''Le Pétomane'' is a 1979 British short humorous film based on the life of ''

Le Pétomane Joseph Pujol (June 1, 1857 – August 8, 1945), better known by his stage name Le Pétomane (, ), was a French flatulist (professional fartist) and entertainer. He was famous for his remarkable control of the abdominal muscles, which enabled him ...

'', the

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

of the late 19th century French

flatulist A flatulist, fartist, fartial artist, professional farter or simply farter is an entertainer often associated with flatulence-related humor, whose routine consists solely or primarily of passing gas in a creative, musical, or amusing manner. ...

(professional farter) and entertainer Joseph Pujol who was famous for his remarkable control of the abdominal

muscle Muscle is a soft tissue, one of the four basic types of animal tissue. There are three types of muscle tissue in vertebrates: skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle, and smooth muscle. Muscle tissue gives skeletal muscles the ability to muscle contra ...

s, which enabled him to seemingly

fart Flatulence is the expulsion of gas from the intestines via the anus, commonly referred to as farting. "Flatus" is the medical word for gas generated in the stomach or bowels. A proportion of intestinal gas may be swallowed environmental air, ...

at will and whose 'farting' performances at the

Moulin Rouge Moulin Rouge (, ; ) is a cabaret in Paris, on Boulevard de Clichy, at Place Blanche, the intersection of, and terminus of Rue Blanche. In 1889, the Moulin Rouge was co-founded by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, who also owned the Olympia (Par ...

in Paris drove his audiences to hysterics.

Synopsis

Joseph Pujol is a professional farter billed as

who is able to orchestrate his farts to music, to the delight of his Parisian audiences. By ingesting charcoal Pujol is able to generate the gastric gases essential for his stage act. For years he is the Toast of Paris, but with the passing years Pujol loses his muscular control, causing his act to fail in a cacophony of flatulent explosions.

Background

Running at 33 minutes, the film was directed by

Ian MacNaughton Edward Ian MacNaughton (30 December 1925 – 10 December 2002) was a Scottish actor, television producer and director, best known for his work with the ''Monty Python'' team. MacNaughton was director and producer for all but four of the forty ...

while the script was written by Galton and Simpson based on Pujol's story and starring veteran comic actor

Leonard Rossiter Leonard Rossiter (21 October 1926 – 5 October 1984) was an English actor. He had a long career in the theatre but achieved his highest profile for his television comedy roles starring as Rupert Rigsby in the ITV series '' Rising Damp'' from 19 ...

. The cast also included John D. Collins, Michael Cronin,

Alexandra Dane Alexandra Dane (born ''c''. 1940
''London Evening Standard'' (12 April 2012). Retrieved 31 ...

, John Harvey, Alun Lewis,

Roland MacLeod Roland MacLeod (1935 – 3 April 2010) was an English actor working in film and television. He was born in London. His television credits include ''Coronation Street'', '' Softly, Softly'', ''Ripping Yarns'', ''The Fall and Rise of Reginald ...

Nancy Nevinson Nancy Nevinson (born as Nancy Ezekiel, 26 July 1918 – 25 January 2012) was a British actress. Early life Nevinson was born in Chittagong, Bengal Presidency, British Raj, as Nancy Ezekiel, one of four children of Reemah (née Kadoorie) and D ...

Michael Ripper Michael George Ripper (27 January 1913 – 28 June 2000) was an English character actor who appeared in many British horror and science fiction films. Career Ripper began his film career in quota quickies in the 1930s and until the late 195 ...

Gordon Rollings Gordon Charles Rollings (17 April 1926 – 7 June 1985) was an English actor who mainly appeared on television, but also appeared on-stage, radio and in feature films. Biography He was born in Batley, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, Engla ...

Graham Stark Graham William Stark (20 January 1922 – 29 October 2013) was an English comedian, actor, writer and director, known for his close, personal friendship with Peter Sellers, appearance in several The Pink Panther films and Victor/Victoria.

and

Bob Todd Brian Todd (15 December 1922 – 21 October 1992), known professionally as Bob Todd, was an English comedy actor, mostly known for appearing as a straight man in the sketch shows of Benny Hill and Spike Milligan. For many years, he lived in ...

, with narration by Ronald Fletcher.''Le Pétomane''
on the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

website

References

External links

''Le Pétomane''
on the

Internet Movie Database IMDb, historically known as the Internet Movie Database, is an online database of information related to films, television series, podcasts, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and biograp ...

1979 films 1970s historical films British historical films British films based on actual events Films directed by Ian MacNaughton 1970s English-language films 1970s British films English-language historical films {{historic-film-stub