Giambattista Andreini (9 February 1576 – 7 June 1654) was an Italian actor and the most important Italian playwright of the 17th century. Life Born in Florence to stage stars Isabella Andreini and Francesco Andreini, he had a great success as a comedian in Paris under the name of Leylio. He was a favourite with Louis XIII, and also with the public, especially as the young lover. His wife Virginia Ramponi-Andreini, whom he married in 1601, was also a celebrated actress and singer. Works He left a number of plays full of extravagant imagination. The best known are L'Adamo (Milan, 1613), The Penitent Magdalene (Mantua, 1617), and The Centaur (Paris, 1622). From the first of these three volumes, which are extremely rare, Italians have often asserted that Milton, travelling at that time in their country, took the idea of Paradise Lost. Notes Bibliography Katritzky, M. A. (2006). The Art of Commedia: A Study in the Commedia Dell'Arte 1560-1620, p. 245. Rodopi. Snyder, Jon (2007). "Giovan Battista Andreini", vol. 1, pp. 36–38, in Encyclopedia of Italian Literary Studies, edited by Gaetana Marrone. New York/London: Routledge. . External links 1576 births 1654 deaths 17th-century Italian male actors 17th-century Italian writers 17th-century Italian dramatists and playwrights Italian male stage actors Italian dramatists and playwrights Actors from Florence Writers from Florence Commedia dell'arte Expatriates of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany in France