attack. With a few movies he changed western cinema going far beyond the stereotypes of the genre adding a remarkable realism, up to adding in his last movies also social and political elements that generated some controversy. His legacy is important and remains alive.

Klobiodon rochei fossil (Photo MOS1985)

An article published in the journal “Acta Palaeontologica Polonica” reports the discovery of a new species of pterosaur. Named Klobiodon rochei by paleontologists Michael O’Sullivan and David Martill of the British University of Portsmouth, it was one of the largest known pterosaurs in the Middle Jurassic with a wingspan estimated at around two meters. Despite this, the specimen studied was mistaken for another species and put aside in the 19th century until its examination led to the new classification.