Afdera Franchetti (8 July 1931 – 20 March 2025) was an Italian baroness. Franchetti was the fourth wife of American actor Henry Fonda.

Background and family

The Italian Jewish Franchetti family, from the 18th century, was one of the wealthiest families in the Mediterranean.

Afdera Franchetti was the daughter of Baron Raimondo Franchetti, a famous explorer who travelled extensively in Ethiopia and charted hitherto unexplored territories (Dancalia) during the 1920s. On his return from an expedition to Ethiopia, his plane exploded over Cairo in 1935. Raimondo's grandmother was Sara Louise de Rothschild. Her brother, the Baron Raimondo Nanuk Franchetti, was a friend of author Ernest Hemingway, who hunted with him in Caorle Lagoon.

The Franchetti siblings were named Nanuk, Afdera, Lorian and Simba;

Franchetti was married to Howard Taylor from 1954 to 1957. They met in Italy on a vacation.

Franchetti was then married to Henry Fonda (1905–1982) from 1957 to 1961. They were introduced to each other by Audrey Hepburn in Italy while he was filming War and Peace with Hepburn and Mel Ferrer. Hepburn had been struggling with infertility and had sought advice from Franchetti's sister, Simba. When she became pregnant straightaway, she felt a certain loyalty to the Franchetti family. She befriended Franchetti, which resulted in her meeting with Fonda. He was 48 and she, 22, when they met.

Afdera Franchetti died in Milan on 20 March 2025, at the age of 93.

References

  • Fonda, Afdera. Never Before Noon
  • Ghostwriter Clifford Thurlow on the Franchetti autobiography
  • Fonda family website
  • Video clip of Franchetti discussing the wedding of Camilla Parker Bowles