ITALY: THOUSANDS GATHER TO PAY THEIR LAST RESPECTS TO FIAT PATRIARCH GIOVANNI AGNELLI

Record ID: 165752

  • Title: ITALY: THOUSANDS GATHER TO PAY THEIR LAST RESPECTS TO FIAT PATRIARCH GIOVANNI AGNELLI
  • Date: 25th January 2003
  • Summary: (W4) TURIN, ITALY (JANUARY 25, 2003) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1. LV/SLV EXTERIOR OF FIAT'S LINGOTTO FACTORY WITH PEOPLE QUEUING 0.06 2. SLV PEOPLE ENTERING ROOM 0.13 3. SV GIRL SIGNING HER NAME AT ENTRANCE OF ROOM 0.18 4. LV/SLV COFFIN OF GIANNI AGNELLI WITH SOLDIERS STANDING ON SIDES AND THE AGNELLI FAMILY STANDING ON THE LEFT (2 SHOTS) 0.31 5. CU FLOWERS AND SOLDIER 0.35 6. SLV/SV OF PEOPLE PASSING IN FRONT OF COFFIN TO PAY TRIBUTE (2 SHOTS) 0.48 7. SV GIANNI AGNELLI'S BROTHER, UMBERTO, SHAKING HANDS WITH PASSING PEOPLE 0.53 8. SV FIAT'S PRESIDENT PAOLO FRESCO SHAKING HANDS WITH PASSING PEOPLE 0.56 9. SV GIANNI AGNELLI'S SISTER, SUSANNA, SHAKING HANDS WITH PASSING PEOPLE 1.05 10. SV FERRARI FORMULA ONE DRIVER MICHAEL SCHUMACHER SHAKING HANDS WITH AGNELLI'S FAMILY 1.28 11. SLV PEOPLE PASSING COFFIN 1.33 12. SV/MCU MICHAEL SCHUMACHER, JEAN TODT AND FERRARI'S PRESIDENT LUCA CORDERO DI MONTEZEMOLO STANDING BY COFFIN (2 SHOTS) 1.53 13. SV PEOPLE PASSING COFFIN 2.01 14. MCU LUCA CORDERO DI MONTEZEMOLO CRYING 2.13 15. CU GIANNI AGNELLI'S WIFE, MARELLA, AND AGNELLI'S NEPHEW, JOHN ELKAN, RECEIVING CONDOLENCES 2.24 16. SLV PEOPLE IN A LINE OFFERING CONDOLENCES 2.29 17. CU BLUE BANNER READING: "FIAT" BY COFFIN 2.33 18. MCU JUVENTUS COACH MARCELLO LIPPI PASSING BY COFFIN 2.41 19. MCU JUVENTUS PLAYER DAVID TREZEGUET 2.50 20. MCU JUVENTUS PLAYER ALESSANDRO DEL PIERO HUGGING UMBERTO AGNELLI, GIANNI'S BROTHER 3.08 21. SLV JUVENTUS SOCCER TEAM BY COFFIN 3.16 22. MCU JUVENTUS GOALKEEPER GIANLUIGI BUFFON 3.19 23. SLV PEOPLE QUEUING OUTSIDE ROOM 3.23 24. MCU (Italian) TURIN RESIDENT IN THE QUEUE SAYING: "He was a great gentleman. He did good to everyone." 3.27 25. SLV QUEUE 3.31 26. MCU (Italian) PERSON IN THE QUEUE SAYING: "Agnelli was a great symbol for Turin. His departure will be very bad for all Italians." 3.37 27. SLV PEOPLE QUEUING 3.40 28. SV AGNELLI'S WIFE, MARELLA, LEAVING 3.51 29. SLV PEOPLE QUEUING 3.56 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved Details Ferrari Formula One driver Michael Schumacher bowed his head alongside Italians from all walks of life, as thousands gathered to pay their last respects to Fiat patriarch Giovanni Agnelli, the king of Italian business. Giovanni Agnelli, affectionately known as Gianni, was given a farewell fit for a king as thousands streamed to pay him a last tribute in the northern Italian city of Turin where his body was put to lay in state on Saturday (January 25). The stylish Italian industrialist who transformed carmaker Fiat into a global powerhouse died on Friday (January 24), aged 81. Even as the one-time jewel of his industrial empire looks increasingly tarnished, the man who never shrank from the spotlight in life was, in death, accorded the kind of attention usually reserved for heads of state and religious figures. Fiat factory workers, top businessmen, sporting stars and union leaders turned up to mourn the man whose empire spanned cars and energy as well as Chateaux Margaux wines and Ferrari Formula One racing. The lavish send-off underscored Agnelli's status as Italy's de-facto royal. Thousands filed past the coffin laid at Fiat's founding Lingotto factory in the heart of Turin, where flags fluttered at half-mast under bright blue skies and against a backdrop of the snow-capped Alps. Banners emblazoned with Fiat logos hung side by side with those from his championship-winning soccer team Juventus, recalling a man who mourners remembered as much for his passion for sport, art collecting and beautiful women as for business. Police in full-uniforms said the factory would remain open all night if necessary. Agnelli's surviving dynasty lined up to shake hands with those who had come to pay their respects, including Formula One racing driver Michael Schumacher, Ferrari chief Luca di Montezemolo and the whole of the Juventus football team. Agnelli's younger brother Umberto, who is set to take over the reins of power stood next to Agnelli's grandson John Elkann, tipped to be Fiat's long-term hope. Agnelli's death has dominated press and media coverage since Friday (January 24) night, with Italy's major newspapers reserving more than 10 pages to cover his death, the same amount of space they gave the September 11 attacks. But the soft-focused nostalgia was mixed with questions about how long Fiat's ailing auto-making operations would survive without Agnelli, their great defender. His younger brother Umberto is seen to be far less enamoured with its cars, which in Fiat's heyday and under Agnelli's stewardship included design icons like the tiny Cinquecento car. "Agnelli was a great symbol. His departure will be very bad for all Italians," said a man with tears in his eyes as he waited for his turn to pass by the coffin. On Sunday (January 26), a memorial service is to take place in Turin cathedral, followed by a private family funeral. Agnelli is expected to be buried next to other members of his family.
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