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Vanna Bonta (3 April 1958 – 8 July 2014) was an Italian-American poet, novelist, essayist, actress, inventor and artist's model. She wrote Flight: a quantum fiction novel. As an actress, Bonta played "Zed's Queen" in The Beastmaster. She performed primarily as a voice talent on a roster of feature films, such as Disney's Beauty and the Beast, as well as television.

One of her poetry collections was awarded a gold medal book prize by the Italian Minister of Culture and Florentine Poetry Society, and, on 13 November 2013, a haiku by Bonta was launched from Cape Canaveral on the NASA spacecraft MAVEN to Mars.

Bonta invented the 2suit, a flight garment designed to facilitate human intimacy and stability in microgravity environments of outerspace. The spacesuit was featured on The Universe television series, which followed Bonta into zero gravity to film a documentary titled Sex in Space that aired in 2009 on History Channel and opened worldwide discussion of human colonization of other planets. Another Bonta invention, described in Wired, is a shoe with a telescoping heel that converts from a flat into heels.

Early life and family

Bonta was born in the United States to Maria Luisa (née Ugolini; 1918–1997), a fine-art artist from Florence, Italy, and James Cecil Bonta (1918–1992), a military officer from Kentucky. Her mother's elder sister was Italian children's author Lydia Ugolini. Within a month of Vanna's birth, the family returned to her mother's home town in Tuscany, where Bonta was baptized in the Florentine Baptistery with her grandfather, the Italian author Luigi Ugolini, as her godfather. The family then moved to Bangkok, Thailand, where they stayed for five years before returning to Alexandria, Virginia.

While taking college classes in journalism, drama, music and photography, Bonta was hired as a staff feature writer for The Unicorn Times, a Washington, D.C. underground newspaper. Bonta wrote about art, dance, and music, and her article archives include an interview with celebrated American jazz singer Eddie Jefferson, inventor of vocalese. As a result of incoming mail from readers, she soon had her own column titled "Near Vanna", in parody of the Dear Abby column, in which she publicly answered questions that had started coming in from readers about the arts. The column's banner was "Ask me, I'm not afraid to know", and ran for four issues.

During her time in Washington, D.C., she was also playing music and songwriting. Bonta composed in different genres, Alternative Punk, Jazz, and Country. Four of her songs won Honorable Mentions for music and lyrics in the Billboard World Song Competition and the American Song Festival. Bonta supported herself working in an art gallery framing paintings. There, she would write messages in the back of paintings, signing her name before quickly sealing them in brown paper. She also began her voice-over career in Washington, D.C., landing jobs as the voice and regional spokesperson for Subaru.

Career

Artist's model

At the age of eleven, Bonta modeled for Italian painter Pietro Annigoni, and at fifteen, she modeled for American sculptor Ruth Hutton Ancker, who sculpted a life-sized bust portrait of Bonta.

Bonta also claimed to have been sculptor Frederick Hart's model for the figure of Woman in the three-dimensional stone installation "Ex Nihilo" that Hart had been commissioned to create for the Washington National Cathedral's west entrance tympanum. However, according to photographs and other sources, the actual model was Lindy Lain, Hart's future wife.

Acting

Bonta had several small on-screen roles, including a nonspeaking part as Zed's queen in The Beastmaster and the part of a laboratory student in Time Walker aka Being From Another Planet. She also appeared in music videos for War's hit, "War What Is It Good For?", and for British recording artist Jack Green on "One By One" from his Reverse Logic album.

She also worked as a voice talent and was cast in small or uncredited parts in several productions, including An American Tail: Feivel Goes West, Hocus Pocus, Demolition Man, What Dreams May Come and various television shows.

Writing

Bonta's first edition poetry collections are Postconfessionalism and New Formalism published as chronological collections of life experience. A poem dedicated to the science fiction fantasy author C. L. Moore, a tribute and account of time Bonta spent with the writer including days before Moore's death, is among poems in Shades of the World. The book was introduced at a literary conference of the Italian Poetry Society by Margherita Guidacci in 1986, and was awarded the Camerata gold medal book prize. Her 1989 poetry collection Degrees: Thoughts Capsules and Microtales was endorsed by celebrity comedian Phyllis Diller.

The Italian Poetry Camerata and Italian Minister of Culture formally presented Bonta's poems in 1986 and again in 1996 in the city of Florence, Italy. In 1986, Italian poet noted for coining the word "paparazzi", Margherita Guidacci, presented Bonta's poetry book Shades of the World at a literary conference in the Palazzo Vecchio, and compared the effects of her poetry to chills she felt when reading Sylvia Plath.

From 1987–1993, she also wrote feature articles about Italian historical figures in the arts for The American Citizen, a bimonthly publication out of Omaha, Nebraska. She also penned a column titled "Ordinary Holy Days" which ran for two years.

An essay by Bonta also appears in The Malibu Times in 1990. While acting in various films, Bonta worked as a development screenwriter.

Bonta wrote three stories for Star Trek: The Next Generation, and her story "Somewhen" was optioned but never developed.

Flight

In 1995 Bonta self-published her first novel, Flight: A Quantum Fiction Novel, under the Meridian House name. Flight has been characterized as "inter-genre" (belonging to more than one genre simultaneously) by the American Library Association, which called it an "auspicious, genre-bending parable". Publishers Weekly described the work as running the gamut of particularly moving to quirky and hilarious satire, with "asides about bathtub books, self-doubt tapes and other foibles."

Bonta claimed that with the publication of Flight, she introduced the term "quantum fiction" to the literary world.

MAVEN Haiku

In 2013, a haiku Bonta wrote was one of over 1100 that was launched to Mars on the NASA spacecraft MAVEN. The haikus for the Mars trip were chosen by popular vote from a total 12,530 submissions. Bonta's submission was ranked in the top five.

Publishing and translation

Bonta was the founding publisher and editor-in-chief of The Cosmos Review, an online literary magazine and archive of poetry about space. In 2008, the Space Frontier Foundation presented the "Service to the Frontier" award to Bonta for her work on the magazine. The Cosmos Review ran for five issues, ending in May 2010.

Bonta has translated the works of Italian contemporary poets from Italian into English for publication. She spearheaded the English translation and publishing of The Story of a Rich Dog and a Poor Dog, an Italian classic by Lydia Ugolini, a title from her literary family's book estate.

Invention

The 2Suit

Bonta received media attention for her invention of the 2suit. The invention converts two independent flight garments into a single garment for two people in zero-gravity environments who wish to achieve stabilization within proximity of a partner for the purpose of intimacy or mating, stabilizing work stations, recreational proximity, or emergency thermal applications.

Bonta told Australia's Femail Magazine that she did not expect that her presentation about the physics of sex in space, least of all her casual mention of special clothing items, would spark worldwide interest.

Producers of the History Channel television series, The Universe, decided to test the flight suit on one of the program's episodes. They approached Bonta in 2008 with an invitation that the show would manufacture a prototype and send her into zero gravity. She accepted. On the program, Bonta and her husband demonstrated how the suit works by kissing while wearing it. The documentary concluded that the "2Suit is one small step for humankind colonizing the universe."

Cracked Magazine called the 2suit one of seven suits that will soon make the world a cooler place.

Lunar Lander Challenge

From 2007-09, she participated in the annual Lunar Lander Challenge, a competition sponsored by NASA and Northrop Grumman to commercially build a lightweight spacecraft for landing on the moon. Bonta was a team member of BonNovA. As part of the lunar engineering team, Bonta innovated a device that protects high-combustion engines from exploding during the ignition phase, and the part was engineered to success.

Smart Clothing

At NASA Ames in 2008, Bonta presented what she called futuristic "smart clothing" for fashion with functional innovations that included portable atmosphere and hydration in balloon couture, self-illuminating purse interiors, bluetooth earrings, thermal fabric, spray-on biodegradable "second skins" that protect and glitter, a travel shoe that converts from flats to heels, and velvet fabric with fibers that function as sensors. The US Patent Office issued two additional provisional patents to Bonta, for a talking blanket called a "real comforter," that speaks a series of recorded phrases aimed to soothe and for a Rocket Engine Over-pressurization Release System (REORPS), a device that allows an over-pressurization in the combustion chamber of a rocket of high-combustion engine to vent to outside atmosphere or vacuum rather than build up to destructive levels, which Bonta developed with her teammate while participating in the Lunar Lander Challenge.

Personal life

Bonta first married in 1987; the union was dissolved after five years. In 2002, she remarried, to rocket engineer Allen Newcomb.

Filmography

Film

(partial)

Television

Bibliography

Novels

• Bonta, Vanna (1995). Flight: A Quantum Fiction Novel. Meridian House. ISBN 978-0912339177.

Poetry

• Bonta, Vanna (1989). Degrees – Thought Capsules (Poems) and Micro Tales on Life, Death, Man, Woman, & Art. Dora Books. ISBN 978-0912339054.
• Bonta, Vanna (1985). Shades of the World. Dora Books. ISBN 978-0912339016.
• Bonta, Vanna (1981). Rewards of Passion (Sheer Poetry). Empire Books.

Anthologies

• Bonta, Vanna (2013). Voci Fiorentine (in Italian). Ibiskos Ulivieri. ISBN 9788878418639.
• Bonta, Vanna (1979). Lyrical Voices: An International Poetry Anthology. Young Publications. ISBN 978-0911666038.

Essays

• Il Cosmos Come Poesia – Città di Vita, Bimestrale di religione, arte, scienza – Issue V; (in Italian) (May 2008, October 2011)
• Stato dell'Arte. L'attacco al valore dell'uomo e della bellezza  – Città di Vita, Bimestrale di religione, arte, scienza – Issue VI; (in Italian) (December 2012)
• Space: What love's got to do with it, The Space Review (24 October 2004)
• Bonta, Vanna (2005). The Impact of Space Activities Upon Society. ESA Publications (European Space Agency). ISBN 978-9290925828.
• Bonta, Vanna (2012) . The Cosmos as a Poem. ASIN B0086POUVQ.
• Bonta, Vanna (2000, 2012). State of the Art. Amazon Digital. ASIN B0086PAIXK. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: year (link)
• Bonta, Vanna (2008, 2011). Il Cosmo Come Poesia (in Italian). Beacon Hill. ASIN B008744ZYI. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: year (link)

Short Stories

• Bonta, Vanna (2012) . Ordinary Holy Days. ASIN B008E8G2UC.
• Bonta, Vanna (2012) . Mother Ship. ASIN B008774M0M.

Magazines, newspapers

• The Malibu Times, The Unicorn Times, The Italian American Citizen newspaper, The Washington Times, The Bangkok Post
• Angel, by Vanna Bonta. Attenzione magazine; Volume 8, Issue 2 – Volume 9, Issue 2. (1986)
• Tears in Zero-G, by Vanna Bonta. Space Front magazine; Volume II, Number 1. (March 2003)

Awards and nominations

Bonta's poetry collection Shades of the World was awarded a gold medal prize by the Florentine Camerata in 1986, and her essay The Cosmos as a Poem won first place in the Pergola Arte Lily Brogi Literary Awards in Italy. The Space Frontier Foundation awarded Bonta the 2008 "Service to the Frontier" award for her work on The Cosmos Review.

References

1. Notice of death of Vanna Bonta, legacy.com; accessed 28 September 2014.
2. "Fiction review – Flight: a quantum fiction novel, by Vanna Bonta". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
3. Scaturro, Giorgia (27 April 2009). "Lo spazio, mai stato così sexy". Wired Magazine. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
4. Vanna Bonta, una scrittrice dell’ ”altro mondo”, by Francesca Ceci; Minerva (magazine), 18 May 2012
5. Harrington, Richard. "Limelight." Washington Post, section D, p. 3, 29 August 1982; retrieved via Lexis Nexis Academic Universe.
6. "Answer the Phone! by Vanna Bonta". CDBaby.com. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
7. "Vanna Bonta YouTube". YouTube. Retrieved 28 May 2014. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
8. Brenda Dionisi (9 April 2009). "Pietro Annigoni: Italy's Greatest Misunderstood Artist". theflorentine.net. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
9. "Vanna Bonta - Biography - IMDB". Retrieved 6 January 2015.
10. "Lindy Lain, soon to be Lindy Hart, modeling for Ex Nihilo". Retrieved 5 January 2015.
11. "The Lives They Lived: Frederick Hart, b. 1943; The Artist the Art World Couldn't See". Retrieved 5 January 2015.
12. "Time Walker". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
13. Mauricek, Ethan. "Vanna Bonta biography". Internet Movie Database. IMDB.com. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
14. "Demolition Man". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
15. Vanta, Bonna (September 1989). Degrees: Thought Capsules (Poems and Micro Tales on Life, Death, Man, Woman, & Art) (First ed.). Dora Books. pp. Back cover. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
16. "Margherita. Guidacci Discusses Vanna Bonta". archive.org. 13 December 1986. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
17. "IHRC Italian American Collection". Online Index. University of Minnesota. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
18. "The American citizen". Online index. OCLC World Catalogue. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
19. "Newspapers". Index. Douglas County Historical Society. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
20. Bonta, Vanna (24 May 1990). "The story behind the truck that went over the edge". Malibu Times. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
21. Pepperdine University Libraries; Special Collections and University Archives: The Malibu Times (1946—2000)
22. "Vanna Bonta – Other works". Internet Movie Database. IMDb. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
23. "Bonta". The Free Lance-Star. 19 February 1992. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
24. "Rodham Radio interview with VannaBonta". WTRV Radio. 10 November 1996. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
25. Robb, Brian J. (2012). A brief guide to Star Trek. Constable and Robinson.
26. The Poetry Society (Florentine Camerata) and Italian Minister of Culture present the works of poet and writer Vanna Bonta, Introduction by Camerata President Otello Pagliai. Dissertation by Gabriella Fiori; September 1996, Cassa di Risparmio.
27. "Flight, by Vanna Bonta". BookList. June 1995. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
28. "Flight: A Quantum Fiction Novel". Publishers Weekly. 2 January 1995. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
29. van der Linde, Laurel (2007). Vanna Bonta Talks About Quantum Fiction: Author Interview. Audio Library.
30. Steinmetz, Katy (9 August 2013). "NASA is sending these poems to Mars". Time. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
31. "Going to Mars with Maven contest winners". University of Colorado Boulder Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
32. "MAVEN Haiku Selected For Travel to Mars". National Aeronautics and Space Administration. 8 August 2013. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
33. Martin, Rachel (11 August 2013). "Sending Poetry To Mars". National Public Radio. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
34. "1,100 Haiku Headed To Mars Aboard NASA's MAVEN Spacecraft". Huffington Post. 9 August 2013. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
35. ^ Pura, James (1 August 2008). "Poets get nod from space pros". Space Frontier Foundation. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
36. "The Cosmos Review". Vanna Bonta. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
37. Scaturro, Giorgia (30 April 2009). "A two-seater suit for space-lovers". Wired.com. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
38. Boyle, Alan (27 July 2006). "Outer-space sex carries complications". NBC news.com. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
39. "Haben Astronauten eigentlich Sex im All?". Bild.de. 7 March 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
40. Monks, Keiron (9 April 2012). "Thrusters on full: Sex in space". Metro World News. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
41. "Vanna Bonta talks sex in space". Femail.com. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
42. "The Universe: Sex in space". History Channel. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
43. Kutty, Darpana (2 December 2008). "The Universe: Sex in Space explores human side of space". Top News. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
44. Bowie, Soren (15 November 2010). "7 Real Suits That Will Soon Make the World A Cooler Place". Cracked.com. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
45. "Lunar lander liftoff". NBCNews.com. 31 Jan 2007. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
46. "BonNova Space Access". YouTube. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
47. U.S. Patent Office Provisional Patent 61/205,056; 30 January 2009. REORPS
48. "Lunar Lander Challenge X-Prize Teams". xprize.org. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
49. "Vanna Bonta Presents Smart Fashion at NASA Ames Yuri's Night". ireport.cnn.com. 19 April 2008. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
50. US Patent Office; Provisional Patent #61/192,472 October 7, 2008
51. U.S. Patent Office Provisional Patent 61/216,973; 8 June 2009. Comfurrrter
52. Adkins, Jennifer (May 2009). "The 2Suit Adds New Meaning to the Term 'Mother of Invention'". Inventor's Digest. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
53. Social Register, 1990
54. Rewards of Passion, by Vanna Bonta Dewey Decimal Class 811/.54 | Library of Congress PS3552.O642 R4 1981 | Open Library
55. Città di Vita Bimestrale di religione, arte, scienza
56. "Bimestrale di religione, arte, scienza; Vol. VI Novembre/Dicembre". cittadivita.org. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
57. Città di Vita, Bimestrale di religione, arte, scienza
58. Space: What love's got to do with it, by Vanna Bonta; The Space Review; 24 October 2004
59. The Impact of Space Activities Upon Society, World Catalogue
60. The Impact of Space Activities Upon Society (ESA Br,)
61. The Impact of Space Activities Upon Society European Space Agency (2005)
62. The Impact of Space Activities Upon Society, by Vanna Bonta (2005) ESA
63. "The Poetry Society (Florentine Camerata) and Italian Minister of Culture present the works of poet and writer Vanna Bonta". Florentine Camerata. Retrieved 26 April 2014.

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