There are certain people who, even with success and money, don’t really change or deviate from their original nature. These people seem to consider being a public figure an honor, so they respectfully steer their careers toward a positive image, somehow refined and respectful of their audiences.
Fabrizio Frizzi is without a doubt a fine example of it, classic and always elegant. Many accuse him of not being cutting edge and trendy, but his style doesn’t allow cheap shortcuts. A product of RAI, Frizzi started with afternoon shows for teenagers, but rapidly gained ground on primetime shows and quickly became one of the more respected hosts in Italy. He has a goofy look and an even goofier way of behaving, which made him truly likable to many.
Fabrizio Frizzi interview.
His shows are always clean and positive, and his overall message and example is never vulgar or intrusive. Frizzi is the anti-modern TV host, yet he is in demand. Probably not as bankable as some of his more aggressive colleagues, his shows, nevertheless, never fail to have high rankings, a fact that demonstrate how positively the public responds to his work. Frizzi has hosted different types of shows, from quizzes to talk shows, from variety to pageants and national level events, and he has never failed. Some were more appreciated than others, but overall the results were good and extremely favorable to advertising and sponsors. His family-friendly image and the way he deals with topics at times thorny have helped him to develop a rather conservative allure, which is nevertheless, somehow safe both for the tv channels which choose him as a host, and the companies that choose him as a testimonial.
Although television is clearly his number one job, Frizzi has tried out different forms of expression.
He acted as lead man in a TV series, where he portrayed a divorced lawyer, and although his performance was certainly not Oscar material, it was in line with his character and pleasant to watch. He also gave his voice to the Italian version of the Pixar‘s Toy Story franchise series, including the songs. This great boost from Disney made him launch a brief singing career; unfortunately the results were poor as his singing qualities do not exactly match his hosting skills. Thankfully for him – and our ears – he rapidly removed singing from his artistic repertoire. All of this is simply indicative of his personality – a man happy to try anything: although far from being a professional singer, he was elegant and genuine. Unlike some others who might expect their audiences to follow them through any career move, good or bad, Frizzi gracefully bowed out of singing and moved on to other and far more lucrative and suitable positions.
He tried for a short while to work for Mediaset, but the public network, RAI, is truly his best fit, where he feels comfortable and at home. It is simply amazing, for those who are familiar with the Italian TV system, to see how there really are two groups of hosts: those who are a perfect match for RAI, and those who are for Mediaset: only very few cross over from one network to another successfully. It is quite a fascinating phenomenon, and even the audience is very sensitive to such changes: it is as if watchers are free to zap, but they become very conservative when it comes to finding the right face on the right channel. Fabrizio Frizzi represents RAI, for better or for worse, and this makes him who he is: a successful, albeit conservative, family-friendly host.
