Pippo Baudo, the face who best represented Italian television, died on August 16 at the age of 89. He died in Rome at the Campus Bio-Medico, where he was hospitalized, leaving behind a career spanning over sixty years, a legacy of collective memories, and a popularity that spans generations. Baudo, who was born in Militello, Val di Catania, in 1936, started his career on television practically by coincidence in the 1960s. From then on, he never looked back, converting himself into the ultimate host: elegant, confident, and always capable of maintaining control of the stage while making the audience feel at ease. His name is still associated with programs that have become part of RAI and entertainment television history, such as Settevoci, Canzonissima, Fantastico, and Domenica In. But most importantly, he maintains an unparalleled record: thirteen editions of the Sanremo Festival, seven of them also as artistic director. A presence that has influenced the festival's history and, in the end, Italian music. He was more than just a host; he was an avid talent scout. Baudo discovered and promoted hundreds of musicians who went on to become music and entertainment icons, including Al Bano, Laura Pausini, Andrea Bocelli, Giorgia, Lorella Cuccarini, Heather Parisi, Barbara D'Urso, and even a younger Beppe Grillo. He possessed the eye—and ear—of someone who could see the potential for future success in an unripe performance. Throughout his life, he was constantly reinventing himself. He was also the president of the Teatro Stabile di Catania, an ambassador of Sicilian culture, and a man of remarkable historical memory and curiosity in the twentieth century. In 2021, the Republic bestowed upon him the honor of Cavaliere di Gran Croce, Italy's highest civilian decoration. With Baudo, not only a man, but an era of television, disappeared. His voice, attitude, and grace will live forever in our collective imagination. For many spectators, he had become almost a familiar presence: the comfortable presence of someone who had spent decades accompanying Sundays in the living room, the Sanremo Music Festival, and other music and entertainment events.