Irina Demick (16 October 1936 in

Pommeuse Pommeuse () is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. Demographics Its inhabitants are called Pommeusiens. Geography Pommeuse is located in the valley of the Grand Morin and on the nort ...

Seine-et-Marne Seine-et-Marne () is a Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region in Northern France. Named after the rivers Seine and Marne (river), Marne, it is the region's largest department with an area of 5,915 square ...

– 8 October 2004), sometimes credited as Irina Demich or Irina Demik, was a French actress with a brief career in American films.

Biography

Born Irina Dziemiach, of Russian ancestry, in

, she went to Paris and became a model. She made an appearance in a French film ''Julie la rousse'' (1959) and met producer

Darryl F. Zanuck Darryl Francis Zanuck (September 5, 1902December 22, 1979) was an American film producer and studio executive; he earlier contributed stories for films starting in the silent era. He played a major part in the Hollywood studio system as one of ...

and became his lover. Zanuck had a long history of trying to turn his European mistresses into film starshe had previously done this with

Bella Darvi Bella Darvi (born Bajla Węgier; 23 October 1928 – 11 September 1971) was a Polish film actress and stage performer who was active in France and the United States. Biography Early life Darvi was born Bajla Węgier to Jewish parents Chajm ...

and

Juliette Gréco Juliette Gréco (; 7 February 1927 – 23 September 2020) was a French singer and actress. Her best known songs are "Paris Canaille" (1962, originally sung by Léo Ferré), "La Javanaise" (1963, written by Serge Gainsbourg for Gréco) and "Désh ...

, and would later do this with

Genevieve Gilles Geneviève Gilles (born Geneviève Gillaizeau; 1946) is a French-Romanian chef turned actress. In her early life she sold Superman figurines outside serial movies in Norwalk, Connecticut. She acted in one film and three 1980s era sitcoms. She was ...

.Buchwald, Art (1962-07-14). "Zanuck Vs. Greco: Four-Year Friendship Egomania Ambitious Girls". ''The Washington Post and Times-Herald''. p. D31 Zanuck cast Demick in his epic production '' The Longest Day'' (1962) as a French resistance fighter. Demick's career continued with roles in '' OSS se déchaîne'' (1963), '' The Visit'' (1964), ''

Un monsieur de compagnie ''Male Companion'' (french: Un monsieur de compagnie) is a 1964 romantic comedy film written and directed by Philippe de Broca, based on the 1961 novel ''Gentleman in Waiting'' by André Couteaux. The film stars Jean-Pierre Cassel. Plot Antoine ...

'' (1964) and ''

Up from the Beach ''Up from the Beach'' is a 1965 French-American international co-production war film directed by Robert Parrish and starring Cliff Robertson, Red Buttons and James Robertson Justice. It was based on a 1959 novel by George Barr called ''Epitaph ...

'' (1965). In 1965, she played in ''

La Métamorphose des cloportes ''La Métamorphose des cloportes'' is a French films of 1965, 1965 France, French and Italy, Italian crime film comedy directed by Pierre Granier-Deferre. Cast *Lino Ventura : Alphonse Maréchal *Charles Aznavour : Edmond Clancul *Irina Demick : ...

'', and seven roles in ''

Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines ''Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines; Or, How I Flew from London to Paris in 25 Hours and 11 Minutes'' is a 1965 British period comedy film that satirizes the early years of aviation. Directed and co-written by Ken Annakin, the film ...

'', each one of a different nationality. After making a few more films including ''

Prudence and the Pill ''Prudence and the Pill'' is a 1968 British comedy film made by Twentieth Century-Fox. It was directed by Fielder Cook and Ronald Neame and produced by Kenneth Harper and Ronald J. Kahn from a screenplay by Hugh Mills, based on his 1965 novel. T ...

'' (1968) and ''

Le Clan des Siciliens ''The Sicilian Clan'' (french: Le clan des Siciliens) is a 1969 French-Italian gangster film based on the novel by Auguste Le Breton. The film was directed by Henri Verneuil and stars Jean Gabin, Lino Ventura and Alain Delon, whose casting led ...

'' (''The Sicilian Clan'', 1969), and two Italian horror films in 1972, Demick's career faded and came to a standstill. In 1964, she married Philippe Wahl, a Swiss entrepreneur. Together they lived in Rome and Paris. After her divorce in 1979, she moved to the U.S. She died in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

Selected filmography

*''

Julie the Redhead ''Julie the Redhead'' (French: ''Julie la rousse'') is a 1959 French comedy film directed by Claude Boissol and starring Daniel Gélin, Pascale Petit and Margo Lion.Katz p.909 The film's sets were designed by the art director Robert Guisgand. ...

'' (1959) *'' The Longest Day'' (1962) as Janine Boitard *'' OSS se déchaîne'' (1963) as Lucia *'' The Visit'' (1964) as Anya *''

'' (1964) as Nicole *''

'' (1965) as Lili Rolland *''

'' (1965) as Brigitte / Ingrid / Marlene / Françoise / Yvette / Betty *''

'' (1965) as Catherine Verdier *''

Once a Greek ''Once a Greek'' is a 1955 novel by the Swiss writer Friedrich Dürrenmatt. Its original German title is ''Grieche sucht Griechin'', which means "Greek man seeks Greek woman". It tells the story of a shy, middle-aged book-keeping assistant, who bec ...

'' (1966) as Chloé Saloniki *''

Tiffany Memorandum ''Tiffany Memorandum'' (also known as ''The Tiffany Memorandum'') is a 1967 Eurospy film directed by Sergio Grieco. It is an international co-production between Italy, France (where the film is known as ''Coup de force à Berlin'') and West Germany ...

'' (1967) as Sylvie Meynard *''

'' (1968) as Elizabeth Brett *''La porta del cannone'' (1969) as Rada Kálmán *''

The Archangel ''The Archangel'' ( it, L'arcangelo) is a 1969 Italian comedy film directed by Giorgio Capitani and starring Vittorio Gassman. Cast * Vittorio Gassman as Fulvio Bertuccia * Pamela Tiffin as Gloria Bianchi * Irina Demick as Sig.ra Tarocchi Rod ...

'' (1969) as Sig.ra Taroochi Roda *'' The Sicilian Clan'' (1969) as Jeanne Manalese *' (1970) as Anna *''Quella chiara notte d'ottobre'' (1970) *''

Goya, a Story of Solitude ''Goya, a Story of Solitude'' (Spanish: ''Goya, historia de una soledad'') is a 1971 Spanish historical drama film directed by Nino Quevedo. It was entered into the 1971 Cannes Film Festival. The film was heavily cut by censors before its relea ...

'' (1971) as Duchess d'Alba *''

Naked Girl Killed in the Park ''Naked Girl Killed in the Park'' ( it, Ragazza tutta nuda assassinata nel parco, es, Joven de buena familia sospechosa de asesinato) is a 1972 giallo film directed by Alfonso Brescia, co-written by Gianni Martucci and starring Robert Hoffmann ...

'' (1972) as Magda Wallenberger *''

Tragic Ceremony ''Tragic Ceremony'' ( it, Estratto dagli archivi segreti della polizia di una capitale europea - ''lit. Extracted from the Secret Police Archives of a European Capital'', es, Trágica ceremonia en villa Alexander) is a 1972 horror film directed ...

'' (1972) as Bill's mother (final film role)

References

External links

* * http://starletshowcase.blogspot.com/2008/08/cool-french-underground-girls.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Demick, Irina 1936 births 2004 deaths People from Seine-et-Marne French film actresses French people of Russian descent French emigrants to the United States 20th-century French actresses