Jean Marais
photograph by Carl Van Vechten, 1947
Born	Jean-Alfred Villain-Marais (1913-12-11)11 December 1913 Cherbourg, France
Died	8 November 1998(1998-11-08) (aged 84) Cannes, France
Occupation	Actor, director
Years active	1933 - 1996
Spouse(s)	Mila Parély (1942-1944)
Partner(s)	Jean Cocteau (1937-1963)

Jean-Alfred Villain-Marais (French pronunciation: ​[ʒɑ̃ maʁɛ]; 11 December 1913 – 8 November 1998), was a French actor and director.

Biography[edit]

A native of Cherbourg, France, Marais starred in several movies directed by Jean Cocteau, for a time his lover and a lifelong friend, most famously Beauty and the Beast (1946) and Orphée (1949). Marais played over 100 roles in film and on television, and also was known for work in other areas of artistic expression, such as writing, painting and sculpture.^[1]

In the 1950s, Marais became a star of swashbuckling pictures, enjoying great box office popularity in France. He performed his own stunts. In the 1960s, he played the famed villain of the Fantômas trilogy. In 1963, he was a member of the jury at the 3rd Moscow International Film Festival.^[2]

After 1970, Marais's on-screen performances became few and far between, as he preferred concentrating on his stage work. He kept performing on stage until his eighties, also working as a sculptor. His sculpture "Le passe muraille" (The Walker Through Walls) can be seen in the Montmatre Quarter of Paris. In 1985, he was the head of the jury at the 35th Berlin International Film Festival.^[3]

He was featured in the 1995 documentary "Screening at the Majestic", which is included on the 2003 DVD release of the restored print of Beauty and the Beast.^[4] Marais appears on the cover sleeve of The Smiths single This Charming Man.

Marais died from cardiovascular disease in Cannes, Alpes-Maritimes. He is interred there at Vallauris cemetery.

Personal life[edit]

Though he was married during World War II to the actress Mila Parély, the couple were divorced after around two years.^[5] Marais, who was homosexual, was the muse and lover of Jean Cocteau until Cocteau's death.^[6] After Cocteau's death, Marais wrote a memoir of Cocteau, L'Inconcevable Jean Cocteau, attributing authorship to "Cocteau-Marais." He also wrote his own autobiography, L'Histoires de ma vie, published in 1975.

Filmography[edit]

See also[edit]

• Place Jean-Marais

References[edit]

1. ^ Shelokhonov, Steve. "Mini-Biography". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 11 March, 2012. 
2. ^ "3rd Moscow International Film Festival (1963)". MIFF. Retrieved 2012-11-25. 
3. ^ "Berlinale: Juries". berlinale.de. Retrieved 2011-01-08. 
4. ^ The Criterion Collection: Beauty and the Beast by Jean Cocteau
5. ^ Shelokhonov, Steve. "Mini-Biography". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 11 March, 2011. 
6. ^ Légendes d'Écran Noir: Jean Marais

External links[edit]

• Jean Marais at the Internet Broadway Database
• Jean Marais at the Internet Movie Database
• Eternel Jean Marais
• Jean Marais at Find a Grave
• Jean Marais at the Films de France