French Celebrities Bio | Jean Gabin

Born near Paris in 1904 (his real name was Jean-Alexis Moncorgé), this giant of French acting and admired war hero had entertainment in his genes – his parents were both cabaret entertainers who performed in local cafés.

After a short spell as a labourer, by his late teens he was playing small parts at the Folies Bergères. He then appeared in various reviews and operettas, gaining some popularity for his imitation of Maurice Chevalier.

Through a chance meeting with the singer Mistinguett in 1928, he was given a spot at the Moulin-Rouge and was soon picking up small roles in silent films. His first major role in a talkie came in the 1930 film Chacun sa chance where he appeared with Gaby Basset, his first wife.

By the end of this decade he was a growing star, the epitome of the tragic romantic hero in such films as 1936 war drama titled La Bandera.


The real break, however, came when he teamed up with La Bandera’s director Julien Duvivier again, this time in the hugely successful, Algiers-set gangster film Pépé le Moko. The film was the biggest grossing in the world that year and Gabin’s international stardom was established.

Major roles in films by top directors followed, including Jean Renoir’s anti-war masterpiece La Grande Illusion and La Bête Humaine, the film noir tragedy based on the novel by Émile Zola.

The outbreak of World War II put the brakes on his career, so he moved to Hollywood, striking up an affair with Marlene Dietrich. Disillusioned that his career didn’t take off as he hoped there, he returned to France and enlisted in the Free French Army.

After serving with the Allies in North Africa, he was awarded various bravery medals and following D-Day, Gabin was part of the military contingent that entered a liberated Paris.

Several poorly received films followed the war but his reputation was restored with the lead in Jacques Becker’s Don’t Touch the Loot (1954). For the next 20 years he worked constantly, making close to 50 films with leading stars such as Jean-Paul Belmondo, Alain Delon and Brigitte Bardot, many of which were commercially and critically successful.

Jean Gabin died of leukemia in a Paris hospital in 1976 and his passing marked with full military honours. His ashes were cast into the sea off the coast of Brest in Brittany.

Gabin is still held in such high regard in France that he was chosen as the face of Cannes film festival in 2011. Guests arriving at the train station were met by a giant image of the star taken from La Bête Humaine.

The life of this French legend is marked at the Jean Gabin museum in his childhood village, Mériel, (Val d’Oise, Ile de France). Here you can learn more about his life and see some of his film and war memorabilia.

www.musee-gabin.com

He is even hailed as the world’s coolest movie star in this affectionate blog


Certainly not to be missed is the Jean Gabin season on Cinémoi (the UK's first and only channel dedicated to French film). Starting this September they will be showing the following 3 masterpieces:

Le Jour se Lève, Le Chat and Mélodie en Sous Sol, 3 films that represent 3 different genres from his wide body of work - respectively a cinematic classic, searing drama and gripping thriller, giving an overview of his versatile talent throughout his career. Indeed his co-stars are some of the best known actors and actresses of their time: from Arletty in the 1930s, to Alain Delon and Simone Signoret in the 1960s and 1970s.


August,17th, 2011 by Katharine Barrau