2022-04-14 11:09:00
MICHAEL BOUQUET. Michel Bouquet was a monument of French theater and cinema. Known for having played no less than 800 times “The King is Dying” by Ionesco, the actor has toured with the greatest, including Chabrol and Truffaut.
Biography of Michel Bouquet – Born on November 6, 1925 in Paris and died on April 13, 2022, Michel Bouquet entered the Conservatory of Dramatic Art in 1943. His film career gained momentum in the 1960s: he worked for great directors, such as Truffaut and Chabrol, interpreting ambiguous and mysterious characters. He also shines in the theater, with in particular “The king is dying” and “A torts ou à raisons”. In fact, he has become a key player in French cinema and theater.
Michel Bouquet studied in boarding school with his three brothers. There, he becomes a reserved child, because of the teasing of his comrades. His father became a prisoner of war, he helps his mother by doing odd jobs such as an apprentice pastry chef, mechanic, bank employee. From 1943, he turned to the theater by taking lessons with Maurice Escande, member of the French comedy. He then joined the Conservatory of Dramatic Arts, where Gerard Philippe is one of his classmates. The actor cut his teeth at the Théâtre de l’Atelier, with Jean Anouilh and André Barsacq, then at the Théâtre national populaire, with Jean Restsand at Festival d’Avignon. He gets his first role thanks to Jean Anouilh in the play “Romeo and Jeannette”.
It was in “Monsieur Vincent” by Maurice Cloche, that Michel Bouquet made his first appearance at the cinema, in 1947. Thereafter, he did not only stay in a register, playing in comedies as well as in dramas. Playing bourgeois in the 70s, he also plays dark and unsympathetic characters. His work is steady, being serious and focused, to embody these characters. We see it in great films like “The bride was in black” by Francois Truffaut in 1967; “Two men in the city” by José Giovanni in 1973; “Wretched” of Robert Hossein in 1982; “How I Killed My Father” by Anne Fontaine in 2001; “The walker of the Champ-de-Mars” by Robert Guédiguian in 2005, where he plays President Mitterrand; “Renoir” by Gilles Bourdos in 2012, playing Auguste Renoir, but also in series like “Maigret”, alongside Bruno Crémer.
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Oscillating between cinema and theatre, Michel Bouquet admitted that he had a preference for the boards. From 1944 to 2017, he played in many plays, highlighting the works of Albert Camus and Harold Pinter, but also often in plays by Molière. and Eugene Ionesco. Some of his stage performances have become famous, such as “Waiting for Godot” in 1978, “Le neveu de Rameau” by Diderot in 1984, “Les Côtelettes” by Bertrand Blier in 1997, and more recently “A torts ou à reasons” by Ronald Harwood in 2000, which he performed several times, notably at the Théâtre Hebertot.
In an interview with France Culture for the play “Le Malade imaginaire”, Michel Bouquet reveals the way he chooses his roles: “It’s a moment of crush, it’s like in life when you encounter circumstances that make you see the wonderful life. It’s those moments that make you actually choose a play. But when you choose a play, you’re not at all sure that you can play it, because between choosing it and playing it , there is a world… well, there is a gigantic job. But you have to have this crush, this love at first sight to dare to consider working on it.”
The career of Michel Bouquet in the theater will be marked a fetish play. This is none other than “The King is Dying” by Eugène Ionesco, directed by Georges Werler. It is one of the plays he performed the most, first in 1994 then from 2004 to 2006 and from 2010 to 2014. This play tells the story of a dying king – as the title suggests – but who does not accept death. The sovereign will therefore go through several emotions: denial, revolt and resignation. Through this tragedy, where the reaction to the announcement of an imminent death is ridiculed, Ionesco highlights the attitude of individuals towards it, and wishes to demonstrate that it is nevertheless inevitable. Famous for this performance, Michel Bouquet won the Molière for comedian in 2005.
Michel Bouquet played more than 400 times the character of Argan in “The Imaginary Invalid” by Molière, directed by his friend Georges Werler. This play depicts a hypochondriac named Argan, who pretends to be ill but who, in reality, has imaginary illnesses. Physicians therefore come to him to bleed and purge him and give remedies. Their concern is not so much the health of their patient, but more what he can bring them or give thanks to this obsession. Here Molière also ridicules the fear of death but also the medical profession. A recurring subject in the author’s work, it provokes laughter with each interpretation. Michel Bouquet interpreted Argan in 1987, in 2008 and in 2009 in the theater and then on television in 1971 and 2009. He was nominated twice for the Molière du actor for this role in 1987 and 1988, but did not win them.
Michel Bouquet saw the birth in September 2019 of a show about himself, but without his presence. In the play directed by Damien Bricoteaux, it is the actor Maxime d’Aboville (Molière of the actor in 2015), who declaims the words of Michel Bouquet, collected by the actor Charles Berling. It sheds light on Bouquet’s life, from finding his way to discovering the theater, which allows him to escape from the harsh reality. A touching and intimate story.
Michel Bouquet receives three Molières for his performances at the theater: two Molières from the actor in 1998 for “Les Côtelettes” and in 2005 for “The King is dying”, and a third, a Molière d’honneur for his entire career, in 2014. Then he received the Globe de Cristal for best actor, for the play “Le Tartuffe” by Molière. He won a César in 2002 for “How I Killed My Father”, then in 2006 for his interpretation of François Mitterrand in “Le Promeneur du Champ-de-Mars”.
Michel Bouquet also received three Prix du Syndicat de la critique for best actor for “Témoignage inadmissible” in 1967, “Monsieur Klebs et Rozalie” in 1976 and “Le Neveu de Rameau” in 1983. In 1991, he won the prize for best actor European for “Toto the hero”. Then he received the Grand Prix National du Théâtre in 1994, the Prix Plaisir du Théâtre in 1999, the Lumière Award for Best Actor for “How I Killed My Father” and the Grand Prix In Honor from the Charles-Cros Academy in 2006.
Michel Bouquet climbs the ranks of the Legion of Honor over time. He will first be knighted on May 19, 1983, then officer on April 3, 1996, commander on July 13, 2007, grand officer on July 12, 2013 and finally, on July 13, 2018, Grand Cross. On May 15, 2019, he also received the Gold Medal of the French Renaissance. This is awarded to a person who promotes French culture, and who has a Commander’s Cross in a state order.
Alongside his acting career, Michel Bouquet has done the voiceover for documentaries and short films, such as “Nuit et Brouillard” by Alain Resnais. He has also done readings put on discs, such as the poetic works of Victor Hugo in 1985, or even Jean de la Fontaine in 2019. In 2017, he published a book entitled “Michel Bouquet tells Molière”. In 2001, he collaborated with Charles Berling for his book “The Players. Interviews”, then in 2010 with Jean-Jacques Vincensini for “The comedy lesson” and in 2011 with Fabienne Pascaud for “Actor’s memory”.
Michel Bouquet lived a first marriage with the actress Ariane Borg. He then married actress Juliette Carré in 1970, with whom he played several times. He never had a child. In fact, he is not the father of the actress Carole Bouquet. A question that has become recurrent for the two homonymous actors.
Michel Bouquet died on Wednesday April 13, 2022 at the age of 96. AFP revealed that the actor of cinema and theater had “died in a Parisian hospital”, quoting his press service. The state of health of Michel Bouquet before his death remains unknown. Actor Fabrice Luchini revealed on RTL that he “wasn’t doing very well” for a few months, without making any further revelations about his illness. He simply clarified that he was “beginning to no longer be in control of all his memories”. A national tribute is organized at Les Invalides on April 27, 2022. It is chaired by Emmanuel Macron. During the ceremony, Muriel Robin, Pierre Arditi and Fabrice Luchini take the floor.
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