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IMDbPro

Daniel Gélin(1921-2002)

  • Actor
  • Writer
  • Director
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Daniel Gélin in Hirsipuunkatu 135 (1953)
Watch Bande-annonce [OV]
Play trailer2:58
Un linceul n'a pas de poches (1974)
4 Videos
61 Photos
Sensitive, boyishly handsome, dark-haired Gallic lead and character actor Daniel Gelin did not have an easy personal life but was warmly embraced as a talented star who appeared to fine advantage for such legendary directors as Max Ophüls, Louis Malle, Jean Cocteau, Alfred Hitchcock, and Claude Lelouch.

Born Daniel Yves Alfred Gelin in Angers, France, on May 19, 1921, he left home at age 16 to take dramatic arts classes and trained at the Cours Simon in Paris, later studying at the Paris Conservatoire with Louis Jouvet his mentor. He made his first film appearance in Miquette (1940) and for several years played extra or bit parts in French films.

His rebellious bohemian nature served him well in films, if not his private life. Adept at both light comedy and heavy drama, Gelin moved into leading roles in 1949 and went on to mesmerize audiences in such films as Suurkaupungin sävel (1949), Vastanaineet (1951), Les Mains sales (1951), Lemmenunelma (1952), Hirsipuunkatu 135 (1953), Une histoire d'amour (1951), Napoleon (1955) (title role), Mies joka tiesi liikaa (1956), Orfeuksen testamentti (1960) and many more.

Numerous starring/co-starring roles in primarily French films followed, a healthy mixture of farce and drama. These included La proie pour l'ombre (1961), El niño y el muro (1965), Demarkaatiolinja (1966), Hyvästi rakkaus (1966), Zeugin aus der Hölle (1966), La trêve (1968), Hallucinations sadiques (1969), La servante (1970), Far from Dallas (1972), Diálogos de exiliados (1975), L'honorable société (1978) and Les enfants (1985). His final films would be in Les ténors (1994), Des feux mal éteints (1994), Fugueuses (1995) and Les Bidochon (1996). Gelin's last few years were spent on TV with projects including roles on Chercheurs d'or (1996), Les marmottes (1998) and Madame le proviseur (1994).

Despite his enviable resume (150 films), It's generally considered that Gelin professional career was compromised by a turbulent, unhappy life off screen. Gelin lived an emotionally up-and-down rollercoaster life pocked with stormy relationships, severe depression and suicide attempts. A lengthy battle with alcohol and drugs quickly hardened his initially boyish features. One child son, Pascal, died tragically in 1957 at the age of 14 months when he accidentally swallowed pills. Another son, actor/producer Xavier Gélin, lost his battle with cancer in 1999.

Gelin was married three times, including his first to actress Danièle Delorme. He had six children in all. One daughter, actress Maria Schneider was the product of his liaison with French model Christine Marie Schneider, whom he never married. Another daughter was actress Fiona Gélin. Gélin was a writer as well, and penned a number of poetry poems, memoirs and even a manual on gardening. He died in Paris on November 29, 2002, at the age 81 of kidney failure.
BornMay 19, 1921
DiedNovember 29, 2002(81)
BornMay 19, 1921
DiedNovember 29, 2002(81)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank

Photos61

Daniel Gélin and Maurice Ronet in Suurkaupungin sävel (1949)
Brigitte Bardot, Daniel Gélin, and Robert Hirsch in Naisen aseilla (1956)
Brigitte Bardot, Daniel Gélin, and Robert Hirsch in Naisen aseilla (1956)
Brigitte Bardot and Daniel Gélin in Naisen aseilla (1956)
Daniel Gélin in Naisen aseilla (1956)
Daniel Gélin, Fabien Ferreux, and Marc Winocourt in Rakas sydän (1971)
Daniel Gélin and Lea Massari in Rakas sydän (1971)
Daniel Gélin in Rakas sydän (1971)
Daniel Gélin and Gina Lollobrigida in Roomatar - erään ilotytön tie (1954)
Daniel Gélin in Suurkaupungin sävel (1949)
Daniel Gélin, Bernard Blier, and Annie Girardot in Sängystä sänkyyn (1964)
Daniel Gélin and Bernard Blier in Sängystä sänkyyn (1964)

Known for:

Doris Day and James Stewart in Mies joka tiesi liikaa (1956)
Mies joka tiesi liikaa
7.4
  • Louis Bernard
  • 1956
Kuolleen miehen kosto (1957)
Kuolleen miehen kosto
6.8
  • Robert Montillon
  • 1957
La trêve (1968)
La trêve
8.9
  • Arno
  • 1968
Hyvää yötä Pariisi... huomenta rakkaus! (1956)
Hyvää yötä Pariisi... huomenta rakkaus!
  • Georges Bernier
  • Self
  • 1956

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actor

  • À l'abri des regards indiscrets (2002)
    À l'abri des regards indiscrets
    6.9
    Short
    • Abdel-Robert
    • 2002
  • Ellen Fjæstad and Carl-Robert Holmer-Kårell in Eva ja Adam (1999)
    Eva ja Adam
    6.3
    TV Series
    • Badvakten (as Daniel Gelin)
    • 2000
  • Les faux médicaments
    TV Movie
    • Prof. Delaroche
    • 2000
  • Danièle Delorme in Madame le proviseur (1994)
    Madame le proviseur
    4.1
    TV Series
    • Charles
    • 1994–1999
  • François Caron and Marie-José Nat in Les marmottes (1998)
    Les marmottes
    7.8
    TV Mini Series
    • Léo Klein
    • 1998
  • Une femme d'action
    TV Movie
    • Charles
    • 1997
  • Entre terre et mer (1997)
    Entre terre et mer
    7.7
    TV Mini Series
    • Récitant
    • Narrator (voice)
    • 1997
  • Obsession (1997)
    Obsession
    5.1
    • Xavier Favre
    • 1997
  • Chercheurs d'or (1996)
    Chercheurs d'or
    5.3
    TV Mini Series
    • Wildwater Bill
    • 1996
  • Hommes, femmes, mode d'emploi (1996)
    Hommes, femmes, mode d'emploi
    6.1
    • The Widower
    • 1996
  • Les Bidochon (1996)
    Les Bidochon
    3.4
    • Le père Bidochon
    • 1996
  • Uskomaton uusperhe (1992)
    Uskomaton uusperhe
    5.8
    TV Series
    • Édouard Beaumont
    • 1996
  • Fantôme avec chauffeur (1996)
    Fantôme avec chauffeur
    5.0
    • Le passeur (le guide céleste) (as Daniel Gelin)
    • 1996
  • Du silence plein la tête
    Short
    • 1995
  • Fugueuses (1995)
    Fugueuses
    6.2
    • Bruno
    • 1995

Writer

  • Les Feux de la rampe (2001)
    Les Feux de la rampe
    TV Series
    • Writer
    • 2002
  • Daniel Gélin and Danièle Delorme in Les dents longues (1953)
    Les dents longues
    6.0
    • Writer
    • 1953

Director

  • Daniel Gélin and Danièle Delorme in Les dents longues (1953)
    Les dents longues
    6.0
    • Director
    • 1953

Videos4

Bande-annonce [OV]
Trailer 3:08
Bande-annonce [OV]
Bande-annonce [OV]
Trailer 3:08
Bande-annonce [OV]
Bande-annonce [OV]
Trailer 2:58
Bande-annonce [OV]
Rendezvous in July
Trailer 3:28
Rendezvous in July

Personal details

Edit
  • Alternative name
    • Daniel Gelin
  • Height
    • 1.72 m
  • Born
    • May 19, 1921
    • Angers, Maine-et-Loire, France
  • Died
    • November 29, 2002
    • Paris, France(kidney failure)
  • Spouses
      Lydie ZaksFebruary 10, 1973 - November 29, 2002 (his death, 1 child)
  • Children
      Maria Schneider
  • Other works
    Play: "Les murs" (P. Gascar) (1964)
  • Publicity listings
    • 2 Interviews
    • 1 Article
    • 2 Pictorials
    • 9 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Father of Maria Schneider, Xavier Gélin, Fiona Gélin and Manuel Gélin.

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