Vraititi<P>PSG till I die -fluctuat nec mergitur.<P> Posted September 10, 2005 Share Posted September 10, 2005 Lovers of French cinema and French culture worldwide will have no doubt shedded a tear or two, as I did yesterday, on hearing of the death of one of Paris's most adored sons, the actor André Pousse. Oh, sure, he was no modern, gobshitey 'mégastar' (not for him the limelights and the ostentatious trappings of an illusory fame and wealth), but he doesn't half deserve his place in the mythical Pantheon of Great Parisians, that's for sure. He was also, very sadly, the last surviving 'trublion' of 'La Bande à Audiard' (legendary dialogue writer of, among many others, classic French films 'le cave se rebiffe', 'les tontons flingueurs', etc.), that extraordinary bunch of actors, writers and miscreants amongst whom the gloriously funny and hugely talented Parisian writer Alphonse Boudard as well as the unique, irreplaceable actors Jean Gabin, Bernard Blier, Lino Ventura and Jean Lefèvre were the most prominent in the public eye. With André Pousse's death, it is no exaggeration to say that a whole era of French cinema is now officially closed, even if some self-appointed 'expert' on telly might argue that he was but a 'second rôle' (translate: a 'minor actor' in their eyes), but we'll leave these silly classifications to those who specialise in compulsive nonsensical pigeon-holing. To me, and I had the privilege to meet him a couple of times in the resto he used to have down in Balard, he will remain as Dédé la verve, ex professional cyclist, ex faux gangster, ex everything under the sun, without whom the classic French films 'ne nous fâchons pas', 'quelques messieurs bien tranquilles' and 'le pacha' would not have gained such a legendary status. I'll finish with what Audiard said to André Pousse (who had met Audiard -a cycling lover- in the Vélodrome in Paris) when the latter asked him why, suddenly, he (Audiard, a then hugely famous screen writer) decided to give him, the totally unknown André Pousse, aged 44 and a complete acting novice, a relatively important role. Audiard said: 'Simplement, Dédé, parce que t'as une gueule de mandat d'arrêt' (approx. translation = 'well, because you've got the face of a warrant of arrest'). For more info on A. Pousse and the above mentioned legends of French culture, as well as plenty of info and pictures on that fabled era, go to http://andrepousse.free.fr/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christine Animal Posted September 10, 2005 Share Posted September 10, 2005 Oui, et en plus he died in a car accident aged eighty-four. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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