Patrick Dewaere (January 26, 1947 – July 16, 1982) was a French actor.

He was born in Saint-Brieuc, Côtes-d'Armor, France, the son of the French actress Madeleine (Mado) Maurin. He committed suicide at age 35 by shooting himself with a rifle in Paris.

Short-lived Patrick Dewaere was one of the most promising and popular French actors of the '70s. In 1968, he joined Café de la Gare, the troupe of performers which also included such future stars as Gérard Depardieu and Miou-Miou. After initially appearing under the pseudonym Patrick Maurin, he finally opted for Dewaere, which was his grandmother's maiden name.

Onscreen from 1971 in various bit parts, Dewaere made the breakthrough with his first major role in Bertrand Blier's anarchic comedy Les Valseuses (1974) where he and Gérard Depardieu starred as two young delinquents. The actor would team up again with Depardieu in Blier's Oscar-winning comedy Preparez Vos Mouchoirs (1978).

Despite Dewaere's obvious talent for comedy, he was often successfully cast as a fragile, neurotic individual. Shortly after the release of Paradis Pour Tous (1982), the black comedy where his character committed suicide, the actor shot himself in his house.^[1] The Patrick Dewaere Award was established in France in 1983. The actor was the subject of the French documentary Patrick Dewaere, which was shown at the 1992 Cannes Film Festival.^[2]

Recently, Raphaël, a French singer, wrote a song in his honour, Chanson pour Patrick Dewaere (Song for Patrick Dewaere).

[edit] Filmography, as actor

• Je reviendrai à Kandara (1956), directed by Victor Vicas
• Paris brûle-t-il ? (1965), directed by René Clément
• La Vie sentimentale de Georges le tueur (1971), directed by Daniel Berger
• Les Mariés de l'an II (1971), directed by Jean-Paul Rappeneau
• Themroc (1973), directed by Claude Faraldo
• Lily aime-moi (1974), directed by Maurice Dugowson
• Les Valseuses (1974), directed by Bertrand Blier
• Catherine et compagnie (1975), directed by Michel Boisrond
• Adieu poulet (1975), directed by Pierre Granier-Deferre
• La Meilleure façon de marcher (1975), directed by Claude Miller
• Marcia trionfale (1976), directed by Marco Bellocchio
• F... comme Fairbanks (1976), directed by Maurice Dugowson (also credited as co-composer of the music)
• Le Juge Fayard dit le shérif (1977), directed by Yves Boisset
• La Clé sur la porte (1978), directed by Yves Boisset
• Coup de tête (1978), directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud
• Préparez vos mouchoirs (1978), directed by Bertrand Blier
• L'Ingorgo - una storia impossibile (1978), directed by Luigi Comencini
• Série noire (1978), directed by Alain Corneau
• Un mauvais fils (1980), directed by Claude Sautet
• Psy (1980), directed by Philippe de Broca
• Plein sud (1980), directed by Luc Béraud
• Mille milliards de dollars (1981), directed by Henri Verneuil
• Hôtel des Amériques (1981), directed by André Téchiné
• Beau-Père (1981), directed by Bertrand Blier
• Paradis pour tous (1982), directed by Alain Jessua

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Patrick Dewaere at the Internet Movie Database
• Photo