The death of Corona in 1922 affected significantly the young Carlo. A number of tormented years followed: a marriage with Giulia Lauricella, from a Sicilian family related to Luigi Pirandello, produced a son, Franco; however the marriage ended in separation very quickly. Not having financial problems – the new Arnaldi family owned large real estate in Rome and elsewhere in Italy – Carlo spent the following years enjoying the new freedom and living something like a playboy’s life.
A brief period of apprenticeship with the renowned painter Armando Spadini gave him some orientation and technical training; but the very conservative style of the master could not suit the artistic orientation of the unruly pupil. Spadini died in 1925. Between the mid-20s and the early 30s, the artistic passion being temporarily set aside, Carlo had a brief career as a movie actor in Italy and in Germany, and discovered a new love: sailing. He crisscrossed the Mediterranean solo on a small sailboat with no auxiliary motor, at a time when pleasure yachting was still a rarity. From these years, a few sketches of boats and marinas remain, a king of excursion Into a realistic genre.