Jean Piat (23 September 1924 – 18 September 2018) was a French

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

and writer.

Life

Piat was born in

Lannoy, Nord Lannoy (; nl, Lanno) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Heraldry Geography With a land area of only , it is the fourth-smallest French commune (after Castelmoron-d'Albret, Plessix-Balisson, and Vaudherland) by surface ...

. He enlisted in the

Comédie-Française The Comédie-Française () or Théâtre-Français () is one of the few state theatres in France. Founded in 1680, it is the oldest active theatre company in the world. Established as a French state-controlled entity in 1995, it is the only state ...

on 1 September 1947, and became a member on 1 January 1953. He left the Comédie-Française on 31 December 1972, and became an honorary member the following day. He was an officer in the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

and the

Ordre des Arts et des Lettres The ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Letters) is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is ...

, and a grand officer in the

Ordre national du Mérite The Ordre national du Mérite (; en, National Order of Merit) is a French order of merit with membership awarded by the President of the French Republic, founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle. The reason for the order's estab ...

. He was married to actress Françoise Engel (who died in 2005), and was a professor in the dramatic arts of the Simon Course. He died on 18 September 2018 at age 93 of heart attack, five days before his 94th birthday.Jean Piat, mort d'un roi

Theater

Roles in the Comédie-Française

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...

's ''

Ruy Blas ''Ruy Blas'' is a tragic drama by Victor Hugo. It was the first play presented at the Théâtre de la Renaissance and opened on November 8, 1838. Though considered by many to be Hugo’s best drama, the play was initially met with only average ...

'' (An usher, Gudiel, an alguazil, Don Manuel Aeias, Don César de Bazan) *Man of LaMancha (Don Quixote) * Edmond Rostand's ''

Cyrano de Bergerac Savinien de Cyrano de Bergerac ( , ; 6 March 1619 – 28 July 1655) was a French novelist, playwright, epistolarian, and duelist. A bold and innovative author, his work was part of the libertine literature of the first half of the 17th cen ...

'' (A guard, Bellerose, a musketeer, Cadet, Brissaille, Jodelet, Cyrano *

Pierre Beaumarchais Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais (; 24 January 1732 – 18 May 1799) was a French polymath. At various times in his life, he was a watchmaker, inventor, playwright, musician, diplomat, spy, publisher, horticulturist, arms dealer, satirist, ...

's ''

The Barber of Seville ''The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution'' ( it, Il barbiere di Siviglia, ossia L'inutile precauzione ) is an ''opera buffa'' in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was base ...

'' (Figaro) *

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and world ...

's ''

The Miser ''The Miser'' (french: L'Avare; ; also known by the longer name ''L'Avare ou L'École du Mensonge,'' meaning The Miser, or the School for Lies) is a five-act comedy in prose by the French playwright Molière. It was first performed on September ...

'' (La Flèche) *

Eugène Marin Labiche Eugène Marin Labiche (6 May 181522 January 1888) was a French dramatist. He remains famous for his contribution to the vaudeville genre and his passionate and domestic pochads. In the 1860s, he reached his peak with a series of successes i ...

's ''The Voyage of Mister Perrichon'' (Daniel Savary, Joseph) *

Pierre de Marivaux Pierre Carlet de Chamblain de Marivaux (4 February 1688 – 12 February 1763), commonly referred to as Marivaux, was a French playwright and novelist. He is considered one of the most important French playwrights of the 18th century, writing nume ...

's ''

Le Jeu de l'amour et du hasard ''The Game of Love and Chance'' (french: Le Jeu de l'amour et du hasard) is a three-act romantic comedy by French playwright Marivaux. ''The Game of Love and Chance'' was first performed 23 January 1730 by the Comédie Italienne. In this play ...

'' (Pasquin) *

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

Othello ''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cypru ...

'' (Gentleman) *William Shakespeare's '' As You Like It'' (Amiens) *William Shakespeare's ''

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetim ...

'' (Benvolio) *Molière's ''

Le Bourgeois gentilhomme ''Le Bourgeois gentilhomme'' (, translated as ''The Bourgeois Gentleman'', ''The Middle-Class Aristocrat'', or ''The Would-Be Noble'') is a five-act ''comédie-ballet'' – a Play (theatre), play intermingled with music, dance and singing – wri ...

'' (Covielle)

Filmography

Acting

*1947: ''Rouletabille joue et gagne'' as Joseph Rouletabille *1948: '' The Lame Devil'' (''Le Diable boiteux'') as Figaro in ''The Barber of Seville'' *1948: ''Rouletabille contre la dame de pique'' as Joseph Rouletabille *1951: ''

Clara de Montargis ''Clara de Montargis'' is a 1951 French drama film directed by Henri Decoin and starring Ludmilla Tchérina, Michel François and Roland Armontel.Rège p.293 It was made at the Epinay Studios in Paris. The film's sets were designed by the art di ...

'' as Jean Claude *1953: '' The Porter from Maxim's'' as André de Velin (as Jean Piat sociétaire de la Comédie Française) *1955: ''

Napoléon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

'' as Junot (uncredited) *1958: ''Le bourgeois gentilhomme'' as Cléonte, amoureux de Lucile *1959: ''Le mariage de Figaro'' as Figaro *1961: ''Les moutons de Panurge'' as Serge *1967: ''Lagardère'' (TV Mini-Series, 6 episodes) as Henri de Lagardère *1968: ''Der Turm der verbotenen Liebe'' as Bouridan *1969: ''

The Milky Way The Milky Way is the galaxy that includes our Solar System, with the name describing the galaxy's appearance from Earth: a hazy band of light seen in the night sky formed from stars that cannot be individually distinguished by the naked eye. ...

'' (''La Voie lactée'') as The Jansenist *1970: ''

Rider on the Rain ''Rider on the Rain'' (French: ''Le passager de la pluie'') is a 1970 French mystery film, mystery Thriller (genre), thriller film starring Marlène Jobert and Charles Bronson, directed by René Clément and scripted by Sébastien Japrisot, produc ...

'' (''Le Passager de la pluie'') as M. Armand *1972-1973: ''

Les Rois maudits ''The Accursed Kings'' (french: Les Rois maudits ) is a series of historical novels by French author Maurice Druon about the French monarchy in the 14th century. Published between 1955 and 1977, the series has been adapted as a miniseries twice ...

'' (TV Mini-Series) as Robert d'Artois *1974: ''La rivale'' as Pierre *1979: ''Ciao, les mecs'' as L'avocat *1999: ''

A Monkey's Tale ''A Monkey's Tale'' (french: Le Château des singes; literally "The Castle of Monkeys") is a feature-length animated film directed by Jean-François Laguionie. It was released in 1999, and won the Award for Best Animated Feature Film at the fifth ...

'' as Sebastian (voice) *2003: '' Kaena: The Prophecy'' as Le grand prêtre (voice) *2007: '' Go West! A Lucky Luke Adventure'' as Spike Goodfellow (voice)

Voice acting

*''

Lawrence of Arabia Thomas Edward Lawrence (16 August 1888 – 19 May 1935) was a British archaeologist, army officer, diplomat, and writer who became renowned for his role in the Arab Revolt (1916–1918) and the Sinai and Palestine Campaign (1915–191 ...

'' (Thomas Edward Lawrence (

Peter O'Toole Peter Seamus O'Toole (; 2 August 1932 – 14 December 2013) was a British stage and film actor. He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and began working in the theatre, gaining recognition as a Shakespearean actor at the Bristol Old Vic ...

)) *'' Kaena: The Prophecy'' (Grand Priest ( Gary Martin)) *''

The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 32nd Disney animated feature film and the fifth produced during the Disney Renaissance ...

'' (

Scar A scar (or scar tissue) is an area of fibrous tissue that replaces normal skin after an injury. Scars result from the biological process of wound repair in the skin, as well as in other organs, and tissues of the body. Thus, scarring is a n ...

(

Jeremy Irons Jeremy John Irons (; born 19 September 1948) is an English actor and activist. After receiving classical training at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, Irons began his acting career on stage in 1969 and has appeared in many West End theatre ...

)) *''

The Hunchback of Notre Dame ''The Hunchback of Notre-Dame'' (french: Notre-Dame de Paris, translation=''Our Lady of Paris'', originally titled ''Notre-Dame de Paris. 1482'') is a French Gothic novel by Victor Hugo, published in 1831. It focuses on the unfortunate story ...

'' (Judge Claude Frollo (

Tony Jay Tony Jay (2 February 1933 – 13 August 2006) was a British actor. A former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, he was known for his voice work in radio, animation, film, and video games. Jay was particularly noted for his distinctive bari ...

)) *'' The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring'' (Gandalf the Grey (

Ian McKellen Sir Ian Murray McKellen (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. His career spans seven decades, having performed in genres ranging from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. Regarded as a British cultural i ...

)) *'' The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers'' (Gandalf the White (Ian McKellen)) *'' The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'' (Gandalf the White (Ian McKellen)) *''

The Golden Compass ''Northern Lights'' (titled ''The Golden Compass'' in North America and some other countries) is a young-adult fantasy novel by Philip Pullman, published in 1995 by Scholastic UK. Set in a parallel universe, it follows the journey of Lyra Be ...

'' (Iorek Byrnison (Ian McKellen)) *'' The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey'' (Gandalf the Grey (Ian McKellen)) *'' The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug'' (Gandalf the Grey (Ian McKellen)) *'' The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies'' (Gandalf the Grey (Ian McKellen))

References

External links

Jean Piat's roles at the Comédie-Française
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Piat, Jean 1924 births 2018 deaths French male film actors French male stage actors Sociétaires of the Comédie-Française French male voice actors People from Nord (French department) French National Academy of Dramatic Arts alumni Winners of the Prix Broquette-Gonin (literature) Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres Grand Officers of the Ordre national du Mérite