CHARACTERS

Marta

Marta is a middle-aged housewife, always cheerful and kind toward everyone, who can also be very stubborn when she has an idea in stuck her mind.
She loves her kids, just like all Italian moms do, and at times her attachment to them can seem so strong that it can get a little irritating. She definitely takes charge at home, even if Poldo yells. A great wife and houseworker, she is also a health food fanatic.

Poldo

Poldo, the head of the family (so to speak), is a man of about fifty. He manages a small spaghetti factory, “la SPAPO” (Spaghetti-Poldo), that enables him to support his large, beloved family.
Enthusiastic about his work, he is always looking for new ways to use spaghetti, and if it was up to him, he’d invade the world with it so as to convince everyone that his company’s spaghetti is without equal. At home he likes to relax more than anything, but rarely does he succeed in doing so, especially when Marta tries to get him involved in her menial housework.

Silvio

At 21 years of age, Silvio is the oldest sibling of the family. He is a psychology student, barley able to hold is own in his chosen major, though he’s able to exploit a few of the concepts he’s mastered in order to come off as being the intellectual authority on whatever the situation.
He’s pretty messy at home, considering how extremely attentive he is towards his outward appearance and personal interests, among which include going to the gym, girls, computers, and that which can most simplify his life. Of a decidedly prankish temperament, he won’t miss the occasion to play a joke on someone: especially his siblings.

Franco

He is the second son at 15 years of age. He is very shy and timid, but though introverted, he has a kind and generous soul.
Because of this, he doesn’t speak much and can come off as appearing perpetually sullen. Being extremely creative however, he resorts to different ways to get his feelings across, such as drawing, music, sounds, gestures, and the original way he dresses himself up.
He takes little interest in daily problems, and people’s advice will generally go in one ear and out the other in his case.

The Twins

Almost no one calls the twins, Anna and Irma, by their given names. Rather, they are known to everyone as just “the twins.” Ana and Irma are 11 and perhaps the most loquacious ones in the entire Spaghetti family. They’re cheery, active, and full of initiative, and different from their brothers, diligent and studious— but most of all, they are madly love with all animals.
Though they display different personalities, they still always appear to act and operate in unison. Quite often, one will begin to utter a phrase that the other one will finish, or they will even blurt out exactly the same words at the same time. Both of them are mad about rock n’ roll, though they’re not so much attracted to famous, well known bands, but rather to smaller up and coming underground groups only they themselves have ever heard of.

SECONDARY CHARACTERS:

Godurio

He’s One of Poldo’s two friends.
Retired, Godurio is a funny and optimistic person, and above all a big spender. He’s always tanned and happy, loves good food, sailing, skiing, going to the mountains, and most of all, beautiful women, even if he’s not very successful with them (though of course, he ridiculously exaggerates his stories for his friends).o

PIO

Small, introverted and an ardent reader of newspapers, books and magazines, he pays keen attention to everything happening in society around the world, and it’s difficult to find a matter that he doesn’t know anything about. Different from Godurio, Pio is a very generous person, ready to do anything to help out a friend.

Ilario

Martha’s single brother. He’s rather fat, friendly, reliable, and affectionate toward his sister, nieces, and nephews. He loves to talk about politics, and he always does so, even at the wrong time and with very polemic and provocative tones.

Raspa

Raspa is a young bum with a degree in electronic engineering. He’s a skilful hacker in his spare time who garners some amount of admiration from Silvio. He has no steady residence, and often finds his lodging in a sort of makeshift shack near the house of the Spaghetti family. Raspa stuns everyone with his culture and wit, as well as his life philosophy.

MARIAPRIMA, MARIASECONDA, MARIATERZA

Marta’s best friends. They always move together, so they are to be dealt with as one person. They are rather nosy and come by when they are less expected. They have sweet teeth, love to gossip about people, they have similar experiences and acquaintances, and always worry about their watelines. They are in perfect sync with each other. What one says goes for the others.
All three are widowed. They never miss an opportunity to talk about their old life with their husbands (but their memories are so confused and mixed up that they cannot distinguish any more who was married to whom, etc.).

Lumone

An odd old neighbor, a little short-tempered and nearly deaf. With absolutely no regard for anyone’s privacy, he’s very into astronomy, as he suffers from insomnia, so he spends most of the night watching the stars through a small domestic telescope. He is not so appreciated by his neighbors, who look at him as a voyeur, so he’s a loner.
He often causes some arguments for not minding his own business.

Nilla

Nilla works at Spapo as Poldo’s personal secretary. She is a rather attractive lady, and a jack-of-all-trades. She does her job perfectly, never missing even one detail, and always chases after her “boss” to remind him about each little appointment of his.

The Lawyer

No one knows this man’s real name, but he is most definitely Poldo’s No.1 rival in business. He’s the owner of the “Spaghettovip,” a company that is bigger than that of Poldo’s, who puts more emphasis on his abundant profits than on a good quality product, supported by an ilk of decidedly unscrupulous personnel.
Being more rich and powerful than Poldo, the lawyer won’t put up with any competition posed by Poldo’s little company, and is thus always looking for ways to put Spapo out of business.

Bigio

A friend of Franco’s, very tall, skinny, odd and taciturn like him.
He sings in a teenage band in which Franco sometimes plays the drums. When the two are together they make a strange couple, being able to understand each other without saying a word or in monosyllables.

Sissi Scoop

She is a red-haired TV news anchor, with the idea that any bit of news is news. Always on the hunt for the latest scoop or bit of gossip, we often find her using her TV crew so as to exploit and satisfy her own feminine vanity, rather than for what one would call news. Sissi scoop is partly a parody of her own self, or of some kind of reality show which everyone has seen, but no one believes.

THE FAMILY BESTIARY

In the Spaghetti household, other than the occasional unexpected guest, there is a veritable zoo of animals each of them a permanent member of the Spaghetti family in their own rite:

Zampa

Zampa is a rather large, playful mutt, with a penchant for hysterically barking at the cats late at night. He is particularly fond of Poldo, and especially Poldo’s slippers, which he’s always trying to make off with.

Circe

A female Indian blackbird with the ability to speak that whistles like a sailor, emitting long range screeches. The bird is basically a bad influence on everyone, always ready to butt into the family feud with its familiar chirps, repeating and stressing the most provocative words that ought to be otherwise avoided or censured.

Briciola

This obese scoundrel of a cat rediscovers his lost feline instinct only when he goes out to the garden, only to come back having retrieved some kind of still-living mouse in his mouth, to everyone’s horror and dismay. Another favorite thing of his is to slip himself into each and every closet, drawer, sink, bidet, or oven that happens to be open in order to sleep. Time and time again, the cat loves to go up on the roof, uplifting the tiles in search of bird nests.

The turtles

These 3 tiny turtles are almost always on the go and are therefore almost always impossible to track down. They constantly seem to turn up at the most unexpected moments, popping out of absolutely the most unsuspected places.