The real Marquis of Grillo lived in the early 18th century, but, for this take-off on the marquis' life, director Mario Monicelli) has changed the time period to the early 19th century when a lot more was going on in Rome. The marquis (Alberto Sordi) amuses himself by throwing red-hot coins to beggars, occasionally walling up the store entrance of an offending merchant and installing a urinal there instead, and generally making witty and broad comments on the life going on around him. His existence suddenly gets a lot more interesting when he discovers his physical (unrelated) twin in a Roman tavern (also Alberto Sordi) - a drunkard who works transporting coal when he is sober. As a joke, the marquis takes the passed-out drunk to his mansion and puts him in his bed -- fully intent on convincing the drunk and everyone else that this man is the real marquis.