Victor Francen (born Victor Franssens; 5 August 1888 – 18 November 1977) was a Belgian-born actor with a long career in French cinema and in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

Biography

Francen was born in 1888 in

Tienen Tienen (; ) is a city and municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, Belgium. The municipality comprises Tienen itself and the towns of Bost, Goetsenhoven, Hakendover, Kumtich, Oorbeek, Oplinter, Sint-Margriete-Houtem and Viss ...

, Belgium, the son of a chief of police. According to Russian sources, he attended opera classes in Odessa before 1914. He worked in trade in Belgium before settling in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, where he trained in dramatic art under Paul Mounet. His stage career in the 1920s included appearances in plays by Henri Bernstein,

Georges Bataille Georges Albert Maurice Victor Bataille (; ; 10 September 1897 – 8 July 1962) was a French philosopher and intellectual working in philosophy, literature, sociology, anthropology, and history of art. His writing, which included essays, novels, ...

and Edmond Rostand, which took him all over the world. After three appearances in silent films, he played the Prophet in

Abel Gance Abel Gance (; born Abel Eugène Alexandre Péréthon; 25 October 188910 November 1981) was a French film director, producer, writer and actor. A pioneer in the theory and practice of montage, he is best known for three major silent films: ''J'ac ...

's film '' La Fin du monde'' (''The End of the World'') (1931) and established his career as a leading man in French films. In 1940, he was introduced to Hollywood by

Charles Boyer Charles Boyer (; 28 August 1899 – 26 August 1978) was a French-American actor who appeared in more than 80 films between 1920 and 1976. After receiving an education in drama, Boyer started on the stage, but he found his success in American fi ...

. He appeared prolifically in American films throughout the 1940s, then made a single, final, appearance in 1954. His debut was in 1941, in ''

Hold Back the Dawn Hold may refer to: Physical spaces * Hold (compartment), interior cargo space * Baggage hold, cargo space on an airplane * Stronghold, a castle or other fortified place Arts, entertainment, and media * Hold (musical term), a pause, also calle ...

''. Among his memorable roles were as a ship's captain in ''

Passage to Marseille ''Passage to Marseille'', also known as ''Message to Marseille'', is a 1944 American war film made by Warner Brothers, directed by Michael Curtiz. The screenplay was by Casey Robinson and Jack Moffitt (screenwriter), Jack Moffitt from the novel ...

'' (1944), an international intriguer in '' The Mask of Dimitrios'' (1944), and a French adventurer in ''

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

'' (1945).

Personal life

Francen was married three times, his last to the actress Mary Marquet. He died in 1977 in Saint-Cannat,

Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône ( ; , ; ; "the Mouths of the Rhône") is a Departments of France, department in southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var (department), Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the sout ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Complete filmography

* ''Le doute'' (1921) – Le jeune écrivain Pierre Aubry * ''Crépuscule d'épouvante'' (1921) – Michel Fortin * '' The Snow on the Footsteps'' (1923) – Marc Romenay * '' La Fin du monde'' (''End of the World'') (1931) – Martial Novalic * '' L'aiglon'' (''The Eaglet'') (1931) – Flambeau * '' Après l'amour'' (''When Love Is Over'') (1931) – Pierre Meyran * '' Ariane, jeune fille russe'' (1932) – Constantin * ''Mélo'' (''The Dreamy Mouth'') (1932) – Marcel, l'amant * '' Broken Wings'' (1933) – Fabrège * ''Le velour'' (1933) – Richard Voisin * '' The Adventurer'' (1934) – Étienne Ranson * ''Le chemineau'' (1935) – Le chemineau / The Vagabond * '' Veille d'armes'' (1935) – Captain de Corlaix * ''La porte du large'' (1936) – Commandant Villette * '' Le roi'' (''The King'') (1936) – Le roi Jean IV de Cerdagne – en visite à Paris * '' Nuits de feu'' (''Nights of Fire'') (1937) – Fedor Andreiev * '' L'appel de la vie'' (''The Call of Life'') (1937) – Le professeur Rougeon * '' Double crime sur la ligne Maginot'' (''Double Crime in the Maginot Line'') (1937) – Capitaine Bruchot * ''Feu!'' (1937) – André Frémiet * '' Forfaiture'' (''The Cheat'') (1937) – Pierre Moret * '' J'accuse!'' (1938) – Jean Diaz * '' Tamara la complaisante'' (1938) – Grigory * '' La vierge folle'' (''The Foolish Virgin'') (1938) – Marcel Armaury * '' La fin du jour'' (''The End of the Day'') (1939) – Marny * ''

Entente cordiale The Entente Cordiale (; ) comprised a series of agreements signed on 8 April 1904 between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and the French Third Republic, French Republic which saw a significant improvement in Fr ...

'' (1939) – Le roi Édouard VII * '' L'homme du Niger'' (''The Man from Niger'') (1940) – Le commandant Bréval * ''

'' (1941) – Van Den Luecken * '' The Tuttles of Tahiti'' (1942) – Dr. Blondin * '' Ten Gentlemen from West Point'' (1942) – Florimond Massey * '' Tales of Manhattan'' (1942) – Arturo Bellini * ''

Mission to Moscow Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada * Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

'' (1943) – Vyshinsky, chief trial prosecutor * '' Madame Curie'' (1943) – President of University * '' The Desert Song'' (1943) – Caid Yousseff * '' In Our Time'' (1944) – Count Pawel Orwid * ''

'' (1944) – Capt. Patain Malo * '' The Mask of Dimitrios'' (1944) – Wladislaw Grudek * '' The Conspirators'' (1944) – Hugo Von Mohr * '' Hollywood Canteen'' (1944) – Victor Francen * '' Confidential Agent'' (1945) – Licata * ''

'' (1945) – Legare * '' Devotion'' (1946) – Constantin Heger * '' Night and Day'' (1946) – Anatole Giron * '' The Beast with Five Fingers'' (1946) – Francis Ingram * '' The Beginning or the End'' (1947) – Dr. Marré * '' To the Victor'' (1948) – Police Inspector Beauvais * ''La Révoltée'' (1948) – Henri Dumières * ''La nuit s'achève'' (1950) – Dr. Coudray (Thiriot) * '' Adventures of Captain Fabian'' (1951) – Henri Brissac * '' Hell and High Water'' (1954) – Prof. Montel * '' Bedevilled'' (1955) – Father Du Rocher * ''

A Farewell to Arms ''A Farewell to Arms'' is a novel by American writer Ernest Hemingway, set during the Italian campaign of World War I. First published in 1929, it is a first-person account of an American, Frederic Henry, serving as a lieutenant () in the a ...

'' (1957) – Colonel Valentini * '' The Indian Tomb'' (1959) – Penitent (uncredited) * '' Fanny'' (1961) – Panisse's Elder Brother * ''The Big Scare'' (1964) – Docteur Chabert * ''Top Crack'' (1966) – (final film role)

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Francen, Victor 1888 births 1977 deaths 20th-century Belgian male actors Belgian expatriates in France Belgian expatriates in the United States Belgian male film actors Belgian male silent film actors Belgian male stage actors Expatriate male actors in the United States People from Tienen