FEUILLÈRE, EDWIGE

(1907-1998)

Actress. Born Edwige Cunati, Edwige Feuillère intended to pursue an acting career from an early age. She attended the Conservatoire d'art dramatique in Dijon, and then began her career in theater. She was in residence at the Comédie Française from 1931 until 1933. Feuillère made her film debut in 1931 (using the name Cora Lynn) in Karl Anton'sLe Cordon bleu. The same year she appeared inMarc Allégret'sMam'zelle Nitouche(1931) and Jean Dermont'sLa Fine combine(1931). Between 1932 and 1935, Feuillère worked steadily in films such asRené Guissart'sLa Perle(1932), Anton'sMonsieur Albert(1932) andUne petite femme dans le train(1933), Pierre Colombier'sLes Messieurs de la santé(1933), and Alexis Granowsky'sLes Aventures du roi Pausole(1933).The roles steadily increased in prominence and Feuillère became a darling of the screen.

In 1935, she was cast in the title role inAbel Gance'sLucrèce Borgia. The role added momentum to Feuillère's career, proving she was not merely a screen darling, but a serious actress as well. Her performance was widely acclaimed and the role earned her professional respect that would carry forward. Feuillère went on to star in Louis J. Gasnier'sTopaze(1935),Julien Duvivier'sGolgotha(1935), Allégret'sLa Dame de Malacca(1937),Max Ophuls'sSans lendemain(1939),Léo Joannen'sL'Émigrante(1940) andLucrèce(1943), Maurice Tourneur'sMam'zelle Bonaparte(1942), andJacques de Baroncelli'sLa Duchesse de Langeais(1942). From the period of 1935 to the Occupation, in fact, Feuillère was one of the most popular leading ladies on the French screen.

Feuillère's career was interrupted during the Occupation, but she resumed it without much difficulty after Liberation, regaining her status as one of the foremost actresses of the day. She appeared in such films asJean Delannoy'sLa Part de l'ombre(1945); de Baroncelli'sTant que je vivrai(1946); Georges Lampin'sL'Idiot(1946);Jean Cocteau'sL'Aigle a deux têtes(1948), in which she starred oppositeJean Marais; Jacques Manuel'sJulie de Carneilhan(1949), adapted from Colette;Christian-Jacque'sSouvenirs perdus(1950) andAdorables créatures(1952);Jacqueline Audry'sOlivia(1951);Claude Autant-Lara'sLe Blé en herbe(1954) andEn cas de malheur(1958); and Clément Duhour'sLa Vie à deux(1958).

Feuillère continued acting until the 1990s, although in the 1980s and 1990s, her screen roles were primarily on the small screen. Her later performances include roles in Gérard Oury'sLe Crime ne paie pas(1962),Patrice Chéreau'sLa Chair de l'orchidée(1975), and Nina Companéez'sLes Dames de la côte(1979), which was her last film role.