ROMANCE, VIVIANE

(1912-1991)

Actress, producer, and screen-writer. One of the great femme fatales of French cinema, Viviane Romance was born Pauline Ortmans in Roubaix. She caught the attention of French cinema at the beginning of the sound era after being named Miss Paris. She made her screen debut in 1931 inJean Renoir'sLa Chienneand went on, during the early part of the decade, to appear in such films asLouis Mercanton'sII est charmant(1932),Claude Autant-Lara'sCiboulette(1933),Marc Allegret'sZouzou(1934), Fritz Lang'sLiliom(1934),Julien Duvivier'sLa Bandera(1935), and Edmond T.Greville'sPrincesse Tam Tam(1935). Romance's breakthrough role came in 1936 when she appeared in Duvivier'sLa Belle équipe, and it was this performance that would define the roles she would play later in her career. Other films from the decade in which she appeared includeJean Grémillon'sL'Étrange Monsieur Victor(1937),Pierre Chenal'sLa Maison du Maltais(1938), andRoger Richebé'sPrisons de femmes(1938) andLa Tradition de minuit(1939).

During the 1940s, Romance starred in a number of films, includingAbel Gance'sVénus aveugle(1941), Gréville'sUne femme dans la nuit(1943),Christian-Jacque'sCarmen(1945), Yves Allegret and Jean Choux'sLa Boîte aux rêves(1945),Léon Mathot'sLa Route du bagne(1945),Marcel L'Herbier'sL'Affaire du collier de la reine(1946), and Duvivier'sPanique(1947), among others. Romance continued to attract lead roles during the 1950s, but the caliber of the films in which she appeared declined somewhat. She had roles in Georges Lampin'sPassion(1951), Pierre Cardinal'sAu cœur de la Casbah(1952), Yves Allegret and Autant-Lara'sLes Sept péchés capitaux(1952), Marcel Blistène'sGuele d'ange(1955), andHenri Decoin'sL'Affaire des poisons(1955).

Romance appeared in only one major film during the 1960s,Henri Verneuil'sMélodie en sous-sol(1963). She retired from the screen in 1974 after appearing inClaude Chabrol'sNada(1974). In addition to acting, she contributed to the screenplay ofLa Boîte aux rêves(1945), and she produced bothPassion(1951) and Jean Josipovici'sPitié pour les vamps(1956), in which she also starred.