Jean Gabin
Known for Acting · 117 credits
- Born
- 1904-05-17
- Died
- 1976-11-15
- Place of birth
- Paris, France
- Also known as
- Jean-Alexis Moncorgé · Jean Moncorgé · Jean Gabin Alexis Moncorgé · ژان گابن · Жан Алексис Монкорже
Biography
Jean Gabin Alexis Moncorgé (born Jean-Alexis Moncorgé), known as Jean Gabin (17 May 1904 – 15 November 1976), was a French actor and singer. Considered a key figure in French cinema, he starred in several classic films, including Pépé le Moko (1937), La grande illusion (1937), Le Quai des brumes (1938), La bête humaine (1938), Le jour se lève (1939), and Le plaisir (1952). During his career, he twice won the Silver Bear for Best Actor from the Berlin International Film Festival and the Volpi Cup for Best Actor from the Venice Film Festival, respectively. Gabin was made a member of the Légion d'honneur in recognition of the important role he played in French cinema.
Gabin was born Jean-Alexis Moncorgé in Paris, the son of Madeleine Petit and Ferdinand Moncorgé, a cafe owner and cabaret entertainer whose stage name was Gabin, which is a first name in French. He grew up in the village of Mériel in the Seine-et-Oise (now Val-d'Oise) département, about 22 mi (35 km) north of Paris. He attended the Lycée Janson de Sailly. Gabin left school early, and worked as a laborer until the age of 19 when he entered show business with a bit part in a Folies Bergère production. He continued performing in a variety of minor roles before going into the military.
After completing his military service in the Fusiliers marins, he returned to the entertainment business, working under the stage name of Jean Gabin at whatever was offered in the Parisian music halls and operettas, imitating the singing style of Maurice Chevalier, which was the rage at the time. He was part of a troupe that toured South America, and upon returning to France found work at the Moulin Rouge. His performances started getting noticed, and better stage roles came along that led to parts in two silent films in 1928.
Two years later Gabin made the transition to sound films in a 1930 Pathé Frères production, Chacun sa chance. Playing secondary roles, he made more than a dozen films over the next four years, including films directed by Maurice and Jacques Tourneur. But he only gained real recognition for his performance in Maria Chapdelaine, a 1934 production directed by Julien Duvivier. He was then cast as a romantic hero in the 1936 war drama La Bandera; this second Duvivier-directed film established him as a major star. The next year he teamed up with Duvivier again in the highly successful Pépé le Moko. Its popularity brought Gabin international recognition. That same year he starred in Jean Renoir's La Grande Illusion, an antiwar film that ran at a New York City theatre for an unprecedented six months. This was followed by another of Renoir's major works, La Bête Humaine (The Human Beast), a film noir tragedy based on the novel by Émile Zola and starring Gabin and Simone Simon, as well as Le Quai Des Brumes (Port of Shadows), one of director Marcel Carné's classics of poetic realism. His rugged charisma could be compared with Humphrey Bogart and James Cagney.
He divorced his second wife in 1939. ...
Known For
Sacrée soirée
1987
as Self (archive footage)
Spécial cinéma
1974
as Self (archive footage)
Cinépanorama
1956
as Self
V.I.P. Schaukel
1971
as Self
Cérémonie des César
1976
as Self - President
Encyclopédie audiovisuelle du cinéma
1978
as Self (archive footage)
TV Shows (7)
Sacrée soirée
1987
as Self (archive footage)
Spécial cinéma
1974
as Self (archive footage)
Cinépanorama
1956
as Self
V.I.P. Schaukel
1971
as Self
Cérémonie des César
1976
as Self - President
Encyclopédie audiovisuelle du cinéma
1978
as Self (archive footage)
The Century of Icons
2022
as Self (archive footage)
Movies (110)
Maigret and the St. Fiacre Case
1959
as Commissioner Jules Maigret
Les Misérables
1958
as Jean Valjean / Champmathieu
Grand Illusion
1937
as Le lieutenant Maréchal
The Sicilian Clan
1969
as Vittorio Manalese
Touchez Pas au Grisbi
1954
as Max dit Max le Menteur
Two Men in Town
1973
as Germain Cazeneuve
Golgotha
1935
as Ponce Pilate
The Tattoo
1968
as Comte Enguerand de Montignac,alias « Legrain »
Razzia
1955
as Henri Ferré dit 'Le Nantais'
Napoleon
1955
as Marshal Jean Lannes
Port of Shadows
1938
as Jean
French Cancan
1955
as Henri Danglard
Jury of One
1974
as Leguen
La Bête Humaine
1938
as Lantier
Pépé le Moko
1937
as Pépé le Moko
Any Number Can Win
1963
as Charles
The Counterfeiters of Paris
1961
as Ferdinand Maréchal, aka 'le Dabe'
Maigret Sets a Trap
1958
as Commissioner Jules Maigret
The Image Book
2018
as (archive footage)
Le Plaisir
1952
as Joseph Rivet
Belmondo, il était une fois le beau monde
2011
as Self (archive footage)
Speaking of Murder
1957
as Louis Bertain/Louis le blond
La Traversée de Paris
1956
as Grandgil, artist painter
The Walls of Malapaga
1949
as Pierre Arrignon
Love Is My Profession
1958
as André Gobillot
Moontide
1942
as Bobo
The Lower Depths
1936
as Pepel Wasska
The Gardener of Argenteuil
1966
as M. Martin dit « Le père Tulipe »
Daybreak
1939
as François
Maigret Sees Red
1963
as Commissioner Jules Maigret
The President
1961
as Émile Beaufort
Méphisto
1931
as Jacques Miral
Deadlier Than the Male
1956
as André Chatelin
A Monkey in Winter
1962
as Albert Quentin
The Night Affair
1958
as Georges Vallois
Stormy Waters
1941
as Le capitaine André Laurent
Holy Year
1976
as Max Lambert
Action Man
1967
as Denis Ferrand
The Dominici Affair
1973
as Gaston Dominici
Monsieur
1964
as Monsieur
The Horse
1970
as Auguste Maroilleur
Killer
1972
as Commissioner Le Guen
The Old Guard
1960
as Jean-Marie Pejat, bicycle repairer
Crime and Punishment
1956
as Commissaire Gallet
People of No Importance
1956
as Jean Viard
La Bandera
1935
as Pierre Gilieth
The Cat
1971
as Julien Bouin
The Impostor
1944
as Clément / Maurice Lafarge
The Little Rebels
1955
as Julien Lamy
The Black Flag Waves Over the Scow
1971
as Victor Ploubaz
Mireille Darc, la femme libre
2018
as Monsieur (archive footage)
Pasha
1968
as Comissaire Joss, le Pacha
The Case of Dr. Laurent
1957
as le docteur Laurent
Le Tunnel
1933
as Mac Allan
La Belle Équipe
1936
as Jean dit Jeannot
The Gentleman from Epsom
1962
as Richard Briand-Charmery
The Upper Hand
1966
as Paul Berger dit Paulo les Diam's
The Possessors
1958
as Noël Schoudler, le patriarche financier
Marlene Dietrich: Her Own Song
2002
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Zouzou
1934
as Jean
The Truth About Bebe Donge
1952
as François Donge
The Baron of the Locks
1960
as Baron Jérôme Napoléon Antoine
Twelve Hours to Live
1950
as Carlo Bacchi
The Moment of Truth
1952
as Dr Pierre Richard
Lilac
1932
as Martousse
Belmondo: The Incorrigible
2022
God's Thunder
1965
as Léandre Brassac
Marie of the Port
1950
as Henri Chatelard
Under the Sign of the Bull
1969
as Albert Raynal
Jean Gabin, le dernier des géants
2015
as Self (archive footage)
Rhine Virgin
1953
as Martin Schmidt, alias Jacques Ledru
Their Last Night
1953
as Pierre Ruffin
Fun in the Barracks
1932
as Fricot
Varieté
1935
as Georges
Air of Paris
1954
as Victor Le Garrec
The Magnificent Tramp
1959
as Joseph, Hugues Guillaume Boutier-Blainville dit : Archimède
Michel Audiard et le mystère du triangle des Bermudes
2002
as Self (archive footage)
The Night Is My Kingdom
1951
as Raymond Pinsard
Blood to the Head
1956
as François Cardinaud
Alain Delon, l'ombre au tableau
2019
as Self (archive footage)
Hi-Jack Highway
1955
as Jean Chape
The Bardot mystery
2012
High and Low
1933
as Charles Boulla
Gloria
1931
as Robert Nourry
The Beautiful Sailor
1932
as Le capitaine
Rue de Paris
1959
as Henri Neveu
Goodbye Beautiful Days
1933
as Pierre Lavernay
Coral Reefs
1939
as Ted "Trott" Lennard
Maria Chapdelaine
1934
as François Paradis
Quand Jean devint Renoir
2017
as Self (archive footage)
Lady Killer
1937
as Lucien Bourrache, dit 'Gueule d'Amour'
Mirror
1947
as Pierre Lussac
Victor
1951
as Victor
Happy Hearts
1932
as Charles
Storms
1953
as il professore Antonio Sanna
Lino Ventura, la part intime
2018
as Self (archive footage)
Martin Roumagnac
1946
as Martin Roumagnac
Everyone Has Their Chance
1930
as Marcel Grivot
The Messenger
1937
as Nicolas Dange
L'Étoile de Valencia
1933
as Pedro Savedra
That Tender Age
1964
as Émile Malhouin
The Crowd Roars
1932
as Joe Greer
The Darling of Paris
1931
as Bob
All That Is Not Worth Love
1931
as Jean Cordier
Jean Moncorgé, la face cachée de Jean Gabin
2010
as Self (archive footage)
For One Night..!
1932
as Jean
Ohé! Les valises
1928
Les lions
1928
House on the Waterfront
1955
as Commander Lequévic
Jean Gabin, une âme française
2015
as Self (archive footage)
About Jean Gabin
Jean Gabin Alexis Moncorgé (born Jean-Alexis Moncorgé), known as Jean Gabin (17 May 1904 – 15 November 1976), was a French actor and singer. Considered a key figure in French cinema, he starred in several classic films, including Pépé le Moko (1937), La grande illusion (1937), Le Quai des brumes (1938), La bête humaine (1938), Le jour se lève (1939), and Le plaisir (1952). During his career, he twice won the Silver Bear for Best Actor from the Berlin International Film Festival and the Volpi Cup for Best Actor from the Venice Film Festival, re… With 117 credits spanning from 1928 to 2022, Jean Gabin has appeared in 110 films and 7 TV shows.
Fans searching for Jean Gabin movies, Jean Gabin filmography, or the latest projects starring Jean Gabin can stream many of these titles on Bowood.TV, free and in HD, with no subscription required.
Most Popular Jean Gabin Movies
- Maigret and the St. Fiacre Case (1959) — as Commissioner Jules Maigret
- Les Misérables (1958) — as Jean Valjean / Champmathieu
- Grand Illusion (1937) — as Le lieutenant Maréchal
- The Sicilian Clan (1969) — as Vittorio Manalese
- Touchez Pas au Grisbi (1954) — as Max dit Max le Menteur
Where to Watch Jean Gabin Films
Most Jean Gabin movies and series are available to stream on Bowood.TV in full HD, completely free and without signup. Browse the complete filmography above to jump directly to any title. For more films and the latest web series featuring Jean Gabin, check our movies catalogue and browse page.