Franco Zeffirelli (1923–2019) was an Italian stage and film director, producer, production designer, and politician. He was one of the most significant opera and theatre directors of the post–World War II era, gaining both acclaim and notoriety for his lavish stagings of classical works, as well as his film adaptations of the same. Films he directed included the Shakespearean adaptations THE TAMING OF THE SHREW (1967), starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton; ROMEO AND JULIET (1968), for which he received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Director; and HAMLET (1990), starring Mel Gibson and Glenn Close. In 1999, Zeffirelli received the Crystal Globe award for outstanding artistic contribution to world cinema at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. In November 2004, he was awarded an honorary knighthood by the United Kingdom. He was awarded the Premio Colosseo in 2009 by the city of Rome.