51 Via Margutta

Old movies are new to people who have viewed them for the first time only recently. On the recommendation of friends, I recently saw the movie Roman Holiday when it was broadcast on the Turner Classic Movies network. There were three stars in the movie: Gregory Peck, Audrey Hepburn, and the city of Rome. The well-known plot focuses around Princess Ann (played by Hepburn) from an unnamed country who gets lost one night in Rome and literally falls under the protection of a newspaper reporter, Joe Bradley (played by Peck). Princess Ann does not wish to reveal her status and Joe Bradley tries to conceal his occupation because he needs to secure an exclusive story about the princess. They spend a day experiencing Rome and love intervenes.

In the last six months, I have had the opportunity to visit Rome a couple of times, seeing many of the eternal sites of Rome that appear in the movie. During this last visit, I thought it would be interesting to explore the quiet residential area near the Spanish Steps to find 51 Via Margutta where the fictional reporter Joe Bradley lived in the movie.

Below are a few pictures from a short visit to 51 Via Margutta:


Street sign.



Yours truly in front on the entrance to 51 via Margutta.
When some residents of 51 via Margutta showed up, I asked in poor, broken Italian where Gregory Peck was. The question was sufficient to persuade them to let me and my friends into the 51 via Margutta court yard. This was probably a unique concession to winter visitors. There are probably too many interested people in the summer to be so kind. Below are the steps covered with a viney overhang leading to Joe Bradley’s apartment.




Steps to Joe Bradley’s apartment.
The balcony below was featured in the film when Joe Bradley’s landlord looked askance from it as Joe Bradley loaned money to Princess Ann as she left Bradley’s apartment.




Balcony
Rome is a beautiful city with many sites. This small little corner on via Margutta is one that I will remember because of the hospitality of few Romans.

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