Alberto Giolitti

Alberto Giolitti was born on November 14, 1923, in Rome, into a family with deep roots in the city — his relatives operated the celebrated Caffè-Gelateria Giolitti, where he worked for a time before pursuing other ambitions. He enrolled in architecture at the University of Rome in 1941 but left when he was called up for military service. His artistic career began in the Italian press, with early illustration work for the Catholic youth publication *Il Vittorioso* during the 1940s.

After World War II, Giolitti spent several years in Argentina working for Buenos Aires publishers Editorial Lainez and Columba before reaching his intended destination, the United States. He quickly became a reliable fixture at Western/Dell Publishing, drawing a wide range of titles — *Turok, Son of Stone*, *Tonto*, *Sergeant Preston of the Yukon*, *Cisco Kid*, *Gunsmoke*, and others. He became an American citizen in 1954.

In 1960, Giolitti returned to Rome with his wife Joan and daughter Sheila, continuing to work for Western's Gold Key imprint on titles including *Star Trek*, *Tarzan of the Apes*, and a *King Kong* adaptation. Two years later he founded Studio Giolitti, a Rome-based art studio managed by Joan that eventually employed up to fifty artists, producing work for American, British, and German publishers alike. In his final years he contributed to the Italian western series *Tex Willer*. He died in Rome on April 15, 1993.