Jean Gabin

Also Known As: Jean-Alexis Moncorgé, Jean Moncorgé, Jean Gabin Alexis Moncorgé, Жан Габен, ژان گابن

Biography: Jean Gabin Alexis Moncorgé (born Jean-Alexis Moncorgé), known as Jean Gabin (17 May 1904 – 15 November 1976), was a French actor and singer. Considered a key figure in French cinema, he starred in several classic films, including Pépé le Moko (1937), La grande illusion (1937), Le Quai des brumes (1938), La bête humaine (1938), Le jour se lève (1939), and Le plaisir (1952). During his career, he twice won the Silver Bear for Best Actor from the Berlin International Film Festival and the Volpi Cup for Best Actor from the Venice Film Festival, respectively. Gabin was made a member of the Légion d'honneur in recognition of the important role he played in French cinema. Gabin was born Jean-Alexis Moncorgé in Paris, the son of Madeleine Petit and Ferdinand Moncorgé, a cafe owner and cabaret entertainer whose stage name was Gabin, which is a first name in French. He grew up in the village of Mériel in the Seine-et-Oise (now Val-d'Oise) département, about 22 mi (35 km) north of Paris. He attended the Lycée Janson de Sailly. Gabin left school early, and worked as a laborer until the age of 19 when he entered show business with a bit part in a Folies Bergère production. He continued performing in a variety of minor roles before going into the military. After completing his military service in the Fusiliers marins, he returned to the entertainment business, working under the stage name of Jean Gabin at whatever was offered in the Parisian music halls and operettas, imitating the singing style of Maurice Chevalier, which was the rage at the time. He was part of a troupe that toured South America, and upon returning to France found work at the Moulin Rouge. His performances started getting noticed, and better stage roles came along that led to parts in two silent films in 1928. Two years later Gabin made the transition to sound films in a 1930 Pathé Frères production, Chacun sa chance. Playing secondary roles, he made more than a dozen films over the next four years, including films directed by Maurice and Jacques Tourneur. But he only gained real recognition for his performance in Maria Chapdelaine, a 1934 production directed by Julien Duvivier. He was then cast as a romantic hero in the 1936 war drama La Bandera; this second Duvivier-directed film established him as a major star. The next year he teamed up with Duvivier again in the highly successful Pépé le Moko. Its popularity brought Gabin international recognition. That same year he starred in Jean Renoir's La Grande Illusion, an antiwar film that ran at a New York City theatre for an unprecedented six months. This was followed by another of Renoir's major works, La Bête Humaine (The Human Beast), a film noir tragedy based on the novel by Émile Zola and starring Gabin and Simone Simon, as well as Le Quai Des Brumes (Port of Shadows), one of director Marcel Carné's classics of poetic realism. His rugged charisma could be compared with Humphrey Bogart and James Cagney. He divorced his second wife in 1939. ... Source: Article "Jean Gabin" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA.

Department: Acting

Place of Birth: Paris, France

Adult: No

Birthday: May 17, 1904

Age: 121 years old

Gender: Male

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Deathday: November 15, 1976

Popularity:

2.88%

Known For:

Grand Illusion
The Sicilian Clan
Jury of One
Two Men in Town
The Gardener of Argenteuil
Les Misérables
Killer
My American Uncle
The Tattoo
Any Number Can Win
The Cat
The Magnificent Tramp
Pépé le Moko
Daybreak
The Old Guard
Monsieur
A Monkey in Winter
Touchez Pas au Grisbi
La Bête Humaine
Moontide
The Possessors
Napoleon
Crime and Punishment
Le Plaisir
Air of Paris
Maigret Sets a Trap
The Gentleman from Epsom
The Truth About Bebe Donge
Razzia
French Cancan
Belmondo, il était une fois le beau monde
High and Low
The Lower Depths
Lilac
Stormy Waters
Port of Shadows
The Darling of Paris
Love Is My Profession
Jean Moncorgé, la face cachée de Jean Gabin
The Walls of Malapaga
The Horse
Everyone Has Their Chance
Hi-Jack Highway
They Were Five
Marie of the Port
Behold the Man
Jean Gabin, le dernier des géants
La Traversée de Paris
The Moment of Truth
La Bandera
Pasha
The President
The Impostor
Blood to the Head
Their Last Night
Rue de Paris
The Dominici Affair
The Image Book
Rhine Virgin
The Night Affair
Maigret Sees Red
That Tender Age
The Upper Hand
God's Thunder
Deadlier Than the Male
Under the Sign of the Bull
The Counterfeiters of Paris
The Little Rebels
Action Man
The Case of Dr. Laurent
People of No Importance
Speaking of Murder
The Baron of the Locks
The Night Is My Kingdom
Lady Killer
Fun in the Barracks
House on the Waterfront
Le Tunnel
Coral Reefs
Martin Roumagnac
Maria Chapdelaine
The Black Flag Waves Over the Scow
Storms
Victor
Twelve Hours to Live
Mirror
The Messenger
All That Is Not Worth Love
For one evening..!
Méphisto
The Crowd Roars
Happy Hearts
The Beautiful Sailor
Gloria
L'Étoile de Valencia
Adieu les beaux jours
Les lions
Ohé! Les valises
Holy Year
Alain Delon, l'ombre au tableau
Zouzou
Maigret and the St. Fiacre Case
Varieté
Marlene Dietrich: Her Own Song
Lino Ventura, la part intime
Jean Gabin, une âme française
Mireille Darc, la femme libre
Quand Jean devint Renoir