The Day the Clown Died
October 14, 2016 6:00 PM Subscribe
French clown, actor, writer, sleight-of-hand expert, and director Pierre Étaix has passed away at age 87. With all the scary clown talk of late, let us pay tribute to a gentler, more thoughtful form of clowning.
His 1962 short Happy Anniversary won the 1963 Best Short Subject Academy Award, and he is most well-known for his 1965 feature-length comedy Yo Yo, about a wealthy heir who just wants to be a clown.
After clowning around for many years in the French circus circuit, Étaix got his start in the film business working with Jacques Tati on his second "Monsieur Hulot" film, Mon Oncle, a marvelous comedic take on modernism. In addition to writing, directing, and acting in his own films, he is rumored to have helped write some of Buñuel's films with his longtime collaborator Jean-Claude Carrière. He also appeared in Jerry Lewis' The Day the Clown Cried, Jeunet's Micmacs, and others by Nagisa Oshima and Aki Kaurismäki.
In the US, his films were unavailable for many years due to legal disputes. In 2010 the Criterion Collection cleared the rights and they're now available on disc and Hulu. While he never reached the lasting fame of his mentors/inspirations like Tati, Chaplin, and Keaton, Étaix carved out a unique space for his effortless nonverbal presence.
One of his final photo shoots with Criterion, as well as an essay celebrating the rerelease, with detailed looks at each of his works.
He was preceded in death by his first wife in 1997, fellow clown and clown-school founder Annie Fratellini, who once said "I was born a clown, I never felt comfortable as a woman. It took Pierre to recognize that." He is survived by his second wife, Odile Etaix.
Original obituary (in French) from Le Monde
My apologies if the title gets anyone worried. Jerry Lewis is still kicking around!
After clowning around for many years in the French circus circuit, Étaix got his start in the film business working with Jacques Tati on his second "Monsieur Hulot" film, Mon Oncle, a marvelous comedic take on modernism. In addition to writing, directing, and acting in his own films, he is rumored to have helped write some of Buñuel's films with his longtime collaborator Jean-Claude Carrière. He also appeared in Jerry Lewis' The Day the Clown Cried, Jeunet's Micmacs, and others by Nagisa Oshima and Aki Kaurismäki.
In the US, his films were unavailable for many years due to legal disputes. In 2010 the Criterion Collection cleared the rights and they're now available on disc and Hulu. While he never reached the lasting fame of his mentors/inspirations like Tati, Chaplin, and Keaton, Étaix carved out a unique space for his effortless nonverbal presence.
One of his final photo shoots with Criterion, as well as an essay celebrating the rerelease, with detailed looks at each of his works.
He was preceded in death by his first wife in 1997, fellow clown and clown-school founder Annie Fratellini, who once said "I was born a clown, I never felt comfortable as a woman. It took Pierre to recognize that." He is survived by his second wife, Odile Etaix.
Original obituary (in French) from Le Monde
My apologies if the title gets anyone worried. Jerry Lewis is still kicking around!
I laughed at the accordion piece. Thanks for posting this.
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posted by asperity at 8:02 PM on October 14, 2016
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posted by asperity at 8:02 PM on October 14, 2016
I highly recommend those Criterion films. Their release was one of the best surprises in recent years.
(You might want to skip Land of Milk and Honey as it isn't really close to being on par with his other films, but it is of interest as an oddity if you get into Étaix's history a little more.)
posted by gusottertrout at 1:05 AM on October 15, 2016 [1 favorite]
(You might want to skip Land of Milk and Honey as it isn't really close to being on par with his other films, but it is of interest as an oddity if you get into Étaix's history a little more.)
posted by gusottertrout at 1:05 AM on October 15, 2016 [1 favorite]
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Thank you for posting this, I'd not heard of him. I did go to clowning classes many years ago, impro-based, aimed at developing character rather than routines. Loved it, taught me so much, as much about myself as about performance. Vale Pierre Étaix, yours was a noble profession.
posted by valetta at 2:59 AM on October 15, 2016
Thank you for posting this, I'd not heard of him. I did go to clowning classes many years ago, impro-based, aimed at developing character rather than routines. Loved it, taught me so much, as much about myself as about performance. Vale Pierre Étaix, yours was a noble profession.
posted by valetta at 2:59 AM on October 15, 2016
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posted by On the Corner at 12:28 AM on October 16, 2016
posted by On the Corner at 12:28 AM on October 16, 2016
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