| Alain Delon | ||||||
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| Born | November 8 1935 Sceaux, France |
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| Years active | 1957 - present | |||||
| Spouse(s) | Nathalie Barthélemy (1964-1968); 1 child | |||||
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Alain Delon (b. November 8, 1935, Sceaux, France) is a French actor. Delon’s star rose quickly, and by the age of 23 he was garnering comparisons to French screen legends such as Gérard Philipe and Jean Marais, as well as American actor James Dean. He was even called the male Brigitte Bardot. Over the course of his career, Delon has worked with legendary directors, including Luchino Visconti, Jean-Luc Godard, Jean-Pierre Melville, Michelangelo Antonioni, and Louis Malle. Delon acquired Swiss citizenship in 1999 and the company managing products sold under his name is based in Geneva.
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Early life
Delon was born in Sceaux, Île-de-France, not far from Paris. His parents, Fabien and Édith, divorced when Delon was young. Both remarried, and Delon has a half-sister and two half-brothers. He attended a Roman Catholic boarding school, the first of several schools from which he was expelled because of unruly behavior. Teachers once tried to convince him to enter the priesthood because of his aptitude in religious studies. At 14, Delon left school, and worked for a brief time at his stepfather's butcher shop. He enlisted in the army three years later, and in 1953 was sent to fight in the First Indochina War. Delon has said that out of his five years of military service he spent 11 months in prison for being "undisciplined". After being dishonorably discharged from the army he returned to Paris. He had no money, and got by on whatever employment he could find. He spent time working as a waiter, a porter, and a sales clerk. During this time he became friends with the actress Brigitte Auber, and joined her on a trip to the Cannes Film Festival, where his film career would begin.
Career
At Cannes, Delon was seen by a talent scout for David O. Selznick. After a successful screen test Selznick offered him a contract, provided he learn English. Delon returned to Paris to study English, but when he met French director Yves Allégret, he was convinced that he should stay in France to begin his career. Selznick allowed Delon to cancel his contract, and Allégret gave him his debut in the film Quand la Femme s'en Mêle (When the Woman Butts In). Delon then got to show a comedic aspect of himself in the film Faibles Femmes (Women Are Weak). This was also the first of his films to be seen in America, where it became a success. In 1960, Delon appeared in René Clément's Purple Noon, which was based on the Patricia Highsmith novel The Talented Mr. Ripley. He played protagonist Tom Ripley to critical acclaim. He then appeared in Luchino Visconti's Rocco and His Brothers. Critic Bosley Crowther of the New York Times said Delon's work was : "touchingly pliant and expressive." John Beaufort in the Christian Science Monitor said:
- "Rocco's heartbroken steadfastness furnishes the film with the foremost of its ironic tragedies ... [I]ts believability rests finally on Mr. Delon's compelling performance."
In 1964, the Cinémathèque Française held a showcase of Delon's films. Delon made his stage debut in 1961 in John Ford’s play, 'Tis Pity She’s a Whore alongside Romy Schneider in Paris. Visconti directed the production. Delon would work with him again for Il Gattopardo (The Leopard). Delon also worked with Jean-Pierre Melville, who directed him in Un Flic, Le Cercle Rouge, and Le Samouraï. In 1964, Delon started a production company, Delbeau Production, with Georges Beaume. They produced a film called L’insoumis, which had to be re-edited due to legal issues. Delon then started his own production company, Adel, and starred in the company’s first film, Jeff. Delon followed the success of the film with Borsalino, which became one of France’s highest grossing films of the time. In 1973, he made a duet with the French pop singer Dalida on "Paroles, paroles", which was a big hit in France, Japan, Canada, and many other countries. He was awarded the Best Actor César Awards (French equivalent of Oscars) for his role in Bertrand Blier's Notre histoire (1984). Then followed a string of box office failures in the late 1980s and 1990s, culminating in the failure of Patrice Leconte's Une chance sur deux. Delon announced his decision to give up acting in 1997, although he still occasionally accepts roles. In 1990, he worked with auteur Jean-Luc Godard, on Nouvelle vague, in which he played twins. In 2003, the Walter Reade Theater showed a series of Delon's films under the aegis, Man in the Shadows: The Films of Alain Delon. Most recently, it has been announced that he will play a role in a film called L’Ennemi public n°1, a biopic about Jacques Mesrine with Vincent Cassel in the title role.
Products
Since the formation of a perfume label in his name, Delon has had a variety of products sold under his name including clothing, eyewear, stationery and cigarettes.[1] Delon's sunglasses brand became particularly popular in Hong Kong after actor Chow Yun Fat wore them in the 1986 crime film A Better Tomorrow (as well as two sequels). Delon reportedly wrote a letter thanking Fat for helping the sunglasses sell out in the region [2] . The film's director John Woo has acknowledged Delon as one of his idols and wrote a short essay on Le Samourai for the Criterion Collection DVD release [3]
Relationships and family
Delon was engaged to actress Romy Schneider, whom he met when they appeared together in the film Christine. In August 1964, shortly after the broken engagement, he married Nathalie Barthélemy. Their son, Anthony Delon, was born in September. The couple divorced four years later. He had a long relationship with French actress Mireille Darc over the following years. In the 1990s, he fathered Anouchka and Alain-Fabien, who attended the International School of Amsterdam, by Dutch model Rosalie van Breemen. They met in 1987 on the shooting of the video clip of his song "Comme au cinéma"). Delon and Van Breemen separated in 2001 or 2002. It was speculated that he had an affair with German actress and singer Nico. In 1962, Nico had a son, Christian Aaron Boulogne, and claimed that he was fathered by Delon. Delon has denied this.
Scandal
In 1968, one of Delon’s bodyguards, Stevan Markovic, was found shot in the head in a dumpster outside Delon’s home. Delon’s friend, Corsican gangster François Marcantoni, was charged with accessory to murder. Delon himself was held by police for questioning, despite the fact that the murder took place in Paris, and Delon was filming in St. Tropez. Delon's then-wife, Nathalie, was also questioned.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | L'Instinct de mort | ||
| 2006 | Astérix aux Jeux Olympiques | Jules César | |
| 2004 | Frank Riva | Frank Riva | TV series, 2nd season |
| 2003 | Frank Riva | Frank Riva | TV series, 1st season |
| 1999 | Les Acteurs | Himself | |
| 1997 | Une Chance sur deux | Julien Vignal | |
| 1996 | Le Jour et la nuit | Alexandre | |
| 1994 | Les Cent et une nuits | L'acteur d'un jour | |
| 1993 | L'Ours en peluche | ||
| 1992 | Un Crime | Maitre Charles Durand | |
| 1992 | Le Retour de Casanova | Casanova | |
| 1990 | Nouvelle vague | L'homme | |
| 1990 | Dancing machine | Alan Wolf | |
| 1988 | Ne réveillez pas un flic qui dort | commissaire Eugène Grindel | |
| 1985 | Parole de flic | Daniel Pratt | |
| 1984 | Notre histoire | Robert Avranche | |
| 1984 | Le Passage | Jean Diaz | |
| 1983 | Le Battant | Jacques Darnay | |
| 1983 | Swann in Love | Baron de Charlus | |
| 1982 | Le Choc | Martin Terrier | |
| 1981 | Pour la peau d'un flic | Choucas | |
| 1980 | Trois hommes à abattre | Michel Gerfaut | |
| 1980 | Teheran 43. Nid d'espions | Foche | |
| 1979 | Le Toubib | Jean-Marie Desprès | |
| 1979 | The Concorde: Airport '79 | Paul Metrand | |
| 1978 | Attention, les enfants regardent | L'homme | |
| 1977 | Le Gang | Robert le Dingue | |
| 1977 | Mort d'un pourri | Xavier Maréchal | |
| 1976 | Monsieur Klein | Robert Klein | by Joseph Losey |
| 1976 | Armaguedon | Dr. Michel Ambrose | |
| 1976 | Comme un boomerang | Jacques Batkin | |
| 1976 | L'Homme pressé | Pierre Niox | |
| 1975 | Flic Story | Roger Borniche | |
| 1975 | Le Gitan | Le Gitan | |
| 1974 | Zorro | Diego/Zorro | |
| 1974 | Les Seins de glace | Marc Rilsen | |
| 1974 | Borsalino & Co. | Roch Siffredi | |
| 1973 | Deux hommes dans la ville | Gino Strabliggi | |
| 1973 | La Race des seigneurs | Julien Dandieu | |
| 1973 | Les Granges brûlées | Larcher | |
| 1973 | Scorpio | Jean Laurier, alias Scorpio | |
| 1973 | Les Grands fusils | Tony Arzenta | |
| 1972 | Traitement de choc | Devillers | |
| 1972 | Il était une fois un flic | Man searching Rodriguez | |
| 1972 | Le Professeur | Daniele Dominici | |
| 1971 | Un Flic | Coleman | |
| 1971 | La Veuve Couderc | Jean | |
| 1971 | Soleil Rouge | Gauche | by Terence Young |
| 1971 | Fantasia chez les ploucs | A caïd | |
| 1971 | The Assassination of Trotsky | Frank Jackson | |
| 1970 | Le Cercle rouge | Corey | by Jean-Pierre Melville |
| 1970 | Borsalino (film) | Rocco Siffredi | |
| 1970 | Doucement les basses | Simon | |
| 1969 | Le Clan des Siciliens | Roger Sartet | |
| 1969 | Madly | Julian | |
| 1969 | Jeff | Laurent | |
| 1968 | La Piscine | Jean-Paul | |
| 1968 | La Motocyclette | Daniel | |
| 1968 | Adieu l'ami | Dino Barran | |
| 1968 | Spirits of the Dead | William Wilson | Episode "William Wilson" |
| 1967 | Le Samouraï | Jef Costello | |
| 1967 | Diaboliquement vôtre | Pierre | |
| 1966 | Les Aventuriers | Manu | |
| 1966 | Les Centurions | Capt. Philippe Esclavier | |
| 1966 | Texas nous voilà | Don Andrea | |
| 1965 | Paris brûle-t-il ? | Jacques Chaban-Delmas | |
| 1965 | Once a Thief | Eddie Pedak | |
| 1965 | The Yellow Rolls-Royce | Stefano | |
| 1964 | L'Insoumis | Thomas | |
| 1963 | La Tulipe noire | Count de Saint Preux | |
| 1963 | The Leopard | Tancredi | |
| 1963 | Mélodie en sous-sol | Francis | |
| 1963 | Les Félins | Marc | |
| 1962 | Le Diable et les Dix Commandements | Pierre Messager | |
| 1962 | Carambolages | Lambert | |
| 1962 | L'eclisse | Piero | |
| 1962 | L'Amour à la mer | The film actor | |
| 1961 | Les Amours celebres | Prince Albert | Episode "Agnes Bernauer" |
| 1961 | Quelle joie de vivre | Ulysse | |
| 1960 | Plein Soleil | Tom Ripley | |
| 1960 | Rocco and His Brothers | Rocco Parondi | by Luchino Visconti |
| 1959 | Le chemin des écoliers | Antoine Michaud | |
| 1959 | Faibles femmes | Julien Fenal | |
| 1958 | Christine | Franz Lobheiner | |
| 1957 | Quand la femme s'en mêle | Jo | |
| 1957 | Sois belle et tais-toi | Loulou |
References
External links
