Why did the winner of France’s national film award and the Venice and Berlin Film Festival prizes struggle to make a career in Hollywood, and why did he choose not to leave a grave for humanity?
From Gangster to Commissioner
A Knight of the Legion of Honor and holder of two military awards, Jean Gabin was compelling in roles ranging from worker and peasant to soldier and deserter, bourgeois and striker, gangster and detective. Having starred in hundreds of films, the king of the screen infused his characters with his own masculine charisma. The unpretentious, confident, and reliable persona of Jean Gabin was shaped by his personal biography—marked by early independence due to the loss of his mother, a passion for “manly sports” (boxing and soccer), hard labor in factories, military service, and acts of valor. For those who find it hard to believe that the creator of such masculine images came from a Parisian artistic family and performed on the stages of the Moulin Rouge and other classic cabarets, take a look at his work: the actor, with his expressive dramatic talent, successfully sang chanson and skillfully acted in musicals.
Jean Gabin as Maigret in the film “Inspector Maigret,” 1958.
The Path to Self
Jean Gabin’s real name was Jean Alexis Moncorger. He was born on May 17, 1904 (120 years ago) in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, an area known for its lush historic architecture, theaters, galleries, museums, restaurants, and fashionable neighborhoods. Jean was the seventh child in a family of cabaret artists—actor Ferdinand Moncorger and singer Hélène Petit. His childhood was spent at his aunt Madeleine’s house near the capital. The early death of his mother revealed the rebellious nature of the teenage son: at 14, he left school, quarreled with his father, and set out to earn his own living.
For four years, he worked as a laborer—in road construction, at a steel mill, and in an auto shop. It’s no surprise that in his future acting career, he would be typecast as a common man and earn the reputation of a “proletarian of acting.” Jean was unafraid of working-class professions and aspired to become a machinist, but ultimately followed in his father’s footsteps: at 19, Moncorger Jr. began his own career in show business.
Jean Gabin in his youth.
A Sought-After Artist
His debut role came in the musical theater Folies Bergère (from the 1890s to the 1920s, this historic cabaret and variety show was a popular entertainment venue in Paris). This work was interrupted by military service, after which the young artist returned to the stages of Parisian music halls under the stage name “Jean Gabin.” Lacking formal musical training, the self-taught performer emulated the singing style of the fashionable chansonnier Maurice Chevalier.
He did well—his troupe even took the newcomer along on a tour to South America, and upon returning from the concert tour, he was hired at the Moulin Rouge. At the “Red Mill” (the English translation of this Paris landmark, the most famous cabaret near Pigalle Square), the young artist was offered more significant roles than those he had previously been entrusted with. In 1928, Jean Gabin was invited to star in two silent films, and starting in 1930, he began landing roles in sound films: over the next four years, he accumulated about fifteen roles.
Jean Gabin in silent cinema.
The Taste of Recognition
Even in supporting roles, the artist compelled audiences to take notice, and directors’ professional instincts quickly recognized the potential of this “new face.” Recognition came swiftly. In 1934, Jean Gabin’s name became known thanks to the best director of his film career, Julien Duvivier. The film “Maria Chapdelaine,” featuring Jean Gabin, was awarded the “Grand Prix of French Cinema”—a prize established that same year by the “father” of cinema, Louis Lumière.
The actor became a star of French cinema in 1936 after portraying a romantic hero in the director’s new work “The Foreign Legion Battalion” (unrelated to the historical figure, the military drama was originally titled La Bandera). The next two films brought Jean Gabin worldwide fame: Julien Duvivier’s “Pepe le Moko” and Jean Renoir’s anti-war drama “La Grande Illusion” in 1937 became box office hits, sharing success with Walt Disney’s animated film “Snow White.”
“La Grande Illusion,” 1937.
A Loud Romance
His popularity caught the attention of Hollywood producers, but Jean Gabin initially turned down offers to work in America. He also rejected an invitation for propaganda work from the German film studio UFA during the occupation of France by Germany. After the outbreak of World War II, shocked by the events in Europe, the artist followed the example of directors Julien Duvivier and Jean Renoir and moved to the U.S. Across the ocean, he ended his six-year marriage to the mother of his two children, Suzanne Marguerite Jean Mochen, in 1939. This was already Gabin’s second divorce: he had first married at 21 to actress Gaby Basset, from whom he divorced five years later, but they crossed paths again on set (Jean Gabin’s first wife passed away just a year shy of her hundredth birthday). To ease the Frenchman’s adaptation in Hollywood, the German film star who became an American citizen in 1939—legendary actress, anti-fascist émigré, and above all, a femme fatale, Marlene Dietrich—did everything she could to charm the man who intrigued her. A passionate romance ensued, which did little to help the actor’s career.
Jean Gabin and Marlene Dietrich.
A Strong Character
The films in which Jean Gabin starred in Hollywood did not resonate with audiences: his stubborn nature and tendency to interfere in the filming process hindered his success in America. RKO Pictures terminated the contract with the lead actor after he insisted on filming alongside his girlfriend. Ultimately, both Marlene Dietrich and her suitor were left without roles: the bosses removed Jean Gabin from the film and canceled the project altogether. A similar situation occurred in 1946 when the actor was set to star in the film “The Gate of Night” by French director Marcel Carné—due to a conflict, he lost the lead role. However, he had no issues with his creative partners and technical staff: colleagues described him as a friendly person. He acted alongside bright stars: Fernandel and Louis de Funès, Alain Delon and Jean-Paul Belmondo, Michèle Morgan and Brigitte Bardot, Simone Signoret and Anna Giraud, Sophia Loren and Marlene Dietrich.
Jean Gabin, 1940.
War and Peace
Jean Gabin left the U.S. to join the French Resistance in 1943, led by General Charles de Gaulle. He served as a volunteer in the navy, accompanied Allied transports, and was awarded a medal and a cross for his participation in combat operations in North Africa, liberating Paris. Reporters captured a touching scene of Jean Gabin’s reunion with Marlene Dietrich in the French capital, where the native Parisian arrived in a tank. The experiences of war turned the combatant’s hair gray by the age of 40.
Jean Gabin in the military and Marlene Dietrich.
The artist had to endure a rough patch of professional failures. After finding a way to act in a film alongside his lover, despair awaited him. Unfortunately, that experience was not successful: the film “Martin Roumagnac” flopped at the box office. Following this creative fiasco, the romantic relationship of the star couple came to an end. As the French newspaper L’Humanité would write half a century later, “born of war, their union could not withstand peace.”
“The Merchant” and “Rascals”
Amidst the cinematic failures, in 1947, the recent triumphant actor returned to the theater, but he faced setbacks there as well—the production did not recoup its costs. Even the lead role in René Clément’s film “The Walls of Malapaga” (Oscar winner in 1949 for Best Foreign Film) did not lift Jean Gabin’s spirits, as the film failed to draw audiences in theaters. None of his works over the next five years found success at the box office. The actor, who interfered in the filming process during the scriptwriting stage, argued with directors over acting and staging, demanded scenes of anger for dramatic effect, loved praise, and referred to disloyal critics as “rascals,” increasingly calling himself a “failure” and a “merchant.”
Lead role in René Clément’s film “The Walls of Malapaga.”
Just as the artist was ready to say goodbye to his profession, in 1954, his fame was revived. Jacques Becker’s gangster film “Don’t Touch the Loot” delighted both critics and audiences. Ahead of Jean Gabin were another 20 years of filming in nearly fifty films, many of which were produced by his own film company (Gafer Films—a joint venture of actor friends Gabin and Fernandel).
Fortune in Love?
Jean Gabin’s last companion was model Dominique Fournier. The couple married shortly after meeting in 1949. The groom was 45 years old, and the bride was 31. The news of the former lover’s marriage shocked Marlene Dietrich, who later considered herself his widow. She would search for encounters with the object of her greatest love for a long time, but his feelings had finally cooled. Gabin avoided any contact with his “ex” for two years, and this time, it seemed he made the right choice.
Jean Gabin and Dominique Fournier.
With his third wife, the actor found the peace and comfort he had always sought in his heart. Together with Dominique, Jean lived in harmony for 27 years—until the end of his days. The couple had three children—daughters Florence and Valérie, and son Matthias. Director Florence Moncorger-Gabin described Jean Gabin in her memoirs as “not the worst of fathers,” although he opposed his daughter’s pursuit of his profession and hindered her marriage to a jockey (even ignoring the wedding and asking actor friend Lino Ventura to attend in his place).
Stars Never Fade
In 1972, the actor left the film industry and settled with his family on his own farm. The artist’s large estate housed over twenty horses and even his own racetrack. In the last four years of his life, the star farmer grew vines and told the doctors caring for his health that he would only switch from wine to milk if cows started chewing grapes. Seventy-two-year-old Jean Gabin died of a heart attack on November 15, 1976. He had arranged in advance not to be buried in a grave, so that no one would disturb his resting place. With military honors, the ashes of the war hero were scattered over the sea from a military ship. Five years later, Louis de Funès established the Jean Gabin Prize for aspiring French film actors.