alfieb
04-19-2013, 05:41 AM
Outside of Sicily, and indeed our neighbors in Italy, the influence of Sicilians can be seen throughout the world.
This thread is here to showcase just some of the broad impact the Sicilian people have had outside of our own homeland. In other words, this thread isn't to discuss the numerous Catholic Popes who were from Sicily, or great inventors like Archimedes whose works changed the world - because they lived in what is today the Republic of Italy.
http://www3.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/Lorenzo+Fertitta+Frank+Fertitta+UFC+Fox+Live+FUU72 t-SFQGx.jpg
Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta, two Sicilian brothers whose family are from Cefalu [Palermo] own the UFC, and previously owned Strikeforce, Pride FC, and WEC before merging them into the UFC. When the brothers purchased the UFC in January of 2001, it was only worth two million dollars, whereas now the company is estimated to be valued in the billions.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/___OIOI6EBKs/S7Vf5S8M19I/AAAAAAAAAng/vaqU26gfVhU/s1600/mazarin.jpg
Cardinal Giulio Mazzarini, whose father was from Mazzarino [Caltanissetta], was the Prime Minister of France for twenty years under kings Louis XIII and Louis XIV, and tutored the latter, who had been a child, and later went on to become one of the most powerful and longest-reigning kings in history.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Dionysius_I_of_Syracuse.jpg
Dionysus the Elder, a Sicilian dictator from Syracuse, founded the city of Lissos, now Lezhe (Albania), the home of the Kastrioti family, including Skanderbeg, the national hero of the Albanians, who was buried there.
http://www.amaana.org/heroes/img010.JPG
Gawhar al-Siqilli (Jawhar the Sicilian), born to a Greek-speaking Christian family, became a great Shi'ite Muslim general under the Arab caliphate, and founded the city of Cairo (Egypt), now the largest city in Africa and called the "Capital of the Arab World". Alongside building Cairo, which took four years, he also founded the Al-Azhar Mosque, one of the most famous in the world.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Martin_Scorsese_by_David_Shankbone.jpg
Martin Scorsese, whose parents were both Palermitan, is an American filmmaker. Known for his films, such as "Taxi Driver", "Raging Bull", "The Last Temptation of Christ", "Goodfellas", "Cape Fear", "Casino", "Gangs of New York" and "The Departed", Scorsese is considered one of the greatest American film directors of all-time.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Antonin_Scalia%2C_SCOTUS_photo_portrait.jpg
Antonin Scalia, whose father was an immigrant from Sicily, has been a member of the Supreme Court of the United States since 1986, making him the longest-tenured member on the court. Considered the most conservative member of the court, he has had a profound influence on American law, and on American lawyers as a whole.
This thread is here to showcase just some of the broad impact the Sicilian people have had outside of our own homeland. In other words, this thread isn't to discuss the numerous Catholic Popes who were from Sicily, or great inventors like Archimedes whose works changed the world - because they lived in what is today the Republic of Italy.
http://www3.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/Lorenzo+Fertitta+Frank+Fertitta+UFC+Fox+Live+FUU72 t-SFQGx.jpg
Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta, two Sicilian brothers whose family are from Cefalu [Palermo] own the UFC, and previously owned Strikeforce, Pride FC, and WEC before merging them into the UFC. When the brothers purchased the UFC in January of 2001, it was only worth two million dollars, whereas now the company is estimated to be valued in the billions.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/___OIOI6EBKs/S7Vf5S8M19I/AAAAAAAAAng/vaqU26gfVhU/s1600/mazarin.jpg
Cardinal Giulio Mazzarini, whose father was from Mazzarino [Caltanissetta], was the Prime Minister of France for twenty years under kings Louis XIII and Louis XIV, and tutored the latter, who had been a child, and later went on to become one of the most powerful and longest-reigning kings in history.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Dionysius_I_of_Syracuse.jpg
Dionysus the Elder, a Sicilian dictator from Syracuse, founded the city of Lissos, now Lezhe (Albania), the home of the Kastrioti family, including Skanderbeg, the national hero of the Albanians, who was buried there.
http://www.amaana.org/heroes/img010.JPG
Gawhar al-Siqilli (Jawhar the Sicilian), born to a Greek-speaking Christian family, became a great Shi'ite Muslim general under the Arab caliphate, and founded the city of Cairo (Egypt), now the largest city in Africa and called the "Capital of the Arab World". Alongside building Cairo, which took four years, he also founded the Al-Azhar Mosque, one of the most famous in the world.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Martin_Scorsese_by_David_Shankbone.jpg
Martin Scorsese, whose parents were both Palermitan, is an American filmmaker. Known for his films, such as "Taxi Driver", "Raging Bull", "The Last Temptation of Christ", "Goodfellas", "Cape Fear", "Casino", "Gangs of New York" and "The Departed", Scorsese is considered one of the greatest American film directors of all-time.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Antonin_Scalia%2C_SCOTUS_photo_portrait.jpg
Antonin Scalia, whose father was an immigrant from Sicily, has been a member of the Supreme Court of the United States since 1986, making him the longest-tenured member on the court. Considered the most conservative member of the court, he has had a profound influence on American law, and on American lawyers as a whole.