Yves Montand
Biography
Ivo Livi (13 October 1921 – 9 November 1991), better known as Yves Montand, was an Italian-born French actor and singer. He is said to be one of France's greatest 20th-century artists. Montand was born Ivo Livi in Stignano, a small village in the hills of Monsummano Terme, Italy, to Giovanni Livi, a broom manufacturer. Montand's mother Giuseppina Simoni was a devout Catholic. The family left Italy for France in 1923 following fascist Benito Mussolini's rise to power. He grew up in Marseille, where, as a young man, he worked in his sister's beauty salon (Salon de Coiffure), as well as later on the docks. He began a career in show business as a music-hall singer. In 1944, he was discovered by Édith Piaf in Paris; she made him part of her act. Montand achieved international recognition as a singer and actor, starring in many films. He is recognised for crooner style songs, with those about Paris becoming instant classics. He was one of the best known performers at Bruno Coquatrix's Paris Olympia music hall, and toured with musicians including Didi Duprat. In October 1947, he sang "Mais qu'est-ce que j'ai?" (music by Henri Betti and lyrics by Édith Piaf) at the Théâtre de l'Étoile. Betti also asked him to sing "C'est si bon" but Montand refused. Following the success of the recording of this song by the Sœurs Étienne in 1948, he decided to record it. Montand was also very popular in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, where he did a concert tour in 1956-57. During his career, Montand acted in American motion pictures as well as on Broadway. He was nominated for a César Award for Best Actor in 1980 for I comme Icare and again in 1984 for Garçon! In 1986, after his international box-office draw power had fallen off considerably, the 65-year-old Montand gave one of his best remembered performances, as the scheming uncle in Jean de Florette, co-starring Gérard Depardieu, and Manon des Sources (both 1986), co-starring Emmanuelle Béart. The film was a worldwide critical hit and revived Montand's profile in the United States, where he made an appearance on Late Night with David Letterman. In 1951, he married Simone Signoret, and they co-starred in several films throughout their careers. The marriage was, by all accounts, fairly harmonious, lasting until her death in 1985, although Montand had a number of well-publicised affairs, notably with American actress Marilyn Monroe, with whom he starred in one of her final films, Let's Make Love. He was the stepfather to Signoret's daughter from her previous marriage, Catherine Allégret. Montand's only child, a son named Valentin, by his second wife, Carole Amiel (b. 1960), was born in 1988. In a paternity suit that caused commotion across France, another woman accused Montand of being the father of her daughter and went to court to obtain a DNA sample from him. Montand refused, but the woman persisted even after his death. In a court ruling that made international headlines, the woman won the right to have Montand exhumed and a sample taken. The results indicated that he was not the girl's biological father. He supported left-wing causes during the 1950s and 1960s, and attended Communist festivals and meetings. ... Source: Article "Yves Montand" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA.
Known For
Mario Livi
Le Salaire de la peur
Self (archive footage)
D'un film à l'autre
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Конец прекрасной эпохи
César
César et Rosalie
The Deputy, a doctor
Z
John Proctor
Les Sorcières de Salem
L'inspecteur Grazzi
Compartiment tueurs
Sgt. Marcel Bizien
Paris brûle-t-il?
Diego Mora / Carlos / Domingo
La guerre est finie
César Soubeyran, aka 'le Papet'
Jean de Florette
César Soubeyran, aka "le Papet"
Manon des sources
Self (archive footage)
1958, ceux qui ont dit non
Jean-Pierre Sarti
Grand Prix
Michel Follin
Clair de femme
Self (archive footage)
Les Rois de la comédie
Jean-Marc Clement / Alexander Dumas
Let's Make Love
Jansen
Le Cercle rouge
Him, Jacques
Tout va bien
Henri Volney
I… comme Icare
Self
T'es fou Marcel
Singing Commentator (voice)
L'Auberge rouge
Noel Durieux
Le choix des armes
Blaze, Don Sallust's valet
La Folie des grandeurs
Vincent, entrepreneur
Vincent, François, Paul… et les autres
Gérard (A.L. / Artur London)
L'Aveu
Paul Robaix
My Geisha
Lefebvre
Napoléon
Jean Diego
Les Portes de la nuit
Inspecteur Marc Ferrot
Police Python 357
Les Enfoirés - Les Enfoirés en chœur de 1985 à aujourd'hui
Dr. Marc Chabot
On a Clear Day You Can See Forever
Mathias
Un soir, un train
Narrator (French version) (voice)
Rotterdam-Europoort
Matteo Brigante
La Legge
Self (archive footage)
Trintignant par Trintignant
Léon Marcel
IP5: L'île aux pachydermes
Victor Valance
Tout feu, tout flamme
Narrator (voice)
Le fond de l'air est rouge
Philip Michael Santore
État de siège
Roger Demarest
Goodbye Again
Henri Savin
La Menace
Alex, head waiter
Garçon !
Martin
Le Sauvage
Robert Colomb
Vivre pour vivre
M. Léon
Marguerite de la nuit
Self (archive footage)
Il était une fois... Vincent, François, Paul et les autres
Raoul, street singer (segment "Le violon")
Souvenirs perdus
Jean Meunier
Premier mai
Le baron César Maricorne
Le diable par la queue
Yves Montand
Trois Places pour le 26
Self
Rush - Voyage à Moscou
Giovanni Squarciò
La grande strada azzurra
Morland
Le Grand Escogriffe
Pierre
Étoile sans lumière
Self (archive footage)
Montand
Ricuccio
Uomini e lupi
Ange Orahona
Le Fils
Candy Man
Sanctuary
Self
Paris chante toujours !
Self
La Solitude du chanteur de fond
Self
Grand Prix: Challenge of the Champions
Michel Rivière
Les héros sont fatigués
Jean Larrea
Les Routes du sud
Self (archive footage)
Pushing the Limit: The Making of Grand Prix
Self (archive footage)
Claude Sautet, Romy, Yves, Michel et les autres
Narrator
Une minute pour une image
Self
J'ai tout donné
Laurent Bermann
Le Hasard et la Violence
Pierre Marroux
Netchaïev est de retour
Self
Good Morning, Mr. Orwell
Yves (archive footage)
Die Windrose
Yves Montand
Parigi è sempre Parigi
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Letter to Jane: An Investigation About a Still
Self
Les Deux mémoires
Vasco
Tempi nostri - Zibaldone n. 2
Narrator (French version) (voice)
Le Joli Mai
Self - Interviewee
On vous parle de Prague : Le Deuxième Procès d'Artur London
Un milicien
Section spéciale
Capt. Formidable (uncredited)
Mr. Freedom
Self (archive footage)
Making 'The Misfits'
Narrator (voice)
Django Reinhardt
Self (archive footage)
Comiques de toujours (Vol. 1 à 4)
Fontana
L'Idole
Self - Actor (archive footage)
L'Extravagant Monsieur Piccoli
Self (archive footage)
Signoret et Montand, Monroe et Miller : Deux couples à Hollywood
Voz
Una mariposa en la noche
Self
Поёт Ив Монтан
Self (archive footage)
Mitterrand, président culturel
Self (archive footage)
Le Parti du cinéma
Self (Archive Footage)
Dans les coulisses: le tournage de 'Trois Places pour le 26'
Yves
Un matin comme les autres
Self
Rendez-vous de l'espérance
La force du destin: L'aventure de Jean de Florette et De manon des sources
Vive la crise !
Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Known Credits
94
Gender
Male
Birthday
1921-10-13
Place of Birth
Monsummano Terme, Pistoia, Tuscany, Italy
Also Known As
Ivo Livi