Luc Merenda

Luc Merenda, an Italian pulp cinema icon of the 1970s, was born and raised in Nogent-le-Roi, Paris, France, despite being of Italian descent through his paternal grandfather. As a young man, Merenda was a thrill-seeking, multi-disciplinary athlete, with a range of hobbies that included savate, motorcycle racing, and skydiving. He entered the film industry at the age of 27, after being discovered at an audition while working as a model. Merenda rose to become one of the top leading men of the poliziotteschi genre, gritty urban crime dramas that often featured dirty cops and even dirtier criminals.