Santi Paladino

Santi Paladino (1902 – 1981) was an Italian journalist, politician and writer, who is best known for his theory that Michelangelo Florio was the real author of the works of Shakespeare, a view he propounded in several publications from 1927 on.

Originally from Scilla, Calabria, in 1926 Paladino founded Sirena, a literary journal and magazine concentrating on Sicilian and Calabrian culture.

He also wrote on miscellaneous topics, including a manual entitled How to write and co-write a film script: Theoretical and practical guide (1943).

[2] His arguments were presented in full in the booklet Shakespeare sarebbe lo pseudonimo di un poeta italiano (1929).

[3] Paladino's theory is linked to the argument put forward by other "anti-Stratfordians" that Shakespeare's work shows an intimate knowledge of Italian culture and geography.

[8] The duo then entered into a "secret agreement" with the actor William Shakespeare to give him "temporary or permanent" credit for the published works.

[9] Variations on Paladino's views have been developed by other, mostly Italian, writers, including Martino Iuvara (2002), Lamberto Tassinari (2008) and Roberta Romani (2012).

On October 12, 1944, while Allied armies occupied Italy, Paladino joined with the former fascist sociologist Corrado Gini and statistician Ugo Damiani to found the anti-Communist Italian Unionist Movement.

"[11] Paladino argued that closer union with America was necessary to counter the advance of Communism under Soviet Russian leadership.