Obituary: Grande dame of Italian pics penned 'Bicycle Thieves' -- ROME - Screenwriter Suso Cecchi d'Amico, who became the grande dame of postwar Italian cinema through her versatile visual storytelling talent, instrumental to such classics as "The Bicycle Thief," "Big Deal on Madonna Street," "Rocco and His Brothers" and "The Leopard," died July 30 in Rome.