Murat, Jean

(1888-1968)

   Actor. Born in the picturesque town of Périguex, Jean Murat went on to become a matinee idol of the 1930s. He began his career near the end of the silent era, appearing in such films as Jean Legrand's Souvent femme varie (1923), Roger Lion's Portuguese film Os Ohlos da Alma (1924), as well as Lion's La Fontaine des amours (1924), Les Fiançailles rouges (1926), and La Nuit est à nous (1929), Henri Andréani's L'Autre aile (1924), Maurice Champreux and Louis Feuillade's Le Stigmate (1924), Jacque Catelain's La Galerie des montres (1924), Jacques Feyder's Carmen (1926), René Clair's La Proie du vent (1927), Jacques de Baroncelli's Le Duel (1928), Julien Duvivier's La Divine croisière (1929), and Louis Mercanton's Venus (1929). He also appeared in a number of German-made films.

   It was during the sound era, however, that Murat came into his own as an actor. He had little trouble transitioning to sound film, and he suddenly found himself cast as a lead actor rather than a supporting actor. Ironically, however, this had less to do with his voice than his looks. In 1930, he appeared in Marcel L'Herbier's La Femme d'une nuit (1930) along with Antonin Artaud. The following year, he appeared in René Barberis's Un trou dans le mur (1931) and had starring roles in André-Paul Antoine's La Folle aventure (1931), Wilhelm Thiele's Dactylo (1931), and Hanns Schwarz and Max de Vaucorbeil's Le Capitaine Craddock (1931).

   Murat was a leading man from 1932 until well into the 1940s. He appeared in a variety of films ranging from avant-garde productions to mystery films to romantic comedies. He starred in such films as Baroncelli's Le Dernier choc (1932), Kurt Gerron and Roger Le Bon's Stupéfiants (1932), André Berthomieu's Mademoiselle Josette, ma femme (1933), Jean Epstein's L'Homme à l'hispano (1933) and La Châtelaine du Liban (1934), Feyder's La Kermesse héroïque (1935), Christian-Jacque's La Sonnette d'alarme (1935), Anatole Litvak 's L'Équipage (1935), Raymond Bernard's Anne-Marie (1936) and J'étais un aventurier (1937), Pierre Chenal's Les Mutinés d'Elseneur (1936), Léon Mathot's L'Homme à abattre (1937), Maurice de Canonge's Le Capitaine Benoît (1938), Jean de Limur's Le Père Lebonnard (1939), Richard Pottier's Mademoiselle Swing (1942), Jean Choux's La Femme perdue (1942), Jean Delannoy's L'Éternel retour (1943), and Henri Calef's Bagarres (1948).

   In the 1950s, Murat returned to supporting actor status. Nonetheless, he was able to find roles in several significant films. He appeared in Jean Stelli's La Nuit est à nous (1953), Jean-Devaivre's Alerte au sud (1953), Jacqueline Audry's Huis clos (1954), Sacha Guitry's Si Versailles m'était conté (1954), Marc Allegret's L'Amant de Lady Chatterly (1955), Jean-Paul Le Chanois's Les Misérables (1958), and Denys de la Patillière's Les Grandes familles (1958), among others. Murat had only a handful of roles in the 1960s. He appeared in Philippe de Broca and Claude Chabrol's Les Sept péchés capitaux (1962), Andrew Marton's It Happened in Athens (1962), and two Italian films, Daniel d'Anza's IPiaceri des sabato notte (1960) and Carlo Campogalliani and Piero Pierotti's Il Ponte dei sospiri (1964). Murat retired from the screen in 1964. He was married to the actress Annabella.

   Historical Dictionary of French Cinema by Dayna Oscherwitz & Mary Ellen Higgins