Born in Venice, Veneto, Terence Hill was discovered at age 12 during a swim meet and made his first film, as Mario Girotti, in the 1951 film Vacation with a Gangster. Three years into studying classical literature at the University of Rome, he decided instead to devote his attention to an acting career. In 1967 while on location in Spain, the producers of the film God Forgives... I Don't! wanted him to change his name. He was given a list of 20 names, with 24 hours to choose, and became Terence Hill.
