La Patellière, Denys de

(Denis Dubois de La Patellière / March 8, 1921, Nantes, Loire-Atlan­tique, France - )

   Born into an aristocratic family, the nephew of painter Amédée de La Patellière, he prepared for entrance to the military school of Saint-Cyr before joining the French Resistance during World War II (two of his brothers were killed in action). From 1945 to 1947, he worked as a developer in a cinema laboratory. Then he landed a job as an editor for the Actualités Françaises. He made his real film debut editing Alice in Wonderland / Alice au Pays des Merveilles (Dallas Bower, Lou Bonin, UK / France, 1949). An assistant director for five years (1949 L'Héroïque Monsieur Boniface, Maurice Labro; 1950 Casimir / Vita di un commesso viaggiatore / USA: Three Feet in a Bed, Richard Pottier, France / Italy; Prélude à la Gloire, Georges Lacombe; Le Tampon du Capiston, Maurice Labro; Uniformes et grandes Manœuvres, René Le Hénaff; 1951 Boniface Somnambule / UK: The Sleepwalker, Maurice Labro; 1953 Suivez cet Homme, also co-adapter, Georges Lampin; 1954 Le Défroqué, Léo Joannon), he directed his first movie in 1955. He also was a screenwriter (1958 La Tour, prends garde! / Agli ordini del re / UK: Killer Spy / USA: King on Horseback, Georges Lampin, France / Italy / Yugoslavia; 1962 Carillons sans Joie / Vento calda di battaglia, Charles Brabant, France / Italy; 1964 Du Grabuge chez les Veuves / Strana voglia di una vedova, Jacques Poitrenaud, France / Italy) and ap­peared as himself in several documentaries (1978 Re­memberingJean Gabin, John Musilli, USA; 1996 Lino: Un Portrait de Lino Ventura, Dominique Cazenave, Doug Headline; 2001 Gabin, Gueule d'Amour, Michel Viotte; 2002 Michel Audiard et le Mystère du Triangle des Ber­mudes, François-Régis Jeanne, Stéphane Roux; 2003 Louis de Funès, la Comédie humaine, Philippe Azoulay; 2007 Danielle Darrieux, une Vie de Cinéma, Anne Wia-zemsky). Books: 1986 Petit Frère (co-authored with Aïda Azanavour-Garvarentz); 2002 L'Enfant évanoui (Mercure de France).

 Filmography

        ◘ Les Aristocrates / UK and USA: The Aristocrats (also co-screenwriter, co-adapter)

        ◘ Le Salaire du Péché (also co-screenwriter, co-adapter, co-dialogist)

        ◘ Retour de Manivelle / Delitto sulla Costa Azzurra / UK and USA: There's Always a Price Tag (also screenwriter, adapter; France / Italy)

        ◘ Les Oeufs de l'Autruche / UK and USA: The Ostrich Has Two Eggs (also co-screenwriter, co-adapter)

1958 ◘ Thérèse Etienne / Teresa Etienne (also co-screenwriter, co-adapter)

        ◘ Les Grandes Familles / USA: The Possessors (also co-screenwriter, co-adapter)

1959 ◘ Rue des Prairies / Mio figlio / USA: Rue de Paris (also co-screenwriter, co-adapter; France / Italy)

        ◘ Les Yeux de l'Amour / Amanti nelle tenebre (France / Italy)

        ◘ Un Taxi pour Tobrouk / Un Taxi para Tobruk / Ein Taxi nach Tobruk / USA: Taxi for Tobruk (also co-adapter; France / Spain / West Germany)

        ◘ Le Bateau d'Emile / Letto fortuna e femmine (also co-screenwriter, co-adapter; France / Italy)

        ◘ Tempo di Roma / Esame di guida—Tempo di Roma / USA: Destination Rome (also co-screenwriter, co-adapter; France / Italy)

        ◘ Pourquoi Paris? (also co-screenwriter, co-adapter; France / Italy; shot in 1962)

        ◘ La Fabuleuse Aventure de Marco Polo / Lo scacchiere di Dio / Le meravigliose avventure di Marco Polo / Marko Polo / UK and USA: Marco the Magnificent (co-director with Noël Howard; also co-screenwriter, co-dialogist; France / Italy / Yugoslavia / Afghanistan; shot in 1962-1963)

        ◘ Le Tonnerre de Dieu / Matrimonio alla francese / Herr auf schloss Brassac / Auch eine franzôsische Ehe / UK: God's Thunder / USA: The Thunder of God (also co-screenwriter; France / Italy / West Germany)

1966 ◘ Du Rififi à Paname / Rififi internazionale / Rififi in Paris / UK: Rififi in Paris / USA: The Upper Hand (also sceenwriter, adapter; France / Italy / West Germany)

        ◘ Le Voyage du Père / Destinazione marciapiede (also co-screenwriter, co-adapter; France / Italy)

        ◘ Le Soleil noir / L'angelica avventuriera (Sole nero) / UK: Black Sun / USA: Dark Sunlight (also co-screenwriter, co-dialogist; France / Italy)

1968 ◘ Caroline Chérie / Caroline wie die Sunde (France / Italy / West Germany)

        ◘ Le Tatoué / Nemici . . . per la pelle (France / Italy)

1970 ◘ Sabra / Moto Shel Yehudi / USA: Death of a Jew / Sabra: Death of a Jew (also co-screenwriter, co-adapter; France / Italy / Israel)

        ◘ Le Tueur / Il commissario Le Guen e il caso Gas-sot / Der Killer und der Komissar (France / Italy / West Germany)

        ◘ Prêtres interdits / USA: Forbidden Priests (also co-adapter)

1979 ◘ Un Rêve américain (unfinished)

 Television Filmography

1977 ◘ Un Juge, un Flic (12 x 52'; also co-screenwriter)

1978 ◘ Histoires de Voyous (episode "Le Casse des Rois mages")

        ◘ Les Enquêtes du Commissaire (episode "Maigret et les Témoins récalcitrants")

1980 ◘ Le Comte de Monte-Cristo (6 x 60'; France / Italy / West Germany)

1983 ◘ Secret diplomatique (episode "Mort d'un Am­bassadeur", also co-screenwriter, episodes "L'Homme de Vienne", "Carte blanche")

1985 ◘ Le Paria

        ◘ Bonjour Maître (12 x 52')

        ◘ Paparoff (episode "L'Addition est pour moi: Paparoff est de Retour")

        ◘ Paparoff (episode "Paparoff effeuille la Mar­guerite")

        ◘ Paparoff (episodes "Paparoff enfonce la Porte", "Paparoff se dédouble", "Le Fric des Flics", "José la Baleine")

1992 ◘ L'Affaire Salengro

        ◘ Maigret (episode "Cécile est morte" / "Mai­gret and the Spinster"; also co-screenwriter, co-dialogist; France / Belgium / Switzerland)

        ◘ Les Epées de Diamants / Diamond Swords (also co-screenwriter, co-dialogist; France / USA)

        ◘ Maigret (episode "Maigret et l'Affaire Saint-Fiacre" / USA: "Maigret Goes Home"; France / Belgium / Switzerland)