Jean-Pierre Marielle (12 April 1932 – 24 April 2019) was a French

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

. He appeared in more than a hundred films in which he played very diverse roles, from a banal citizen ('' Les Galettes de Pont-Aven''), to a

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

hero (''

Les Milles Les Milles is a village, part of the communes of France, commune of Aix-en-Provence, in southern France. On the territory of the village Camp des Milles was opened in September 1939 in a former tile factory. Originally a French internment camp ...

''), to a compromised

spy Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...

('), to a has-been

('' Les Grands Ducs''), to his portrayal of Jacques Saunière in ''

The Da Vinci Code ''The Da Vinci Code'' is a 2003 mystery thriller novel by Dan Brown. It is Brown's second novel to include the character Robert Langdon: the first was his 2000 novel ''Angels & Demons''. ''The Da Vinci Code'' follows symbologist Robert Lang ...

''. He was well known for his distinctive cavernous voice, which is often imitated by French humorists who considered him to be

archetypical The concept of an archetype (; ) appears in areas relating to behavior, historical psychology, and literary analysis. An archetype can be any of the following: # a statement, pattern of behavior, prototype, "first" form, or a main model that ot ...

of the French gentleman.

Early life

Marielle was born in 1932 in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

to an industrialist father and a

dressmaker A dressmaker, also known as a seamstress, is a person who makes custom clothing for women, such as dresses, blouses, and evening gowns. Dressmakers were historically known as mantua-makers, and are also known as a modiste or fabrician. Notab ...

mother. His first acting experiences dated back to his

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

years during which he staged some of

Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career ...

’s plays with his comrades. He initially wanted to study

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

but one of his teachers encouraged him to become an actor instead, so that he joined the Conservatoire National where he became close friends with

Jean-Paul Belmondo Jean-Paul Charles Belmondo (; 9 April 19336 September 2021) was a French actor and producer. Initially associated with the New Wave of the 1960s, he was a major French film star for several decades from the 1960s onward. His best known credits ...

and Jean Rochefort and from where he left with the

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

second prize in 1954.

Career

Marielle's early career consisted of stage roles with the Grenier-Hussenot company, notably in Harold Pinter’s plays, and some small appearances on the large screen by the late 1950s, with his particular voice giving him the abilities to play older characters. However, disappointed by his first movie roles, he turned to

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining o ...

for a certain time. He obtained a little more consistent roles in the 1960s in movies such as ''

Faites sauter la banque! ''Faites sauter la banque!'' en, Rob the Bank, is a French comedy film from 1964, directed by Jean Girault, written by Louis Sapin and Jean Girault, starring Louis de Funès. The film is known under the titles: "Rob the Bank" (International Eng ...

'' (1963), starring alongside

Louis de Funès Louis Germain David de Funès de Galarza (; 31 July 1914 – 27 January 1983) was a French actor and comedian. He is France's favourite actor, according to a series of polls conducted since the late 1960s, having played over 150 roles in fil ...

, ''

Weekend at Dunkirk ''Weekend at Dunkirk'' (french: Week-end à Zuydcoote) is a 1964 war drama film directed by Henri Verneuil and starring Jean-Paul Belmondo. It is based on the 1949 Prix Goncourt winning novel ''Week-end at Zuydcoote'' (French: ''Week-end à Zuyd ...

'' (1964) and in particular ''

Un monsieur de compagnie ''Male Companion'' (french: Un monsieur de compagnie) is a 1964 romantic comedy film written and directed by Philippe de Broca, based on the 1961 novel ''Gentleman in Waiting'' by André Couteaux. The film stars Jean-Pierre Cassel. Plot Antoine ...

'' (1965), where French director

Philippe de Broca Philippe de Broca (; 15 March 1933 – 26 November 2004) was a French movie director. He directed 30 full-length feature films, including the highly successful '' That Man from Rio (''L'Homme de Rio'')'', '' The Man from Acapulco (Le Magnifique) ...

gave him the opportunity to express all of his talent. But his popularity really exploded during the 1970s as he appeared in a lot of comedies. In ' (1974) he played an Israeli spy having to hide in a trunk in order to be extracted from a country in the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...

. '' Les Galettes de Pont-Aven'' (1975), '' Que la fête commence'' (1974) and ''

Coup de Torchon ''Coup de Torchon'' (also known as ''Clean Slate'') is a 1981 French crime film directed by Bertrand Tavernier and adapted from Jim Thompson's 1964 novel '' Pop. 1280''. The film changes the novel's setting from an American Southern town to a s ...

'' (1981) confirmed him as a great actor. One of his best performances, which is also probably his darkest, lies in his wonderful interpretation of a disillusioned and suicidal cop in ' (1987). The other major role of his career was Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe in '' Tous les matins du monde'' (1994). In parallel he made a brilliant stage career and received the highest French award for a theater actor, the

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and worl ...

, in 1994. He played Jacques Sauniere in ''

'' (2006). He was awarded the Légion d’Honneur in 1992.

Personal life

Marielle was married to French actress Agathe Natanson from 4 October 2003 until his death and had a son from a previous union. He was a great fan of

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

music and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. Marielle died on April 24, 2019 at the age of 87.

Awards

* 1995 :

Golden Goblet Award for Best Actor The Golden Goblet Award for Best Actor (Chinese: 金爵奖最佳男演员) is a prize given to the films in the main category of Competition at the Shanghai International Film Festival The Shanghai International Film Festival (, French: ''Fest ...

( 2nd Shanghai International Film Festival) for the film ''

''. * 1992 :

7 d'Or The ''7 d'Or'' or ''Sept d'Or'' ( French for "Seven of Gold" or "Golden Seven") was a French television production award (similar in nature to the Emmy Awards), presented by '' Télé 7 Jours'' (a weekly French magazine with listings of TV show ...

Award for Best Actor for the TV film '. * 1987 : Mystfest Award for Best Actor for the film '. * 2008 : Honorary

Lumières Award The Lumières Award (french: Lumières de la presse internationale) is a French film award presented by the ''Académie des Lumières'' to honor the best in the French-speaking cinema of the previous year. The awards ceremony is organized by th ...

(

13th Lumières Awards The 13th Lumières Awards ceremony, presented by the Académie des Lumières, was held on 13 January 2008. The ceremony was chaired by Claude Lelouch. '' The Diving Bell and the Butterfly'' won the award for Best Film and Jean-Pierre Marielle was ...

)

Nominations

* 2004 –

César Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role Cesar, César or Cèsar may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''César'' (film), a 1936 film directed by Marcel Pagnol * ''César'' (play), a play by Marcel Pagnolt * César Award, a French film award Places * Cesar, Portugal * C ...

for the film '' La Petite Lili''. * 1993 –

for the film '' Max et Jérémie''. * 1992 –

César Award for Best Actor This is the list of winners and nominees of the César Award for Best Actor (french: César du meilleur acteur). History Superlatives Winners 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s Multiple wins and nominations The following indivi ...

for the film '' Tous les matins du monde''. * 1989 –

for the film '' Quelques jours avec moi''. * 1982 –

for the film ''

''. * 1976 –

for the film '' Les Galettes de Pont-Aven''.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Marielle, Jean-Pierre 1932 births 2019 deaths French male film actors French male television actors Actors from Dijon French National Academy of Dramatic Arts alumni 20th-century French male actors 21st-century French male actors French male stage actors Officiers of the Légion d'honneur