Grazie, Anna! La felicita e una cosa che ho besogno...

I feel too many people think of language partnership as of something like dating. Or maybe they aren't here to learn languages but to find a date. 

And, well, the French do say that the best place to learn languages is the bed (with a foreign lover) but real life contradicts that.  

Лучше сформулировать вопрос так: "Назовите, пожалуйста, ваших любимых российских деятелей прошлого или современности". 

"Любимые русские люди" звучит не по-русски. 

Я назову Пушкина, Льва Толстого, Александра Блока и Михаила Щербакова. 

I feel the Italian people as seen on TV are rather interesing and colourful (I mean the really world famous singers and actors, I've watched some classic Italian movies of the 1960s and I loved them). I feel when people think of Italians they remember Pavarotti and Mastroyanni first, and only then think about the politicians. 

Io imparo italiano per piacere e per viaggiare a Italia

I'm a professional tutor and I feel you should start with a tutor (mind, she\he must be a good professional tutor). You can continue on your own later when you get to the intermediate level.

If you are afraid of wasting money... well, think of your learning Italian as an investment. Think about how much money you'll have to invest to get the results you want.

Either you may learn through language exchange with people that want English practice. Don't expect too much from every native speaker but you may find a professional Italian tutor who needs to learn English.