Jean Gabin - Biography
BY J Poet
Jean Gabin was the most popular French male actor from the end of WWII until his death in 1976. The world weary, jaded characters he portrayed summed up the post-War attitude of many Frenchmen, and made him a major star. While not a good singer, his nuanced voice made him perfect performer for certain kinds of chansons, and in his early days he often sang in films. He never made an actual album, but the songs he sang in his films have been widely anthologized.
Gabin was born in Paris, but grew up in a small village to the north of the city. His parents were both singers and dancers and at age 19, he followed them on to the stage. He was a singer and dancer in the Folies Bergères before enlisting in the army during WW I. After the war, he made a name for himself on the musical stage, and also tried dramatic roles in serious plays. He starred in the operettas La Dame en Decolette and Trois Jeunes Filles Nues. In 1928, he made two silent films, then transitioned to talkies in the 30s. He had minor parts in several films, breaking out in Julien Duvivier’s Maria Chapdelaine in 1934. In 1936, his role as a French Foreign Legionnaire in Duvivier’s La Bandera made him a star.
His next films made him an iconic presence. They included strong roles in Pépé le Moko, one of the top French films of 1937, Renoir’s anti-war masterpiece La Grande Illusion, Renoir’s La Bête Humaine, and Marcel Carné’s Le Quai Des Brumes. When the Germans invaded France, Gabin fled to the US and started a romance with Marlene Dietrich. He made two films in Hollywood, Moontide, not released until 1942, and The Impostor (1944), but his difficult personality got him blacklisted from American films. He went back to France, enlisted in the Army, and served with valor in the North African campaign, winning the Croix de Guerre for his heroism. After the War, he made a serious of bad films and starred in an ill-fated stage production of La Soif, before making Au-Dela Des Grilles with Rene Clement. The film won a Best Foreign Picture Oscar and Best Director at Cannes, but it flopped in France.
Gabin returned to form in 1954 with Jacques Becker’s Touchez pas au Grisbi, an international hit, and cemented his place as a global star with French Can-Can (1955), and Voici le Temps des Assassins (1956). He continued to prove a difficult collaborator, and wouldn’t work with anyone who was more famous than him, which limited his roles. The films he did make were usually successful in France and include Les Misrables (1957), Inspector Maigret (1963, the first of a popular series, in the title role), Any Number Can Win (1963), Le Pacha (1967), Le Clan des Siciliens (1969), Le Chat (1971), L'Affaire Dominici (1973), Verdict (1974), and L'Année Sainte (1976). He died of a heart attack in1976 and was cremated with full military honors. He was made a member of the Legion of Honor in 1960.
Gabin often sang in his films, but never made an actual album while he was alive. Compilations include Chansons De Films Et D'operettes Des Annees 30 (1992 Forlane France) songs from the 30s, Collection Chansons Francaise (2003 WEA International), Jusque (2004 Noble Pric France), Integrale Jean Gabin (2003 Fermeaux & Associates France), Chansons et Musiques de Films (2004 EMI International), and the greatest hits collection Les plus grandes chansons (2004 Coppelia France)