Édouard Molinaro (13 May 1928 – 7 December 2013) was a French film director and screenwriter.

Biography

He was born in

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

Gironde Gironde ( , US usually , ; , ) is the largest department in the southwestern French region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Gironde estuary, a major waterway, its prefecture is Bordeaux. In 2019, it had a population of 1,623,749.

. He is best known for his comedies with Louis de Funès ('' Oscar'', '' Hibernatus''), '' My Uncle Benjamin'' (with Jacques Brel and Claude Jade), '' Dracula and Son'' (with Christopher Lee), and the Academy Award-nominated '' La Cage aux Folles'' (with Michel Serrault and

Ugo Tognazzi Ottavio "Ugo" Tognazzi (23 March 1922 – 27 October 1990) was an Italian actor, director, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the most important faces of Italian comedy together with Vittorio Gassman, Nino Manfredi, Marcello Mastr ...

). Molinaro was active as a director until a few years before his death, although after 1985 he had almost exclusively been producing works for television. In 1996, his cinematic work was awarded the René Clair Award, a prize given by the

Académie Française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

for excellent film work. Molinaro died of a respiratory insufficiency in 2013 at the age of 85.

Filmography (as director)

*''Les Alchimistes'' (1957, short) *'' Back to the Wall'' (1958) — based on a novel by Frédéric Dard *'' The Road to Shame'' (1959) — based on a novel by *'' Witness in the City'' (1959) — screenplay by Boileau-Narcejac *'' A Mistress for the Summer'' (1960) — based on a novel by Maurice Clavel *'' The Passion of Slow Fire'' (1961) — based on a novel by Georges Simenon *' (''Touch of Treason'', 1962) — based on a novel by *'' The Seven Deadly Sins'' (1962, anthology film) *'' Arsene Lupin vs. Arsene Lupin'' (1962) —

Arsène Lupin Arsène Lupin () is a fictional gentleman thief and master of disguise created in 1905 by French writer Maurice Leblanc. The character was first introduced in a series of short stories serialized in the magazine '' Je sais tout''. The first ...

sequel *'' Une ravissante idiote'' (''Agent 38-24-36'', ''The Ravishing Idiot'', 1964) — based on a novel by Charles Exbrayat *'' Male Hunt'' (1964) *' (''When the Pheasants Pass'', 1965) *'' To Commit a Murder'' (1967) — based on a novel by Jacques Robert *'' Oscar'' (1967) — based on a play by *'' Hibernatus'' (1969) — based on a play by Jean Bernard-Luc *'' Mon oncle Benjamin'' (''My Uncle Benjamin'', 1969) — based on a novel by Claude Tillier *' (1970) — based on a novel by Jacques Perry *' (''The Most Gentle Confessions'', 1971) — based on a play by Georges Arnaud *' (''Sweet Deception'', 1972) — based on a novel by Christine de Rivoyre *' (''The Hostage Gang'', 1973) *'' L'Emmerdeur'' (''A Pain in the A...'', 1973) — screenplay by Francis Veber *' (''The Irony of Chance'', 1974) — based on a novel by Paul Guimard *'': Un jour comme les autres avec des cacahuètes'' (1974, TV series episode) *' (''The Pink Telephone'', 1975) — screenplay by Francis Veber *'' Dracula and Son'' (1976) —

Dracula ''Dracula'' is an 1897 Gothic fiction, Gothic horror fiction, horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. The narrative is Epistolary novel, related through letters, diary entries, and newspaper articles. It has no single protagonist and opens ...

parody *'' Man in a Hurry'' (1977) — based on the novel '' The Man in a Hurry'' by Paul Morand *'': Le Dossier Françoise Muller'' (1978, TV series episode) *' (1978, TV miniseries) — based on the '' Claudine'' novels by Colette *'' La Cage aux folles'' (1978) — screenplay by Francis Veber, based on the play '' La Cage aux Folles'' by

Jean Poiret Jean Poiret, born Jean Poiré (17 August 1926 – 14 March 1992), was a French actor, director, and screenwriter. He is primarily known as the author of the original play ''La Cage aux Folles (play), La Cage aux Folles''. Early career Poire ...

*''Il était un musicien: Monsieur Strauss'' (1979, TV series episode) *' (1979) — screenplay by Francis Veber, based on a novel by Peter Marks *''La Pitié dangereuse'' (1979, TV film) — based on '' Beware of Pity'' by Stefan Zweig *''

Sunday Lovers ''Sunday Lovers'' is a 1980 internationally co-produced romantic comedy film directed by Bryan Forbes, Gene Wilder, Dino Risi and Édouard Molinaro. It stars Roger Moore, Gene Wilder, Priscilla Barnes, Lynn Redgrave, Denholm Elliott and Kathl ...

'' (1980, anthology film) — screenplay by Francis Veber *'' La Cage aux Folles II'' (1980) — screenplay by Francis Veber, sequel to ''La Cage aux Folles'' *''Au bon beurre'' (1981, TV film) — based on '' The Best Butter'' by Jean Dutourd * (''For 200 Grand, You Get Nothing Now'', 1982) — based on a play by *' (1983, TV film) — based on a novel by Armand Lanoux *'' Just the Way You Are'' (1984) *' (1985) *' (''Love on the Quiet'', 1985) *'' Le Tiroir secret'' (1986, TV miniseries) *''Un métier du seigneur'' (TV film) — based on ''A Noble Profession'' by

Pierre Boulle Pierre François Marie Louis Boulle (20 February 1912 – 30 January 1994) was a French author. He is best known for two works, '' The Bridge over the River Kwai'' (1952) and '' Planet of the Apes'' (1963), that were both made into award-winning ...

*'' L'Ivresse de la métamorphose'' (1988, TV miniseries) — based on '' The Post Office Girl'' by Stefan Zweig *''

Door on the Left as You Leave the Elevator ''Door on the Left as You Leave the Elevator'' () is a 1988 French comedy written by Gérard Lauzier (based on his play), directed by Édouard Molinaro, and starring Pierre Richard, Emmanuelle Béart, and Richard Bohringer. Plot The plot is base ...

'' (1988) — based on a play by

Gérard Lauzier Gérard Lauzier (30 November 1932 – 6 December 2008) was a French comics author and movie director, best known as one of the leading authors in the more adult-oriented Franco-Belgian comics, French comics scene of the 1970s and 1980s. Biography ...

*''La Ruelle au clair de lune'' (1988, TV film) — based on '' Moonbeam Alley'' by Stefan Zweig *''Manon Roland'' (1989, TV film) — biographical film about Madame Roland *''Les Grandes Familles'' (1989, TV miniseries) — based on a novel by Maurice Druon *'': La Peau du gorille'' (1990, TV series episode) *' (1991, TV film) — based on a novella by Arthur Schnitzler *''Coup de foudre: Résurgence'' (1992, TV series episode) *''Coup de foudre: Grand, beau et brun'' (1992, TV series episode) *''La Femme abandonnée'' (1992, TV film) — based on ''The Deserted Woman'' by

Honoré de Balzac Honoré de Balzac ( , more commonly ; ; born Honoré Balzac; 20 May 1799 – 18 August 1850) was a French novelist and playwright. The novel sequence ''La Comédie humaine'', which presents a panorama of post-Napoleonic French life, is ...

*'' The Supper'' (1992) — based on a play by Jean-Claude Brisville *''Ce que savait Maisie'' (1995, TV film) — based on '' What Maisie Knew'' by Henry James *'' Beaumarchais'' (1996) — biographical film about Beaumarchais, based on a play by

Sacha Guitry Alexandre-Pierre Georges "Sacha" Guitry (; 21 February 188524 July 1957) was a French stage actor, film actor, director, screenwriter, and playwright of the boulevard theatre (aesthetic), boulevard theatre. He was the son of a leading French ac ...

*'' H'' (1998–1999, TV series, 14 episodes) *''Nora'' (1999, TV film) — based on '' Watch and Ward'' by Henry James *' (1999, TV film) *''Nana'' (2001, TV film) — loosely based on '' Nana'' by Émile Zola *' (2003, TV film) *'' Navarro: Double meurtre'' (2005, TV series episode) *' (2005, TV film) *' (2005–2006, TV series, 3 episodes) *'' Navarro: Manipulation'' (2005, TV series episode) *' (2005–2008, TV series, 5 episodes) *''Dirty Slapping'' (2008, TV short film)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Molinaro, Edouard 1928 births 2013 deaths French film directors French male screenwriters French screenwriters French television directors French people of Italian descent Mass media people from Bordeaux Deaths from respiratory failure