''Hercule'' is a 1938 French

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

Alexander Esway Alexander Esway (20 January 1895 – 23 August 1947) was a Hungarian-born film director, screenwriter, and producer. Life and career Esway was born Sándor Ezry in Budapest. In the late 1920s and early 1930s he worked as a director and screenwrit ...

and starring

Fernandel Fernand Joseph Désiré Contandin (8 May 1903 – 26 February 1971), better known as Fernandel, was a French actor and singer. Born near Marseille, France, to Désirée Bedouin and Denis Contandin, originating in Perosa Argentina, an Occitan t ...

Gaby Morlay Gaby Morlay (born Blanche Pauline Fumoleau; 8 June 1893 – 4 July 1964) was a film actress from France.

and

Pierre Brasseur Pierre Brasseur (22 December 1905 – 16 August 1972), born Pierre-Albert Espinasse, was a French actor. Biography The son of actors Georges Espinasse and Germaine Brasseur, the latter a cousin of Albert Brasseur; his grandfather, Jules B ...

.Oscherwitz & Higgins p.189 The film's sets were designed by

Pierre Schild Pierre Schild (1897–1968) was a Russian Empire-born art director known for his work in French and Spanish cinema. Born Lakka Schildknecht, he left Russia following the October Revolution in 1917. Following the German invasion of France in 1940 h ...

Jean Grémillon Jean Grémillon (; 3 October 1901 – 25 November 1959)Note that, despite attempts at correction, thIMDb entry on the directorlists his date of birth erroneously as 4 March 1898. The correct date is given in his standard biography, by Geneviève S ...

was the film's original director, but he left shortly after production had begun. A simple

fisherman A fisher or fisherman is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million commercial and subsistence fishers and fish farmers. Fishers may be professional or rec ...

from

Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...

inherits a

Paris Paris () is the capital and 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), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

ian newspaper, but finds some of his new staff are dishonest.

Main cast

as Hercule Maffre *

Gaby Morlay Gaby Morlay (born Blanche Pauline Fumoleau; 8 June 1893 – 4 July 1964) was a film actress from France.

as Juliette Leclerc *

as Bastien * Henri Crémieux as Bajoux *

Édouard Delmont Édouard Delmont (5 December 1883 – 22 November 1955) was a French actor born Édouard Marius Autran in Marseille. He died in Cannes at age 72. Filmography *1930 : '' L'Arlésienne'' de Jacques de Baroncelli *1930 : ''Maison de danses'' de ...

as Maffre * Nane Germon as Miette * Vincent Hyspa as Cahuzac *

Robert Pizani Robert Pizani (26 April 1896 – 17 June 1965) was a French stage and film actor whose 45-year career encompassed leading roles in numerous plays, revues and operettas as well as dozens of films. In operetta Pizani's roles in operetta and musica ...

as Le premier frère Riquel *

Henri Poupon Henri Poupon (1884–1953) was a French stage and film actor.Paietta p.128 He worked a number of times with the write-director Marcel Pagnol. Selected filmography * ''The Fortune'' (1931) * ''To the Polls, Citizens'' (1932) * ''Angèle'' (1934) * ...

as Boeuf *

Jean Tissier Jean Tissier (1896–1973) was a French stage, film and television actor.Goble p.440 A prolific actor, he had more than two hundred fifty appearances on screen during his career. He was married to the actress Georgette Tissier. Selected filmograp ...

as Le troisième frère Riquel * Charles Dechamps as Le second frère Riquel *

Jules Berry Jules Berry (born Marie Louis Jules Paufichet; 9 February 1883 – 23 April 1951) was a French actor. Biography Early life Berry and his two brothers were born to parents who sold hardware and settled in Poitou. The family moved to Paris in 188 ...

as Vasco

References

Bibliography

*Oscherwitz, Dayna & Higgins, Maryellen. ''The A to Z of French Cinema''. Scarecrow Press, 2009.

External links

* 1938 films French comedy films 1938 comedy films 1930s French-language films Films directed by Alexander Esway Films set in Paris French black-and-white films 1930s French films {{1930s-comedy-film-stub