Jean-Claude Brialy (30 March 1933 – 30 May 2007) was a French actor and film director.

Early life

Brialy was born in Aumale (now

Sour El-Ghozlane Sour El-Ghozlane (or Souk El Ghoziane) is a town and commune in Algeria's central-northern, just-landlocked Bouïra Province. According to the 1998 census it has a population of 42,179. History Pre Historic A prehistoric tool (biface) testifyi ...

French Algeria French Algeria (french: Alger to 1839, then afterwards; unofficially , ar, الجزائر المستعمرة), also known as Colonial Algeria, was the period of French colonisation of Algeria. French rule in the region began in 1830 with the ...

, where his father was stationed with the

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...

. Brialy moved to mainland France with his family in 1942. He was an alumnus of the

Prytanée National Militaire The Prytanée national militaire is a French military school managed by the French military, offering regular secondary education as well as special preparatory classes, equivalent in level to the first years of university, for students who wish ...

. When he was 21 years old, he went to

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 ...

to work as an actor.

Career

In 1956, Brialy acted in his first role in the short film ''Le coup du berger'' (''

Fool's Mate In chess, the fool's mate is the checkmate delivered after the fewest possible moves from the game's starting position. It arises from the following moves, or similar: :1. f3 e6 :2. g4 Qh4# The fool's mate can be achieved only by Black, givin ...

'') by

Jacques Rivette Jacques Rivette (; 1 March 1928 – 29 January 2016) was a French film director and film critic most commonly associated with the French New Wave and the film magazine '' Cahiers du Cinéma''. He made twenty-nine films, including '' L'amour f ...

. By the late 1950s, he'd become one of the most prolific actors in the French ''

nouvelle vague French New Wave (french: La Nouvelle Vague) is a French art film movement that emerged in the late 1950s. The movement was characterized by its rejection of traditional filmmaking conventions in favor of experimentation and a spirit of iconocla ...

'' and a

star A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...

. He appeared in films of ''nouvelle vague'' directors such as Claude Chabrol (''

Le Beau Serge ''Le Beau Serge'' (, literal English translation: "Handsome Serge") is a 1958 French film directed by Claude Chabrol. It has been cited as the first product of the Nouvelle Vague, or French New Wave, film movement. The film is often compared wit ...

'', 1958; '' Les Cousins'', 1959),

Louis Malle Louis Marie Malle (; 30 October 1932 – 23 November 1995) was a French film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in both Cinema of France, French cinema and Cinema of the United States, Hollywood. Described as "eclectic" and "a fi ...

(''

Ascenseur pour l'échafaud ''Elevator to the Gallows'' (french: Ascenseur pour l'échafaud), also known as ''Frantic'' in the U.S. and ''Lift to the Scaffold'' in the U.K., is a 1958 French crime thriller film directed by Louis Malle, starring Jeanne Moreau and Maurice Ro ...

'', 1958; ''

Les Amants ''The Lovers'' (french: Les amants) is a 1958 French drama film directed by Louis Malle which stars Jeanne Moreau, Alain Cuny, and Jean-Marc Bory. Based on the posthumously-published 1876 short story ''Point de Lendemain'' by Dominique Vivant (174 ...

'', 1958), François Truffaut (''

Les 400 Coups Éditions Les 400 Coups is a French-language publisher of books for children. It was founded in 1995 and is based in Montréal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in th ...

'', 1959),

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as Fran� ...

, (''

Une femme est une femme ''A Woman Is a Woman'' (french: Une femme est une femme) is a 1961 French musical romantic comedy film written and directed by Jean-Luc Godard, starring Jean-Paul Belmondo, Anna Karina and Jean-Claude Brialy. It is a tribute to American musical ...

'', 1961),

Éric Rohmer Jean Marie Maurice Schérer or Maurice Henri Joseph Schérer, known as Éric Rohmer (; 21 March 192011 January 2010), was a French film director, film critic, journalist, novelist, screenwriter, and teacher. Rohmer was the last of the post-World ...

(''

Claire's Knee ''Claire's Knee'' (french: Le Genou de Claire) is a 1970 French drama film directed by Éric Rohmer. It is the fifth movie in the series of the ''Six Moral Tales''. Plot The story happens between 29 June and 29 July, presumably in 1970. Intertit ...

'', 1970), as well as in films of other filmmakers such as

Jean Renoir Jean Renoir (; 15 September 1894 – 12 February 1979) was a French film director, screenwriter, actor, producer and author. As a film director and actor, he made more than forty films from the silent film, silent era to the end of the 1960s. ...

('' Elena et les hommes'' 1958),

Roger Vadim Roger Vadim Plemiannikov (; 26 January 1928 – 11 February 2000) was a French screenwriter, film director and producer, as well as an author, artist and occasional actor. His best-known works are visually lavish films with erotic qualities, su ...

(''

La ronde La Ronde may refer to: Geography * La Ronde, Charente-Maritime, a commune in the Charente-Maritime ''département'', France * La Ronde River, on the Caribbean island of Dominica *La Ronde (amusement park), Montreal, Quebec, Canada *A La Ronde, an ...

'', 1964),

Philippe de Broca Philippe de Broca (; 15 March 1933 – 26 November 2004) was a French movie director. He directed 30 full-length feature films, including the highly successful '' That Man from Rio (''L'Homme de Rio'')'', '' The Man from Acapulco (Le Magnifique) ...

('' Le Roi de cœur'', 1966),

Luis Buñuel Luis Buñuel Portolés (; 22 February 1900 – 29 July 1983) was a Spanish-Mexican filmmaker who worked in France, Mexico, and Spain. He has been widely considered by many film critics, historians, and directors to be one of the greatest and ...

('' Le Fantôme de la liberté'', 1974), and

Claude Lelouch Claude Barruck Joseph Lelouch (; born 30 October 1937) is a French film director, writer, cinematographer, actor and producer. Lelouch grew up in an Algerian Jewish Family. He emerged as a prominent director in the 1960s. Lelouch gained criti ...

(''

Robert et Robert ''Robert et Robert'' is a film directed by Claude Lelouch. Synopsis Two single men apply to a dating agency. To start with, they are intimidated, but come round to the idea. That night, they imagine the meetings that will change their lives forev ...

'', 1978). In 2006, he appeared in his last role, as the eponymous character of the TV film ''Monsieur Max'', directed by

Gabriel Aghion Gabriel Aghion is a French film director and screenwriter. Aghion was born in Alexandria, in Egypt on 30 December 1955. He is openly gay."Bonjour, sweetie darling". '' The Advocate'', 20 November 2001. Selected filmography * '' La Scarlatine' ...

. Godard described him as "the French

Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one o ...

," while Brialy's self-described "life models" had reportedly been actor Sacha Guitry and director

Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau (, , ; 5 July 1889 – 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, filmmaker, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost creatives of the su ...

. Brialy directed a number of films, including ''Églantine'' in 1971, which was loosely inspired by his own memories of a happy childhood spent in

Chambellay Chambellay () is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France. See also *Communes of the Maine-et-Loire department The following is a list of the 177 communes of the Maine-et-Loire department of France. The communes cooper ...

with his grandparents, and ''Les volets clos'' (''Closed shutters'') in 1972. He owned the restaurant ''L'Orangerie'', on the

Île Saint-Louis Île Saint-Louis (), in size, is one of two natural islands in the Seine river, in Paris, France (the other natural island is the Île de la Cité, where Notre-Dame de Paris is located). Île Saint-Louis is connected to the rest of Paris by ...

; he'd also worked as a

TV presenter A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces, hosts television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. Nowadays, it is common for people who garner ...

, a singer, and a

radio host A radio personality (American English) or radio presenter (British English) is a person who has an on-air position in radio broadcasting. A radio personality who hosts a radio show is also known as a radio host, and in India and Pakistan as a radi ...

. During the presentation of one of his books, Brialy described himself this way: "I'm a boy who got lucky enough to do what I love in life".

Personal life and death

Brialy, in 1959, acquired a ''

château A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions. Nowaday ...

'' in the

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

Monthyon Monthyon () is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department of the Île-de-France region in north-central France. Notable residents The Belgian painter Eugène Boch lived in the Villa La Grimpette. In 1959, French actor Jean-Claude Brialy acquir ...

, near Paris. There, he accommodated and entertained many friends from the cinema and the

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

, such as Jean Marais,

Pierre Arditi Pierre Arditi (born 1 December 1944) is a French actor. He is the brother of French actress Catherine Arditi. Life and career Born in Paris, his father was the painter Georges Arditi, from Marseille of Jewish descent, and his mother Yvonne ...

, and

Romy Schneider Romy Schneider (; born Rosemarie Magdalena Albach; 23 September 1938 – 29 May 1982) was a German-French actress. She began her career in the German genre in the early 1950s when she was 15. From 1955 to 1957, she played the central chara ...

whom he'd met during the 1958 production of the film ''

Christine Christine may refer to: People * Christine (name), a female given name Film * ''Christine'' (1958 film), based on Schnitzler's play ''Liebelei'' * ''Christine'' (1983 film), based on King's novel of the same name * ''Christine'' (1987 fil ...

''. Schneider, after the 1981 fatal accident of her son David, found a "refuge from the ''

paparazzi Paparazzi (, ; ; singular: masculine paparazzo or feminine paparazza) are independent photographers who take pictures of high-profile people; such as actors, musicians, athletes, politicians, and other celebrities, typically while subjects ...

''" in Brialy's home. French singer Barbara would often sing at the piano. Director

Jean-Pierre Melville Jean-Pierre Melville (; born Jean-Pierre Grumbach; 20 October 1917 – 2 August 1973) was a French filmmaker and actor. Among his films are ''Le Silence de la mer'' (1949), ''Bob le flambeur'' (1956), '' Le Doulos'' (1962), ''Le Samouraï'' (196 ...

shot in the ''château'' the last scenes of his 1970

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

Le Cercle Rouge ''Le Cercle Rouge'' (, "The Red Circle") is a 1970 Franco-Italian crime film set mostly in Paris. It was directed by Jean-Pierre Melville and stars Alain Delon, Andre Bourvil, Gian Maria Volonté, François Périer and Yves Montand. It is known ...

'', where Alain Delon and

Yves Montand Ivo Livi (), better known as Yves Montand (; 13 October 1921 – 9 November 1991), was an Italian-French actor and singer. Early life Montand was born Ivo Livi in Monsummano Terme, Italy, to Giovanni Livi, a broom manufacturer, Ivo held strong ...

are killed by the police. In his books, the

autobiographical An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English peri ...

''Le Ruisseau des singes'' (''The river of monkeys'') (2000) and the memoir ''J'ai oublié de vous dire'' (''I Forgot to Tell You'') (2004),During a presentation of the book, Brialy insisted that "The lives of other people are often more interesting than one’s own." See Sturmey (2005) Brialy revealed that he was

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...

.''

Têtu (French for "stubborn") is the main LGBTQIA magazine published in France. It was subtitled in French ( en, the magazine of gays and lesbians) until 2007, and reaffirmed itself as a men's magazine since then. As of December, 2012, its certified ...

'' magazine, July–August 2007 issue, p.22 Brialy died on 30 May 2007, in his Monthyon home, after a long time with cancer. He

bequeathed A bequest is property given by will. Historically, the term ''bequest'' was used for personal property given by will and ''deviser'' for real property. Today, the two words are used interchangeably. The word ''bequeath'' is a verb form for the ...

his Monthyon estate to the ''commune'' of

Meaux Meaux () is a Communes of France, commune on the river Marne (river), Marne in the Seine-et-Marne Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region in the Functional area (France), metropolitan area of Paris, Franc ...

, near Monthyon, with the following

codicil Codicil may refer to: * Codicil (will), subsequent change or modification of terms made and appended to an existing trust or will and testament * A modification of terms made and appended to an existing constitution, treaty, or standard form c ...

: that the Meaux authorities would finance the estate's maintenance as long as his partner, Bruno Finck, would reside there. In the summer of 2020, Finck left the estate and, for "health reasons," moved to the

south of France Southern France, also known as the South of France or colloquially in French as , is a defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi atlantique'', A ...

, upon which time the ''commune'' of Meaux assumed full ownership of the estate. At the end of January 2021, the mayor invited the association of the Friends of Jean-Claude Brialy to "work in close collaboration ith Meaux in the context of "enhancing" the star's "heritage."

Honours

* : Commander of the Order of Cultural Merit (November 2002)

Filmography

As actor

As director

* ''Églantine'' (1971) * ''Les volets clos'' (1973) * ''

L'oiseau rare ''Chansons hivernales'' ( ''Winter Songs'') is the eleventh studio and first Christmas album by Canadian singer Pierre Lapointe, released through Audiogram on November 20, 2020. It was produced by Emmanuel Éthier. The album debuted at number 10 o ...

'' (1973) * ''Un amour de pluie'' (1974)

Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Brialy, Jean-Claude 1933 births 2007 deaths People from Bouïra Province French male film actors French film directors French male screenwriters 20th-century French screenwriters French male stage actors French theatre managers and producers LGBT actors from France Bisexual male actors LGBT film directors LGBT screenwriters LGBT writers from France Commanders of the Order of Cultural Merit (Monaco) Best Supporting Actor César Award winners 20th-century French male actors 21st-century French male actors Deaths from cancer in France Burials at Montmartre Cemetery 20th-century French male writers 20th-century LGBT people