This year's Rodolfo Valentino award for male glamour has been claimed by 39-year-old Armani supermodel Fabio Mancini, long a star on international catwalks.
    The award named after original Latin Lover Rudolph Valentino will be presented Sunday at the Valentino Museum in the Hollywood silent era icon's home town of Castellaneta in Puglia.
    To mark the centenary of the death at the age of 31 of Valentino (1895-1926), the Rodolfo Valentino Foundation has sponsored the "Remembering Rudy Valentino 100 - Grand Gala of the Myth." The event will be held on August 23 (at 9:00 PM) in the open-air municipal theater in Castellaneta, the film star's birthplace.
    Mancini, the Foundation explains, "has also brought the name of Puglia and Castellaneta, his father's hometown, beyond Italy's borders, establishing himself as one of the most esteemed top models in global fashion." Mancini has been "listed among the 10 most influential models in the world for over 20 years, and is an example of professionalism, determination, and elegance." The Foundation's choice was guided not only by Mancini's professional career, but also by "the profound value the top model places on social commitment; through his projects in schools, the promotion of healthy lifestyles, and his support for charitable initiatives, Mancini has demonstrated how fame can be transformed into a tool for spreading positive messages, especially among young people." "Talent, humility, generosity, and a deep connection to his roots: this combination of values makes Fabio Mancini an authentic interpreter of the spirit that inspired Rodolfo Valentino, a man," the statement concludes, "capable of conquering the world, without ever forgetting the land from which he came."
   

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