Marcel Courmes

Marcel Louis Henry Joseph Léon Courmes (13 June 1885 – 5 May 1950) was a French military officer and aviator during the First World War, and later one of the first French sound cinematographers.

Biography

Family and background

Courmes was born on June 13, 1885, to Euphémie Segond and Captain Arthur Louis Courmes (1849–1921), a Knight of the Legion of Honour. His paternal lineage traces back to Luc Courmes, a Huguenot captain born in 1580 in Grasse. He was also the great-grandnephew of Claude-Marie Courmes, who served as deputy of Var, mayor of Grasse, and was a Knight of the Legion of Honour.

On March 21, 1910, Courmes married Louise Read Chadwick, the daughter of American painter Francis Brooks Chadwick and Swedish painter Emma Löwstädt-Chadwick, in Grez-sur-Loing.

Courmes had a son, Lieutenant Christian Courmes (1913–1987), and a daughter, Gilberte Courmes. Christian was imprisoned in 1942 at Colditz fortress, where he participated two escape attempts, that became known as "The Metro" and "The French Tunnel". Gilberte married Colonel Maurice Delage, a Companion of Liberation, who served with General Leclerc's "Force L" and established the 13th Engineering Battalion of the 2nd Armored Division. Delage eventually took part in the invasion of Normandy and the Liberation of Paris.
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Military career

Courmes graduated 6th out of 277 from his class at the École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr, and Major out of 60 at École de cavalerie, Saumur.État de services du chef d'escadrons Marcel Courmes : SHD - GR 8YE 3139.

He was a classmate of François de La Rocque, Colonel de La Rocque and demonstrated his military loyalty to him by testifying as a character witness at La Rocque's trial. He was also close to the first Chinese Saint-Cyrien, General Prince Pao-Tchao Dan (1884–1958).

In 1907, he first served as a second lieutenant in the 5th African Hunter Regiment, then as lieutenant in the 2nd African Hunter Regiment from 1907–1908. During the Moroccan Campaign, he served in the 28th (1910–1911) and the 7th Dragoon Regiment (1913). He was described in his service record as a "brilliant but dreamy, excessively artistic cavalry officer who has a tendency towards too much benevolence in his command, which can have serious disadvantages in times of war."

In 1914, he was a special staff officer of the 4th Dragoon Regiment. He joined the French Air and Space Force, French Air Force on August 1, 1915, in the French 2nd Bombardment Group, and then served in the Escadrille F 63. His service record categorised him as "an officer of perfect education, of an independent character who has great qualities of composure, courage and willpower, which make him an excellent pilot."

Career in film

Courmes was one of the first French sound cinematographers, along with Joseph de Bretagne, with both working on many French films of the 1930s. In 1931, the pair featured in film ''La Chienne'' directed by Jean Renoir, for which Courmes was both the artistic director and played the role of "The Colonel". Courmes and Bretagne were supported by technical advisors from Western Electric, Bell and Hotchckiss, who assisted in direct capture of outdoor sound. The pair's contribution is most apparent in the film's final sequence, a tracking shot with dialogue between Michel Simon and Alexis Godart on a busy street. The "sound trucks" necessary for this sequence were used by the novice technicians with the help of experts from Western Electric.

Courmes is also credited in Braunberger and Richebé films such as ''Fantômas'' (with Bell in 1932) and ''The Agony of the Eagles'' (1933, with Bell). He also recorded the street sounds of ''La Tête d'un homme'' for Julien Duvivier (1932, production Vandal et Delac) and those of ''Hôtel du Nord'' for Marcel Carné in 1938. Later, with Bretagne again, he worked on the Renoir film ''Madame Bovary'' (1933) and ''Le Voyage de M. Perrichon'' (1934) by Jean Tarride.

Awards and honors

Courmes obtained the following distinctions:
* Knight of the Legion of Honor (July 6, 1929)
* Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (France), Croix de Guerre (1914–1918), with Palm
* Morocco commemorative medal (1909), Morocco Clasp
* Citation to the Order of the Army, number 32489 (July 13, 1916) with mention: "Bold and skillful pilot carried out 10 bombings, including 9 at night; this is particularly distinguished by carrying out successfully on the night of the 17th on May 18, 1916 a particularly perilous expedition to an important station."

Filmography

Marcel Courmes was one of the first French sound cinematographers and was also the artistic director of Jean Renoir's film ''La Chienne''. He participated in the following films''Ciné-ressources.net'' search : Marcel Courmes

* 1931 : ''La Chienne'' by Jean Renoir
* 1931 : ''L'Amour à l'américaine'' by Paul Fejos
* 1932 : ''Fantômas (1932 film), Fantômas'' by Paul Fejos
* 1932 : ''Criminel'' by Jack Forrester
* 1933 : ''The Agony of the Eagles (1933 film), L'agonie des aigles'' by Roger Richebé
* 1933 : ''A Man's Neck (film), La tête d'un homme'' by Julien Duvivier
* 1933 : ''The Man with the Hispano (1933 film), L'Homme à l'Hispano'' by Jean Epstein
* 1933 : ''Madame Bovary (1933 film), Madame Bovary'' by Jean Renoir
* 1933 : ''Quelqu'un a tué'' by Jack Forrester
* 1933 : ''Tire-au-flanc'' by Henry Wulschleger
* 1933 : ''Tour de chant'' by Alberto Cavalcanti
* 1934 : ''Cessez le feu'' by Jacques de Baroncelli
* 1934 : ''Les nuits moscovites'' by Alexis Granowsky
* 1934 : ''Le Voyage de monsieur Perrichon (film), Le Voyage de monsieur Perrichon'' by Jean Tarride
* 1935 : ''Le comte Obligado'' by Léon Mathot
* 1935 : ''Le Billet de mille'' by Marc Didier
* 1935 : ''Quelle drôle de gosse'' by Léo Joannon
* 1935 : ''Golgotha (film), Golgotha'' by Julien Duvivier
* 1935 : ''Les yeux noirs'' by Victor Tourjanski
* 1935 : ''Le roman d'un jeune homme pauvre (1935 film), Le Roman d'un jeune homme pauvre'' by Abel Gance
* 1936 : ''Sous les yeux d'occident'' by Marc Allégret
* 1936 : ''Aventure à Paris'' by Marc Allégret
* 1936 : ''Partie de campagne'' by Jean Renoir
* 1936 : ''Les Hommes nouveaux'' by Marcel L'Herbier
* 1936 : ''Tarass Boulba'' by Alexis Granowsky
* 1936 : ''Opéra de Paris (film), Opéra de Paris'' by Claude Lambert (short film)
* 1936 : ''Le grand refrain'' by Yves Mirande
* 1937 : ''Vous n'avez rien à déclarer?'' by Léo Joannon
* 1937 : ''Les Perles de la couronne'' by Sacha Guitry
* 1938 : ''Orage (film), Orage'' by Marc Allégret
* 1938 : ''Hôtel du Nord'' by Marcel Carné
* 1938 : ''Carrefour (film), Carrefour'' by Curtis Bernhardt, Kurt Bernhardt
* 1938 : ''Durand bijoutier'' by Jean Stelli
* 1938 : ''Lumières de Paris'' by Richard Pottier
* 1938 : ''The Train for Venice (film), Le train pour Venise'' by André Berthomieu
* 1939 : ''La charrette fantôme'' by Julien Duvivier
* 1939 : ''La famille Duraton'' by Christian Stengel
* 1939 : ''Le déserteur (1939 film), Le déserteur'' by Léonide Moguy
* 1943 : ''L'Auberge de l'abîme'' by Willy Rozier
* 1943 : ''Two Timid Souls (1943 film), Les Deux timides'' by Yves Allégret
* 1943 : ''Le camion blanc'' by Léo Joannon

References

Bibliography

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Courmes, Marcel
1885 births
1950 deaths
Courmes family
French World War I pilots
French cinematographers
People from Grasse