Quick Facts
Biography
Pierre Brasseur (22 December 1905 – 16 August 1972), born Pierre-Albert Espinasse, was a French actor.
He was the son of actors Georges Espinasse and Germaine Brasseur, while the latter was married to Albert Brasseur. His grandfather, Jules Brasseur, was an actor as well. The family tradition of using the name Brasseur was continued by his son Claude and his grandson Alexandre.
Renowned for playing outsized characters, Brasseur is probably best known in the anglophone world for his (semi-fictionalised) portrayal of the actor Frédérick Lemaître in Les Enfants du Paradis (Children of Paradise, 1945) and as Docteur Génessier (more subdued) in the horror film Eyes Without a Face (Les Yeux sans visage, 1960) co-starring Alida Valli. On 30 May 1927, he performed the spoken role of the Narrator in the world premiere of Igor Stravinsky's opera-oratorio Oedipus Rex.
Honours
- He was made Chevalier (Knight) of the Légion d'honneur in 1966.
- He was made Commandeur (Commander) of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 1967.
- ^ "Pierre Brasseur | Biographie et Filmographie". Laurentpons.fr. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
Selected filmography
- A Father Without Knowing It (1932)
- Honeymoon Trip (1933)
- The Weaker Sex (1933)
- The Uncle from Peking (1934)
- A Rare Bird (1935)
- Giuseppe Verdi (1938)
- Hercule (1938)
- Port of Shadows (1938)
- Tobias Is an Angel (1940)
- Lumière d'été (1943)
- Children of Paradise (1945)
- Gates of the Night (1946)
- Jericho (1946)
- Rocambole (1948)
- Cruise for the Unknown One (1948)
- Millionnaires d'un jour (1949)
- Maître après Dieu (1951)
- Le Plaisir (1952)
- Crimson Curtain (1952)
- The King and the Mockingbird (1952, voice)
- Rasputin (1954)
- Oasis (1955)
- La Tour de Nesle (1955)
- Napoléon (1955)
- Gates of Paris (1957)
- La Vie à deux (1958)
- Les Grandes Familles (1958)
- The Law (1959)
- Head Against the Wall (1959)
- Eyes Without a Face (1960)
- Carthage in Flames (1960)
- Il bell'Antonio (1960)
- Candide ou l'optimisme au XXe siècle (1960)
- Spotlight on a Murderer (1961)
- L'Affaire Nina B. (1961)
- Le Bateau d'Émile (1961)
- Girl on the Road (1962)
- Lucky Jo (1964)
- Le Grain de sable (1964)
- Un monde nouveau (1965)
- A Matter of Resistance (1966)
- King of Hearts (1966)
- Fortuna (1966)
- Birds in Peru (1968)
- Sous le signe de Monte-Cristo (1968)
- The Married Couple of the Year Two (1971)