Interview with Giancolombo            

The Trick of the Romanov Wedding

Along came the so-called "Wedding of the Century" - as newspapers labelled it: "The overseen wedding in Cannes in 1952, between Florentine Countess Sveva Della Gherardesca and Russian Prince Nicola Romanoff".

Nicholas was progeny of Czar Nicholas I and cousin of the last Czar, Nicholas II, murdered during the revolution of 1917. Giancolombo was in Cannes with the journalist Luigi Vacchi, who had not good news for him: the wedding would take place in the Russian local church and none of the photographers had been allowed to enter. For Giancolombo it was just like a challenge. The action plan was soon ready and rather audacious: he would have disguise pretending to be a member of the high society.

"I rent a morning suit with a top hat in the best Cannes shop. I borrow a dozen false and sparkling decorations from a theatre and last but not least, I rented a suitable car: a Hispano Suiza lined with leopard skin". Perfect. Vacchi played along with him: he wore the uniform, a chauffeur hat and white gloves - because details in high society always make the difference. "We arrived in front of the church a quarter of hour before the beginning of the ceremony. And Vacchi, perfectly into the role, got out the car, took the hat off, and bowing stylishly opened the door to me". The police didn’t understand anything, and neither tried to. All was studied in slightest details to avoid any suspicion. "How could they imagine that under the top hat I had a camera, a Rolleiflex?"           

Not even the chamberlain on duty had the minimum doubt. Giancolombo was exactly as he should appear. In that dignified and noble self-control he was introduced in the church, amongst the other guests. Colleague photographers recognized him from behind the barriers and started to dissent, but the police worked over - as a newspaper of the time tells - and hardly, as well.

"But the undercover wasn’t found out. Then the bridegrooms arrived and the gates were locked to start the ceremony ". That was the moment: away the top hat and out the camera.

The flashes started, several and fast because in any moment he could be thrown out and the films confiscated. But incredibly it didn’t happen.

"Bridegrooms smiled, the security didn’t intervene, and the guests continued to follow the wedding as if it were nothing".    

 

              

That was over it: Giancolombo remained until the end, he took shots over and over, and then he went away. The thing could not be appreciated by the other photographers crammed behind the barriers outside the church. But the hit had been too audacious and amusing to be deprecated from the competing colleagues, who obviously transformed his exploit in the news of the day. "Newspapers gave more space to me than to the chronicle of the ceremony itself ". Complete with the portrait of Giancolombo, smiling and satisfied, in morning suit besides the limousine.

 

             

 

Conclusions