[1] Born in Asti, Pavese started his career in 1916 working as a silent film actor at 19 years of age.

By the time World War II ended, Pavese's popularity as an actor increased.

He often portrayed characters with certain professions such as clerks, lawyers, soldiers, officers and notaries in comedy films and made frequent collaborations with other actors such as Totò, Aldo Fabrizi, Walter Chiari, Alberto Sordi, including his younger brother Nino Pavese.

He even provided the Italian voices of animated characters belonging to The Walt Disney Company, most notably Colonel Hathi in The Jungle Book as well as Boris in Lady and the Tramp and a Labrador in One Hundred and One Dalmatians.

Pavese died in Rome of a heart attack in the morning of 13 December 1969 at the age of 72.