Encyclopedia of French Film Directors

fi fteen. He successively was telegraphist, gravure plate
engraver, barman, waiter, deliveryman, photographer,
ceramist, newspaper seller, packer, and electric guitar
maker before doing his military service. Then he became
an itinerant singer and made his acting debut
in the café theaters Chez Bernadette and La Méthode,
where he met Romain Bouteille, with whom he
founded the Café de la Gare in 1968. He progressively
established himself as the most popular French
comedian of his generation. From 1969 (Le Pistonné /
UK and USA: The Man with Connections, Claude Berri)
to 1985 (Il scemmo di Guerra / Le Fou de Guerre, Dino
Risi, Italy / France), he played in twenty-two movies,
including the one he co-directed. He died at age
forty-one in a motorcycle crash.
Filmography
1977 Vous n’aurez pas l’Alsace et la Lorraine (codirector
with Marc Monnet, also screenwriter,
dialogist, actor; France / Belgium)
COMBRET, GEORGES (Maurice Combret / November
11, 1906, Paris, France–January 31, 1998,
Cannes, Alpes-Maritimes, France)
He started out his professional career in the automobile
industry before switching to fi lm production
(almost ninety movies from 1949 La Ronde des Heures,
as production manager, Alexandre Ryder, to 1980
Club porno pur Chattes enragées, Henri Sala). From
1974 to 1980, he fi nanced about forty porn fl icks. He
also was a co-screenwriter (1956 Toute la Ville accuse,
co-adapter only, also producer, Claude Boissol; 1964
La Vedovella, Silvio Siano, Italy; 1974 Quand les Filles
se déchaînent / UK: Hot and Naked, Guy Maria; 1975
Le Commando des Chauds Lapins, Guy Pérol, shot in
1973; Hard Core Story / Un Sacré Zizi, Guy Maria; Les
Karatéchattes, Guy Maria) and owned several movie
theaters. A car knocked him over, and he succumbed
to the aftereffects of the accident.
Filmography
1951 Musique en Tête (co-director with Claude Orval;
also producer)
1952 Duel à Dakar (co-director with Claude Orval;
also co-adapter, co-dialogist, producer)
1953 Tambour battant (also screenwriter, producer)
La Pocharde (also producer)
1954 Raspoutine / UK: Rasputin (also co-screenwriter,
co-adapter, co-dialogist, co-producer;
France / Italy)
COMOLLI, JEAN-LOUIS • 245
1955 La Castiglione / La contessa di Castiglione / USA:
The Contessa’s Secret (also co-screenwriter,
co-dialogist; France / Italy)
1960 Marie des Isles / I fl ibustieri della Martinica /
USA: Marie of the Isles (also co-screenwriter,
co-adapter, co-dialogist, co-producer; France
/ Italy)
1961 Les Fortiches (also co-screenwriter, co-dialogist)
1965 La Traite des Blanches / S 2 S base morte chiama
Suniper / La tratta delle bianche / UK: I Am a
Fugitive from a White Slave Gang / USA: Frustrations
/ Hot Frustrations (also co-screenwriter,
co-dialogist, co-producer; France / Italy)
1966 Duello nel mondo / Duel dans le Monde / USA:
Ring Around the World (co-director with Luigi
Scattini; Italy / France)
1967 Le Feu de Dieu / UK: Fire of Love (also screenwriter,
co-dialogist; France / Italy)
La Malédiction de Belphégor / La mortale trappola
di Belfagor (co-director with Jean Maley;
also co-screenwriter, co-dialogist, executive
producer; France / Italy)
1974 Le Plumard en Folie / French video: Les Farfelous
/ Le Lit / UK: Bedmania / USA: Le Lit . . . Ze
Bawdy Bed (co-director with Jacques Lemoine;
France / Canada)
COMOLLI, JEAN-LOUIS (July 30, 1941, Philippeville
[now Skikda], Algeria–)
From 1962 to the present, he collaborates on Les
Cahiers du Cinéma (he was chief editor of the review
from 1966 to 1971). He published articles in
such reviews as Trafi c, Images documentaires, L’Image,
Le Monde, and Jazz Magazine. He played in several
movies (1963 Les Carabiniers / UK: The Soldiers /
USA: The Rifl emen, Jean-Luc Godard, France / Italy;
La Boulangère de Monceau, short, Barbet Schroeder;
La Carrière de Suzanne, short, Eric Rohmer; 1965
Alphaville, une étrange Aventure de Lemmy Caution
/ Agente Lemmy Caution, missione Alphaville / UK:
Alphaville, a Strange Adventure of Lemmy Caution / Alphaville,
a Strange Case of Lemmy Caution / USA: Dick
Tracy on Mars, Jean-Luc Godard, France / Italy; 1970
Elise ou la vraie Vie, Michel Drach, France / Algeria)
and co-wrote fi lms (1981 Plein Sud / Huida al sur /
USA: Heat of Desire, Claude Miller, France / Spain;
1982 Hiver 60, Thierry Michel, Belgium; 1992 Retrato
de familia, Luís Galvão Teles, Portugal / Luxembourg
/ Spain) and TV movies (1978 Le Voyage de Sélim,
Régina Martial; 1981 Le Bidule, Régina Martial; Les