A calendar featuring close-ups of young, handsome men in priestly attire has been a perennial Rome souvenir for the last two decades—but few, it seems, are actually men of the cloth. Giovanni Galizia has been the cover shot for the so-called sexy priest calendar for many of the last 23 editions. In the same photo used year after year, Galizia wears a clerical collar and flashes an enigmatic smile worthy of the Mona Lisa. "It was the smile of an embarrassed kid, because I saw all my friends in front of me laughing out loud," Galizia tells the AP. For Galizia, the shoot was a lark that left no mark on his life, until a story in the Rome daily La Repubblica this week revealed that the "sexy priest calendar" could more accurately be called "the fake priest calendar," drawing nationwide attention.
Now a 39-year-old flight attendant for a Spanish airline, Galizia was just 17 when mutual friends put him in touch with photographer Piero Pazzi, who has also created a calendar featuring Venetian gondoliers. Officially named Calendario Romano, each edition features 12 black-and-white portraits of men mostly in clerical attire—many of which are recycled year after year. Galizia only knew one of the other subjects, a French man who also was not a priest. Pazzi told the AP that at least one-third of those pictured in the 2027 calendar are actually priests but provided no details. Galizia said he has never been stopped on the street, though his cousins once gave the calendar to their grandmother as a gift, "and they all died laughing."
Galizia sees the photographs depicting priests as part of an artistic tradition, noting that no one watching a TV drama involving priests believes they are actually played by clergy. "Of course, it winks a bit at the dynamic between the sacred and the profane," he said. But he also said he doesn't understand why the black-and-white close-ups have been interpreted as sexy. "There's a tendency to confuse what is beautiful with what is sensual," Galizia said. "That said, I appreciate the observation and take it as a compliment—because managing to be sexy in a priest's collar is no small feat."
Pazzi won't say how many of the calendars have been sold—but estimates several thousand a year. While Pazzi says he receives royalties, Galizia, who signed a release when the photo was taken, said he has never sought payment. The calendar sells for around $9.30 in shops that surround the Vatican and crowd Rome's historic center. A South Korean priest walking near the Vatican this week said the calendar is well known in his home country, especially among young people who view it with humor. "They often think priests are stiff and distant," said the priest, who identified himself as Father Domenico. "But looking at this calendar, they think priests are more familiar, and priests can be funny."
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