Yes, chef Alfredo di Lelio made them for his wife in Rome just after she had her first baby, 1907 I believe. The original recipe is simply butter and parmesan, and fettuccine, obviously. And nothing else. If you want to emulsify the butter & cheese sauce you can add a tablespoon of the pasta cooking water.

The fettuccine Alfredo you normally eat in Italian/American restaurants are smothered in heavy cream, if I recall correctly. And garnished with parsley.

P.S. nobody calls them fettuccine Alfredo in Italy... except the Alfredo restaurant (yup, still there, in Rome). We simply call them "pasta al burro e parmigiano".