Profession: Media Tycoon and Prime Minister of Italy
Biography: Silvio Berlusconi is an Italian media tycoon and politician, best known for serving three times as Prime Minister of Italy: 1994-1995, 2001-2006, and 2008-2011. Since 2019 he has served as a Member of the European Parliament, and since 2022 as a member of the Senate of the Republic.
Prior to politics, Berlusconi was best known as the controlling shareholder of Mediaset. This company, the largest commercial broadcaster in Italy, was founded by Berlusconi in 1987. He also owned the football club A.C. Milan from 1986 to 2017.
Berlusconi came to power without any prior political experience, in which he has seen by some as a forerunner of Donald Trump. The administrations of both of these officials have been plagued by criticisms, including that they were populist or otherwise misused their power.
Born: September 29, 1936
Birthplace: Milan, Italy
Generation: Silent Generation
Chinese Zodiac: Rat
Star Sign: Libra
Historical Events
- 1994-03-28 Italy's right-wing alliance under Silvio Berlusconi wins election
- 1994-05-10 Silvio Berlusconi forms Italian government with 5 neo-fascists
- 1994-12-22 Italian government of Silvio Berlusconi resigns
- 2001-05-13 Silvio Berlusconi's right-wing "House of Freedoms" coalition wins the Italian general election
- 2003-07-02 Silvio Berlusconi, Prime Minister of Italy, insults German MP Martin Schulz by calling him a "kapo" during a session of the European Parliament.
- 2011-11-12 Silvio Berlusconi resigns as Prime Minister of Italy due, in large part, to the European sovereign debt crisis.
- 2013-05-08 Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi receives a four year prison sentence for fraud
- 2020-09-02 Former Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi tests positive for COVID-19 and is later hospitalized
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