''The French, They Are a Funny Race'' (french: Les Carnets du Major Thompson, lit=The Notebooks of Major Thompson; released in the United Kingdom as ''The Diary of Major Thompson'') is a 1955 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 ...

written and directed by Preston Sturges, based on the 1954 novel ''Les Carnets du Major Thompson'' by

Pierre Daninos Pierre Daninos (26 May 1913 – 7 January 2005) was a French writer and humorist. Life Daninos was born in Paris. He wrote ''Les carnets du Major Thompson'', which was published in 1954, and was followed by many sequels. The books in the series ...

, and starring

Martine Carol Martine Carol (born Marie-Louise Jeanne Nicolle Mourer; 16 May 1920 – 6 February 1967) was a French film actress. Career Born Maryse Mourer (or Marie-Louise Jeanne Nicolle Mourer) in Saint-Mandé, Val-de-Marne, (France), she studied acting und ...

and Jack Buchanan. This was the last film directed by Sturges before his death in August 1959, as well as the final film appearance of Buchanan, who died in October 1957.

Plot

Major Thompson is a crusty, middle-aged English officer, retired and widowed and living in Paris, who tries to adjust to the French way of life. He falls in love with frivolous but alluring Martine, and then marries her. The question is, will their child be raised as a proper Englishman, or a swinging Frenchman?

Cast

* Jack Buchanan as Maj. Thompson *

as Martine *

Noël-Noël Noël-Noël (born Lucien Noël, 9 August 1897 – 5 October 1989) was a French actor and screenwriter. Partial filmography * ''La prison en folie'' (1931) - Yves Larsac * '' When Do You Commit Suicide?'' (1931) - Léon Mirol * '' Mistigri ...

as M. Taupin * Totti Truman Taylor as Miss Fyfyth, the nurse * Catherine Boyl as Ursula *

André Luguet André Luguet (15 May 1892 – 24 May 1979) was a French stage and film actor. He appeared in more than 120 films between 1910 and 1970. He was born in Fontenay-sous-Bois, France, and died in Cannes, France. His daughter Rosine Luguet became ...

as M. Fusillard, the editor * Geneviève Brunet as Secretary *

Paulette Dubost Paulette may refer to: *Paulette (name), French feminine given name *Paulette (tax) * Paulette Caveat - a caveat filed in 1973 by a group of Dene chiefs at the land titles office in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories to gain a legal interest in 40 ...

as M Taupin

Production

The film was based on a popular column by Pierre Daninos in ''Le Figaro''. Daninos would write as fictitious English Major Marmaduke Thompson who would observe the French. Daninos then turned these columns into a book ''The Notebooks of Major Thompson''. Preston Sturges had come to Paris in hopes of reviving his career, which had hit the skids in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

after his partnership with

Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...

dissolved in acrimony. He did some work on Broadway, wrote the screenplay for an adaptation of

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

's '' The Millionairess'' which

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...

, who had performed in the play in New York, wanted to get produced, and then came to France where, because he was fluent in French, he was able to write and direct the screenplay for this adaptation of

popular novel. Sturges originally wrote a script called ''Forty Million Frenchmen,'' about a French author who invents an English character who assumes a borrowed identity. However, Daninos published his novel with such success that Sturges was requested to write a version closer to that. The movie was shot both in French and English using two crews.

Release and reception

The film was released in France on 9 December 1955, but Sturges did some additional polishing of it for the American audience, and it was not released in the United States until 20 May 1957, when it premiered in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, the final American opening of Sturges' film career. The movie was the 9th most popular film in France in 1956 but was not a hit in the US.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:French, They Are a Funny Race, The 1955 comedy films 1955 films 1950s English-language films 1950s French-language films 1950s multilingual films English-language French films Films about marriage Films based on French novels Films directed by Preston Sturges Films set in Paris Films with screenplays by Preston Sturges French black-and-white films French comedy films French multilingual films Gaumont Film Company films 1950s French films