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Raimu(1883-1946)

  • Actor
  • Writer
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Raimu
A small village rejoices at the arrival of a new baker. But when his young wife runs off with another man, he is unable to keep baking and the village is thrown into disarray.
 
Play trailer1:35
The Baker's Wife (1938)
2 Videos
27 Photos
Orson Welles once called beloved French character star Raimu (né Jules Auguste Cesar Muraire) "the greatest actor who ever lived." It is hard to argue the compliment of one genius to another.

The jowly, cigar-chomping comedian was born in Toulon, France on December 17, 1883 of very humble means, his father making ends meet as an upholsterer. Raimu began his stage career at age 16 as a music hall extra imitating famous French comic idols. Using the stage name of Raimut (he later dropped the "t"), he eventually gained a following in dance halls, cafe concerts, nightclubs and pubs as an entertainer but cemented his reputation on the Parisian comedy stages. Around this time, he also began to appear in minor roles in silent film shorts (1911-1917), but nothing much came from them and he left the screen.

Continuing to thrive on the live stage, Raimu's serious intentions as an actor were solidified with the 1929 stage production of the Marcel Pagnol play "Marius," which told story of a wanderlust sailor, his wife Fanny and father César. Raimu transferred the role of César brilliantly to the film trilogy Marius (1931), Fanny (1932) and César (1936) all co-starring Pierre Fresnay as Marius and Orane Demazis as Fanny. He went on to work with Pagnol quite frequently.

Closely identifying himself with the iron-willed working class, Raimu swayed quite effectively from humor to great pathos in characters that reminded one in looks and flavor of a grubby, weary-looking Honoré de Balzac. Immortalized in Pagnol's trilogy, arguably celebrated as the greatest series ever put together, Raimu continued to charm in primarily 1930's social comedies. His star role with leads in Le blanc et le noir (1931), La petite chocolatière (1932), Mam'zelle Nitouche (1931), Théodore et Cie (1933), the title roles in Charlemagne (1933) and Tartarin de Tarascon (1934), The King (1936), Let's Make a Dream (1936), Confessions of a Newlywed (1937), Heroes of the Marne (1938), Monsieur Brotonneau (1939) and Noix de coco (1939). For his superb work in both Julien Duvivier's Un Carnet de bal (1937) and Pagnol's The Baker's Wife (1938), he won the National Board of Review award.

Along the way Raimu worked with a host of legendary directors including Marc Allégret, Henri Decoin, Alexander Esway and Sacha Guitry. His film popularity continued to soar into the war years with roles in Pagnol's The Well-Digger's Daughter (1940), as well as The Man Who Seeks the Truth (1940), Strangers in the House (1942), Midnight in Paris (1942), Little Nothings (1941), The Heart of a Nation (1943) and the title role in Balzac's Le colonel Chabert (1943). He also returned to the theatre in such productions as "The Bourgeois Gentleman" and "The Imaginary Invalid."

Raimu returned to filming following the war with Hoboes in Paradise (1946) co-starring Fernandel. In March of 1946, while shooting his next post-war film The Eternal Husband (1946), he was involved in a car accident that would require some surgery. The 62-year-old actor died of a heart attack on September 20th following an allergic reaction to anesthesia while on the table for a minor leg operation. The outpouring of grief felt by his native country was monumental.

Survived by wife (from 1936) Esther Metayer (1905-1977) and daughter, Paulette Brun (1925-1992). Raimu was laid to rest in a cemetery in the town where he was born. In 1961, the French government placed his image on an honorary postage stamp.
BornDecember 18, 1883
DiedSeptember 20, 1946(62)
BornDecember 18, 1883
DiedSeptember 20, 1946(62)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • Awards
    • 4 wins total

Photos27

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Known for

Raimu in The Baker's Wife (1938)
The Baker's Wife
7.5
  • Aimable Castanier
  • 1938
Un Carnet de bal (1937)
Un Carnet de bal
7.4
  • Francois Patusset
  • 1937
Le colonel Chabert (1943)
Le colonel Chabert
7.1
  • Le colonel Hyacinthe Chabert
  • 1943
César (1936)
César
7.6
  • César Ollivier
  • 1936

Credits

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IMDbPro

Actor



  • The Eternal Husband (1946)
    The Eternal Husband
    6.5
    • Nicolas Trousotsky
    • 1946
  • Hoboes in Paradise (1946)
    Hoboes in Paradise
    4.8
    • Boule
    • 1946
  • Le colonel Chabert (1943)
    Le colonel Chabert
    7.1
    • Le colonel Hyacinthe Chabert
    • 1943
  • Michèle Morgan, Louis Jouvet, and Raimu in The Heart of a Nation (1943)
    The Heart of a Nation
    6.1
    • L'oncle Jules Froment
    • 1943
  • Le bienfaiteur (1942)
    Le bienfaiteur
    6.5
    • Monsieur Moulinet
    • 1942
  • Raimu in Midnight in Paris (1942)
    Midnight in Paris
    6.3
    • Monsieur La Souris
    • 1942
  • L'arlésienne (1942)
    L'arlésienne
    6.4
    • Marc
    • 1942
  • Strangers in the House (1942)
    Strangers in the House
    7.0
    • Maître Hector Loursat
    • 1942
  • Parade en 7 nuits (1941)
    Parade en 7 nuits
    5.8
    • Le curé Maffre - curé des Baux
    • 1941
  • Little Nothings (1941)
    Little Nothings
    5.6
    • Charpillon
    • 1941
  • Le duel (1941)
    Le duel
    5.6
    • le Père Bolène
    • 1941
  • Fernandel and Raimu in The Well-Digger's Daughter (1940)
    The Well-Digger's Daughter
    7.3
    • Pascal Amoretti
    • 1940
  • The Man Who Seeks the Truth (1940)
    The Man Who Seeks the Truth
    5.2
    • Jean Vernet
    • 1940
  • Ultima giovinezza (1939)
    Ultima giovinezza
    • Cesare
    • 1939
  • Second Childhood (1939)
    Second Childhood
    6.8
    • Georges
    • 1939

Writer



  • Jules et Marcel (2014)
    Jules et Marcel
    TV Movie
    • words
    • 2014

Soundtrack



  • Hoboes in Paradise (1946)
    Hoboes in Paradise
    4.8
    • performer: "Saint Antoine et Saint Nicolas"
    • 1946
  • Marius (1931)
    Marius
    7.8
    • performer: "Valparaiso"
    • 1931

Videos2

Trailer [OV]
Trailer 1:39
Trailer [OV]
Trailer
Trailer 1:35
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 1:35
Trailer

Personal details

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  • Alternative names
    • Jules Raimu
  • Born
    • December 18, 1883
    • Toulon, Var, France
  • Died
    • September 20, 1946
    • Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine, Île-de-France, France(heart attack)
  • Spouse
    • Esther MetayerMarch 28, 1936 - September 20, 1946 (his death, 1 child)
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Article
    • 2 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

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  • Trivia
    After WWII, Orson Welles came to see director Marcel Pagnol, told him he saw the movie and he would like to meet Raimu, "the greatest actor in the world" according to Welles. Pagnol answered Raimu recently died and Welles burst into tears. (Source: "Confidences" by Pagnol.).

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