Spanish Steps the foundation of Rome, April 21, part of the steps are covered by pots of azaleas, up until early May. In modern times the Spanish Steps have included a small cut-flower market. The steps are not a place for eating lunch, being forbidden by Roman urban regulations, but they are usually crowded with people. The 1953 film "Roman Holiday", starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck, made the Spanish Steps famous to an American audience. The apartment that was the setting for "The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone" (1961) is halfway up on the right. Bernardo Bertolucci's "Besieged" (1998) is also
Spanish Steps set in a house next to the Steps. The Steps were featured prominently in the film version of "The Talented Mr. Ripley" starring Matt Damon in the title role. The progressive rock group Refugee recorded the song "Credo" in 1974, which contains the lyric: "I believe in constant pauses / Like a Roman holiday / And I often stop for air / As I climb the Spanish stairs". The Bob Dylan song "When I Paint My Masterpiece," first recorded in 1971 by The Band and later appearing on the album "Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol. II", mentions both the "Spanish