Madeleine LeBeau
Encyclopedia
Madeleine LeBeau
Madeleine LeBeau (born either Marie Madeleine Berthe Lebeau on 10 June 1923 in Antony, Hauts-de-Seine
, France
) is a French actress.
in 1938 (his second marriage). They had met while performing a play together. In 1939 she appeared in her first movie, the melodrama Jeunes filles en détresse (Girls in Distress).
In June 1940, LeBeau and the Jewish Dalio fled Paris
ahead of the invading German army
and reached Lisbon
. It took them two months to obtain visas to Chile
. However, when their ship stopped in Mexico
, they were stranded (along with around 200 other passengers) when the visas they had purchased turned out to be forgeries. Eventually, they were able to get temporary Canadian passports and entered the United States
.
Lebeau made her Hollywood debut in Olivia de Havilland
's Hold Back the Dawn
(1941). The following year, she received a good role in the Errol Flynn
movie Gentleman Jim
, a biography of famed Irish-American boxer James J. Corbett
.
. The Warner Brothers studios signed her to a $100-a-week contract for twenty-six weeks to be in a number of films. On June 22, while she was filming her scenes in Casablanca, her husband, Marcel Dalio, who played Emil the croupier in the film, filed for divorce in Los Angeles
on the grounds of desertion. Shortly before the release of the movie, Warner Brothers terminated her contract. Since the death of Joy Page
in April 2008, she has been the last surviving cast member of Casablanca
. (1942).
.
After the end of World War II
, LeBeau returned to France and continued her acting career. In 1947, she appeared in Les Chouans
(The Royalists). In 1950, LeBeau traveled to Great Britain
to appear in a movie with Jean Simmons
, Cage of Gold
.
She would appear in 20 more movies, mainly French, including Brigitte Bardot
's Une Parisienne (1957), and Federico Fellini
's 8½
(Otto e mezzo, 1963). LeBeau's last two movies were Spanish productions in 1965. She married award-winning Italian screenwriter Tullio Pinelli
in 1988.
Madeleine LeBeau (born either Marie Madeleine Berthe Lebeau on 10 June 1923 in Antony, Hauts-de-Seine
Antony, Hauts-de-Seine
-Personalities:Antony was the birthplace of:* Nicola Sirkis singer with the French band Indochine* Agnès Jaoui screenwriter, film director and actress* Laurent Lafforgue , mathematician-International relations:...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) is a French actress.
Early life
LeBeau married actor Marcel DalioMarcel Dalio
Marcel Dalio was a French character actor. He had major roles in two of Jean Renoir's most famous films, Grand Illusion and The Rules of the Game.- Biography :...
in 1938 (his second marriage). They had met while performing a play together. In 1939 she appeared in her first movie, the melodrama Jeunes filles en détresse (Girls in Distress).
In June 1940, LeBeau and the Jewish Dalio fled Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
ahead of the invading German army
German Army
The German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
and reached Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
. It took them two months to obtain visas to Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
. However, when their ship stopped in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, they were stranded (along with around 200 other passengers) when the visas they had purchased turned out to be forgeries. Eventually, they were able to get temporary Canadian passports and entered the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Lebeau made her Hollywood debut in Olivia de Havilland
Olivia de Havilland
Olivia Mary de Havilland is a British American film and stage actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1946 and 1949. She is the elder sister of actress Joan Fontaine. The sisters are among the last surviving leading ladies from Hollywood of the 1930s.-Early life:Olivia de Havilland...
's Hold Back the Dawn
Hold Back the Dawn
Hold Back the Dawn is a 1941 romantic film in which a Romanian gigolo marries an American woman in Mexico in order to gain entry to the United States, but winds up falling in love with her...
(1941). The following year, she received a good role in the Errol Flynn
Errol Flynn
Errol Leslie Flynn was an Australian-born actor. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles in Hollywood films, being a legend and his flamboyant lifestyle.-Early life:...
movie Gentleman Jim
Gentleman Jim (1942 film)
Gentleman Jim is a 1942 film starring Errol Flynn as heavyweight boxing champion James J. Corbett. The supporting cast includes Alexis Smith, Jack Carson, Alan Hale, William Frawley, and Ward Bond. The movie was based upon Corbett's autobiography, The Roar of the Crowd, and directed by Raoul...
, a biography of famed Irish-American boxer James J. Corbett
James J. Corbett
James John "Gentleman Jim" Corbett was an Irish-American heavyweight boxing champion, best known as the man who defeated the great John L. Sullivan. He also coached boxing at the Olympic Club in San Francisco...
.
Casablanca
Later that year she received the role of Yvonne, Rick’s jilted mistress, in CasablancaCasablanca (film)
Casablanca is a 1942 American romantic drama film directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman and Paul Henreid, and featuring Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre and Dooley Wilson. Set during World War II, it focuses on a man torn between, in...
. The Warner Brothers studios signed her to a $100-a-week contract for twenty-six weeks to be in a number of films. On June 22, while she was filming her scenes in Casablanca, her husband, Marcel Dalio, who played Emil the croupier in the film, filed for divorce in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
on the grounds of desertion. Shortly before the release of the movie, Warner Brothers terminated her contract. Since the death of Joy Page
Joy Page
Joy Page was an American actress best known for her role as the Bulgarian bride Annina Brandel in the film Casablanca ....
in April 2008, she has been the last surviving cast member of Casablanca
Casablanca (film)
Casablanca is a 1942 American romantic drama film directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman and Paul Henreid, and featuring Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre and Dooley Wilson. Set during World War II, it focuses on a man torn between, in...
. (1942).
After Casablanca
After Casablanca, she appeared in two more American films. The first was a large role in the war drama Paris After Dark in 1943 with her former husband. The following year, LeBeau had a smaller role in Music for MillionsMusic for Millions
Music for Millions is a 1944 musical comedy film directed by Henry Koster. It was nominated for an Academy Award in 1946.-Plot:"Mike" , age 6, arrives in New York to stay with her sister Barbara Ainsworth , who lived together with a group of girls, her co-players in a symphony orchestra...
.
After the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, LeBeau returned to France and continued her acting career. In 1947, she appeared in Les Chouans
Les Chouans
Les Chouans is an 1829 novel by French novelist and playwright Honoré de Balzac and included in the Scènes de la vie militaire section of his novel sequence La Comédie humaine. Set in the French region of Brittany, the novel combines military history with a love story between the aristocratic...
(The Royalists). In 1950, LeBeau traveled to Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
to appear in a movie with Jean Simmons
Jean Simmons
Jean Merilyn Simmons, OBE was an English actress. She appeared predominantly in motion pictures, beginning with films made in Great Britain during and after World War II – she was one of J...
, Cage of Gold
Cage of Gold
Cage of Gold is a 1950 British drama film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Jean Simmons, Herbert Lom and Bernard Lee.-Plot:A young woman gives up her stable life and leaves her fiancé for a married man, who gets her pregnant and then abandons her....
.
She would appear in 20 more movies, mainly French, including Brigitte Bardot
Brigitte Bardot
Brigitte Anne-Marie Bardot is a French former fashion model, actress, singer and animal rights activist. She was one of the best-known sex-symbols of the 1960s.In her early life, Bardot was an aspiring ballet dancer...
's Une Parisienne (1957), and Federico Fellini
Federico Fellini
Federico Fellini, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI , was an Italian film director and scriptwriter. Known for a distinct style that blends fantasy and baroque images, he is considered one of the most influential and widely revered filmmakers of the 20th century...
's 8½
8½
8½ is a 1963 Italian fantasy film directed by Federico Fellini. Co-scripted by Fellini, Tullio Pinelli, Ennio Flaiano, and Brunello Rondi, it stars Marcello Mastroianni as Guido Anselmi, a famous Italian film director...
(Otto e mezzo, 1963). LeBeau's last two movies were Spanish productions in 1965. She married award-winning Italian screenwriter Tullio Pinelli
Tullio Pinelli
Tullio Pinelli was an Italian screenwriter best known for his work on the Federico Fellini classics I Vitelloni, La strada, La Dolce Vita and 8½.-Biography:...
in 1988.