Jean Delannoy

Biography

Jean Delannoy (12 January 1908 – 18 June 2008) was a French actor, film editor, screenwriter and film director.

Although Delannoy was born in a Paris suburb, his family was from Haute-Normandie in the north of France. He was a Protestant, a descendant of Huguenots, some of whom fled the country during the French Wars of Religion, and settled first in Wallonia. Afterwards, their name became De la Noye and then Delano, who were on the second ship to immigrate to Plymouth, Massachusetts.

He was a student in Paris when he began acting in silent films. He eventually landed a job with Paramount Studios Parisian facilities, working his way up to head film editor. In 1934 he directed his first fil...