PRÉJEAN, ALBERT

(1893-1979)

Actor. One of the great actors of the early cinema, Albert Préjean began his career in film in 1921 after being discharged from military service. He had no theatrical training and was one of the first actors to make his career entirely in the cinema. His career spanned silent and sound film, and he appeared in more than ninety films over a period of forty years, during which time he worked with many of the great directors of the day.

Préjean made his film debut inHenri Diamant-Berger'sLes Trois mousquetaires(1921). During the silent era, he went on to appear in Diamant-Berger'sGonzague(1922), starring Maurice Chevalier,Le Roi de la vitesse(1923), andÉducation de Prince(1927), Raymond Bernard'sLe Miracle des loups(1924) andLe Joueur d'échecs(1927),René Clair'sParis qui dort(1925),Le Fantôme du Moulin rouge(1925),Le Voyage imaginaire(1926), andUn chapeau de paille(1927), Henri Chomette'sLe Requin(1929), andJacques Feyder'sLes Nouveaux messieurs(1929).It was really Préjean's work with Clair during the silent era that established him as an actor and also established the persona he would often portray onscreen, a sort of hapless everyman, defined by an optimism and caught up in the wonder of the world. This combination rendered many of Préjean's characters endearing and very human.

During the sound era, Préjean continued to be a force onscreen and appeared in starring roles through the 1930s and 1940s. He appeared in such films as Clair'sSous les toits de Paris(1930),Serge de Poligny'sLes Rivaux de la piste(1932),Henri Decoin'sLes Bleues du ciel(1933), Pierre Colombier'sThéodore et Cie(1933), Jean de Limur'sL'Auberge du petit dragon(1934), Félix Gandara'sLe Secret d'une nuit(1934),Julien Duvivier'sLe Pacquebot Tenacity(1934),René Guissart'sDédé(1934), Robert Siodmak'sLa Crise est finie(1934) andMollendard(1938),Léo Joannen'sQuelle drôle de gosse! (1935), Edmond T. Gréville'sPrincesse Tam-Tam(1935),Marcel Carné'sJenny(1936),Christian-Jacque'sA Venise,une nuit(1937), Carl Lamac'sPlace de la Concorde(1937), Pierre Billon'sPiste du sud(1938),André Hugon'sLa Rue sans joie(1938), Maurice Cloche'sNord Atlantique(1939), Jean Stelli'sPour le maillot jaune(1939) andL'Or du Cristobal(1940), codirected byJacques BeckerandJean Renoir, André Cayatte'sAu bonheur des dames(1943), and Richard Pottier'sLes Caves du 'Majestic'(1945).

During the 1930s and 1940s, Préjean was one of the preferred leading men of the cinema, and he was often cast oppositeDanielle Darrieux. He also appeared oppositeFrançoise Rosay, Elvire Popesco, and Dita Parlo. During the 1950s, his career waned a bit and he appeared in supporting roles in a much smaller number of films. Most of the films in which he appeared were fairly insignificant. He made his last film appearance in 1962 in Jean-Louis Richard'sBonne chance,Charlie(1962). He is the father of actor Patrick Préjean.