Michel Bouquet facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Michel Bouquet
Bouquet in a 1943 publicity photo
Born	(1925-11-06)6 November 1925 Paris, France
Died	13 April 2022(2022-04-13) (aged 96) Paris, France
Nationality	French
Education	CNSAD
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1944–2021
Spouse(s)	Ariane Borg ​ ​ (m. 1954; div. 1967)​ Juliette Carré (until his death)

Michel Bouquet (born November 6, 1925 – died April 13, 2022) was a famous French actor. He performed in many plays and movies. He acted in over 100 films between 1947 and 2020. Michel Bouquet won several important awards for his acting. These included the European Film Award for Best Actor for the movie Toto the Hero in 1991. He also won two César Awards (France's top film award) for How I Killed My Father (2001) and The Last Mitterrand (2005). For his stage work, he received the Molière Award for Best Actor twice. In 2014, he got an Honorary Molière Award for his amazing career. He also received a high French honor, the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor, in 2018.

Michel Bouquet's Early Life and Career Beginnings

Michel François Pierre Bouquet was born in Paris, France, on November 6, 1925. When he was seven, he went to a boarding school. He stayed there until he was 14 years old. Michel wanted to become a doctor. However, he had to leave school at 15. This happened after his father was taken prisoner during World War II.

To help his family, Bouquet worked as a baker's helper. He then became a bank clerk. After a short time in Lyon, he returned to Paris with his mother. His mother, Marie Bouquet, loved theater very much. This helped young Michel discover his own passion for acting. He started taking acting classes. His teacher was Maurice Escande, a member of the famous Comédie-Française theater group. Michel Bouquet made his first stage appearance in 1944 in a play called La première étape. Later, he studied at the Conservatory of Dramatic Arts in Paris. There, he met another future famous actor, Gérard Philipe.

Michel Bouquet's Stage Career Highlights

Michel Bouquet in 2010

In the mid-1940s, Michel Bouquet started working with playwright Jean Anouilh and director André Barsacq. They put on plays at the Théâtre de l'Atelier in Montmartre. In 1946, Anouilh gave Bouquet a part in Roméo and Jeannette. He then acted in The Rendez-vous of Senlis and The Invitation to the Castle in 1947.

In the 1950s, Bouquet met stage director Jean Vilar. They worked together often. Bouquet played many classic roles at the Festival d'Avignon. This festival was started by Vilar in 1947. Some of his roles included Henry IV in 1950, The Tragedy of King Richard II in 1953, and The Miser in 1962. Bouquet continued to work with Anouilh until the early 1970s. He also helped make the plays of British writer Harold Pinter popular in France. These included The Collection (1965), The Birthday Party (1967), and No Man's Land (1979).

At the end of the 1970s, Michel Bouquet became a professor. He taught at the National Conservatory of Dramatic Arts until 1990. In the 1980s and 1990s, he returned to the Théâtre de l'Atelier. This was the theater where he first started his career. In 1994, he performed in Exit the King by Eugene Ionesco. He played this role many times until 2014. He won the Molière Award for Best Actor for Les côtelettes in 1998. He won it again for Exit the King in 2005. In 2014, he received an Honorary Molière Award for his entire career. A year later, he was praised for his acting in Taking Sides by Ronald Harwood. Michel Bouquet announced he was retiring from the stage in 2019.

Michel Bouquet's Film Career Highlights

Michel Bouquet in 2014

Michel Bouquet first appeared in a movie in 1947. However, his film career grew more slowly. In 1949, he was in Pattes blanches. He also appeared in Henri-Georges Clouzot's Manon (1950). In 1955, he narrated Alain Resnais' documentary Night and Fog.

In 1965, he worked for the first time with director Claude Chabrol in Our Agent Tiger. Bouquet acted in several Chabrol films. He was highly praised for his roles in The Unfaithful Wife, The Breach, and Just Before Nightfall. He also worked with director François Truffaut. He played a private detective in Mississippi Mermaid (1969). He was also one of the victims in The Bride Wore Black.

In the 1970s, Bouquet played an intense police inspector in Deux hommes dans la ville (1972). He also played a wealthy businessman in the comedy Le Jouet. In the 1980s, he worked with Chabrol again in Cop au Vin (1986). In 1982, he took on the role of Inspector Javert in the movie Les Misérables. Many fans of the book thought his performance as Javert was perfect.

Other Works and Personal Life

Over the years, Michel Bouquet recorded himself reading works by famous authors. These included Cervantes, Victor Hugo, and Jean-Paul Sartre. In 2019, an audio book of him reading 13 fables by Jean de La Fontaine was released. It received great reviews.

Michel Bouquet was married two times. His first wife was actress Ariane Borg. They divorced in 1967. His second wife was Juliette Carré, who was also an actress. They often performed on stage together.

Michel Bouquet passed away in Paris on April 13, 2022. He was 96 years old.

Selected Filmography

Awards and Nominations

César Awards

Michel Bouquet won two César Awards for Best Actor. He was also nominated for another.

European Film Award

He won one European Film Award for Best Actor.

Globes de Cristal Award

He was nominated for a Globes de Cristal Award.

Molière Awards

Michel Bouquet won two Molière Awards for Best Actor. He also received an Honorary Molière Award.

He was also nominated for several other Molière Awards.

Decorations

Michel Bouquet received many honors from the French government. He became a Knight of the Legion of Honor in 1983. He was promoted to Officer in 1996, Commander in 2007, and Grand Officer in 2013. On July 13, 2018, he received the highest honor: the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor.

See also

In Spanish: Michel Bouquet para niños