British Union of Fascists 1940, the BUF was banned outright by the government and Mosley, along with 740 other fascists, was interned for much of the Second World War. After the war, Mosley made several unsuccessful attempts to return to politics, notably in the Union Movement. Mosley, known to his followers as The Leader, modelled his leadership style on Benito Mussolini and the BUF on Mussolini's National Fascist Party in Italy, the uniform chosen for members was a black fencing jacket, its colour in honour of the Italian Fascists' uniforms and its cut a nod to Mosley's proficiency at the sport. The uniform earned
Benito Mussolini topical insult of "chisler". William Saroyan wrote a short story about Mussolini in his 1971 book, "Letters from 74 rue Taitbout or Don't Go But If You Must Say Hello To Everybody". More serious biographical depictions include Rod Steiger in Carlo Lizzani's 1974 movie "Last Days of Mussolini", and George C. Scott's portrayal in the 1985 television mini-series "Mussolini: The Untold Story". Another 1985 movie was "Mussolini and I", in which Bob Hoskins plays the dictator (with Susan Sarandon as his daughter Edda and Anthony Hopkins as Count Ciano). Actor Antonio Banderas also played the title role in "Benito" in