Actor Alain Delon passed away

French star Alain Delon - best known for "Purple Noon" and "Le Samouraï" - has died at the age of 89.

Mr. Delon was one of the leading European actors of the second half of the 20th century, collaborating with such great directors as Jean-Pierre Melville, René Clément and Jacques Deray. He also participated in projects by Luchino Visconti, Louis Malle, Michelangelo Antonioni and Jean-Luc Godard. Although he was known to the European film-loving public, the artist did not succeed when trying his hand at the film capital of Hollywood.

The actor was born in 1935 in Sceaux, a small commune in the suburbs of Paris, and was expelled from school many times. At the age of 14, he decided to drop out of school and work at his stepfather's slaughterhouse. In 1952, the actor joined the navy and fought in Indochina. Due to lack of discipline in the army, he was imprisoned by the government for a year and was dismissed from the army in 1956. He was discovered by Hollywood film producer David O Selznick in Cannes (France) and signed a contract. In 1957, the artist debuted in his first role in Send a Woman When the Devil Fails directed by Yves Allégret.

Alain Delon's handsome appearance conquered producers, helping the artist quickly be assigned a number of leading roles. In 1958, he was chosen to co-star with Romy Schneider in Christine , as a soldier who falls in love with a musician's daughter. Delon and Schneider begin a romance, becoming engaged a year later.

In 1959, he starred in Three Murderesses by Michel Boisrond. The film was a success at the French box office and was released in the United States. A year later, the actor appeared in Purple Noon (1960) turned Alain into a shining star in French cinema.

The plot is based on the crime novels of American writer Patricia Highsmith. Alain plays Tom Ripley - a man who can impersonate others. Tom kills a wealthy businessman and lives his life instead. When discovered by the police, he commits suicide and leaves all his assets to his lover. The newspaper New York Times commented that Alain's performance was "moving and expressive".

In addition to acting in domestic films, he has made an effort to break through with English projects by participating in comedies. The Yellow Rolls-Royce (1964) directed by Anthony Asquith. The artist also appeared in Lost Command (1966), Texas Across the River (1966) and Is Paris Burning? (1966). However, none of the films were successful enough in Hollywood, prompting him to return to France.

In 1967, the artist acted in the film The Samourai directed by Jean-Pierre Melville, in which he played a raincoat-wearing assassin. The success of the film launched a series of French crime films such as The Sicilian Clan (1969) and The Red Circle (1970).

Throughout the 1970s, Delon continued to act in films, appearing in Mr. Klein - César Award for Best Film in 1977. The film is set in 1942, when France was occupied by Nazi Germany. Delon plays an art dealer during World War II who is mistaken for a Jew of the same name. In 1985, he won the César Award for Best Actor, for his performance in Our Story by Bertrand Blier.

In 1997, Delon announced his retirement but returned in 2008 in the film Asterix at the Olympic Games . In 2017, the actor told AFP will do one more role and then retire. However, that film has not yet started filming. His last acting role was a guest appearance in S Novym god, mother (released in 2012) by Russian director Artyom Aksenenko.

The artist had a complicated personal life and was considered a "sex symbol" in his youth. In 1959, after getting engaged to Ms. Schneider, he had an affair with German singer Christa Päffgen (Nico) and had a child in 1962. When Ms. Schneider found out, she tried to mend the relationship but failed, and the engagement was annulled in 1963. A year later, Mr. Delon married model Nathalie Barthélemy and had a son, but the marriage only lasted 5 years.

After the divorce, the actor did not remarry but lived with other lovers. From 1968 to 1983, he lived with the actress Mireille Darc. In 1987, the artist began a relationship with the model Rosalie van Breemen and had two children together, but they separated in 2002.

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