LOS ANGELES ? ?I envy myself.? When you are Sophia Loren, you certainly would and should. But, to qualify her statement, the iconic actress was actually talking about how she overcame hardship and poverty, and managed to accomplish a lot.

Hands often clasped together, Sophia spoke quietly, but she was also saucy or humorous in our recent press con with her at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York. ?Why do you think I have nothing more to prove?? she shot back at one point. Then, she disarmed everyone and made us laugh with, ?I?m still thinking what I am going to do when I grow up.? At 75, she?s still very glamorous, her lips full and her famous cleavage still on display.

Legendary men

One of the glorious women featured in Rob Marshall?s film adaptation of the stage musical, ?Nine,? which in turn was inspired by Federico Fellini?s ?8 ?,? Sophia talked in this rambling interview about the equally legendary men in her life: Producer husband Carlo Ponti, Cary Grant (who was madly in love with her but she chose Carlo, instead), and Marcello Mastroianni, her most memorable screen partner.

?They never ate,? the Italian diva, who grew up near Naples, said of her ?Nine? female costars: Nicole Kidman, Marion Cotillard, Penelope Cruz, Judi Dench, Stacy ?Fergie? Ferguson and Kate Hudson. Daniel Day-Lewis is the lucky actor amid all this feminine pulchritude. Excerpts of our interview:

Of all the actors you?ve worked with, who do you miss the most?

Marcello (Mastroianni), because I spent a lot of my career with him. I did about 14 films with him in 20 years. I miss him a lot.

What made you accept this role?

One day, I received a call from Rob Marshall. He said, ?We are going to do the film version of ?Nine.? There is a role in the film which suits you very well?the mother of Federico Fellini.? It was the closest I could be to Fellini, because I never was during his lifetime. I wanted to make a picture with him. We came very close to doing things together, but in the movies, you never know whether it?s going to happen or not. It didn?t happen. So, I was interested in being involved in a picture about his life. It made me say, ?Yes, I would very much like playing Federico?s mother.? Rob said, ?If you are not in the film, I?m not going to do it.? I said, ?Yes, I?ll do it.? I like the idea of being in a musical, which is very important to me. I adore music.

Didn?t you appear in a Fellini film, ?Luce del Varieta??

I was an extra with my mother.

Rob Marshall said that what?s wonderful about you is that you are not only a woman, but also a girl at heart. How do you stay a girl?

By thinking young. Just enjoying life, your family, things that life presents to you every day. Life for me has been a beautiful one. It?s more than I thought I was going to have. I?m a very accomplished person. I envy myself (laughter).

Your fellow actresses were in awe of you and nervous to work with you.

We feel the same fears when we don?t know somebody. I felt the same fears that they were feeling toward me, so we were on the same level, because when you start a new thing and you don?t know the person you are dealing with, you get a little fragile. You get intimidated and scared. I?m very shy.

The actresses said you were maternal to them, asking them to eat all the time.

They never ate (laughter). Never. I was the only one who was eating.

You bonded well with Penelope Cruz. She told us that you gave her advice. Can you share some of what you told her?

I cannot talk to you about the advice I gave to Penelope?they?re secrets. We like each other very much?we?re good friends.

This film features you singing one number. Do you love to sing in real life?

I sang about 30 songs in my career. More than Barbra Streisand did (laughter). I am joking. I wish I had her voice. But, I like to sing, because every Neapolitan sings. When I was presented with this aria in the film that I liked very much, I prepared myself, as I usually do when I have to work. I was very happy to be able to record it. I think it came out well. I want to see the film with my children and grandchildren. I want to know from them if they like my work, because it?s very important to me.

You started in Italian cinema, but you became a bigger star in Hollywood when you made those studio movies. Looking back, did you follow the path that you wanted?

Yes. Even though for us, Italians, sometimes we thought going to Hollywood was a mistake, it taught me how to speak English. It taught me how to perform with the greatest actors and it gave me a really wonderful path to go on. I was 23 years old when I came to America, so it was a great school for me. I would do it again if I were born again.

What helped you survive the hardship you went through when you were young?

Fortunately, I had my mother beside me. She was always there with me, holding my hand and telling me, ?Be strong, everything is going to be all right.? I believed her. That was my strength. With my mother?s help, I tried to face life, as hard as it was at the time. We had nothing. We had a big family, and we needed to make it work.

You have nothing to prove. What continues to motivate you to make movies?

Why do you think I have nothing more to prove?

You?ve achieved everything.

Nobody has everything. There is always something that you look forward to. I?m still thinking what I am going to do when I grow up (laughter).

So, what do you want to be when you grow up?

I don?t know (laughter). I?m still finding out.

Who fascinated you among the stars you met when you were a contract star in Hollywood?

Frank Sinatra for his singing. Marlon Brando. Do you want me to say Cary Grant? (Laughter) Cary Grant. Oh, there were many. Gary Cooper, Clark Cable, William Holden and many more. They were an army (laughter)?an army of heroes! ?And beautiful actors.

What lessons did you learn from the men in your life?

I don?t have great lessons from ?other? men in my life, because I did not have many men in my life.

What about your husband?

My husband gave me a lot of energy . He made me the woman I am today. He taught me to be a mother. He taught me how to be an actress and a good human being.

What?s your reaction when you hear the name, Cary Grant?

I smile. He was a nice man. I liked him a lot. He was a wonderful person. I worked with him in one of my first American films. I didn?t know how to say anything in English then, so it was very hard for me to say a line. Sometimes, he helped me in that regard.

Do you still live in Switzerland?

Since my children were born, I have lived in Switzerland. Around Geneva, not really in Geneva. I like to live in Switzerland because I have a very peaceful life there. I also had my children there, so I consider that country my home. A doctor in Italy told me that I could never have children in my life. I went to Switzerland and found this beautiful doctor. I have two children now who are the joys of my life.

What?s your daily life like in Switzerland?

Very boring. I like being at home. I almost never go out because when I am working, I?m always out. I have meetings. For me, my holiday is to stay at home and take care of my things. I have to do so many things that deal with my daily life. That?s the life I lead, that?s why I told you it?s very boring (laughter), but not for me.

Do you have any regrets?

Who doesn?t have little regrets?

Is there one that you can share?

Oh, no. You cannot share these things. You keep them to yourself.

E-mail rvnepales_5585@yahoo.com, and read his blog, ?The Nepales Report,? on http://blogs.inquirer.net/nepalesreport.