Cinzano of the vermouth market in Europe was measured in the low single digits, sales that placed it a distant second to Martini. As a result of a 1997 merger, Grand Metropolitan became Diageo; two years later, Diageo sold Cinzano to the privately held Gruppo Campari. The Cinzano bicycling team had a central role in the film "Breaking Away". Cinzano was well known in Britain for its humorous television advertisements featuring Leonard Rossiter and Joan Collins. One of these featured the pair on a plane journey, with Rossiter accidentally hitting the "recline" switch on Collins chair, causing her to spill a
Joan Collins of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 1997 New Year Honours for services to drama and was promoted to Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2015 New Year Honours for services to charity. Joan Collins Dame Joan Henrietta Collins (born 23 May 1933) is an English actress, author, and columnist. Born in London, Collins grew up during the Second World War. After making her stage debut in the Henrik Ibsen play "A Doll's House" at the age of nine, she trained as an actress at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art