Robert Castel
Robert Castel (in Arabic: روبرت كاستل), whose real name is Robert Adolphe Moyal, is an actor, musician and comedian, born on May 21, 1933 in Algiers in the Bab El-Oued district, Algeria. Robert Castel began as a musician, tar player, then guitarist, accompanying his father, composer violinist, and singer of light French-Arab songs. Young actor in the troupe of the Regional Center of Dramatic Art of Algiers, Robert Castel plays the role of Robert Le Bègue in the theatrical improvisation show on the life of the pieds-noirs, La Famille Hernandez, which is created by Geneviève Baïlac on September 17, 1957 in Paris. Having cut his teeth in music hall, Robert Castel began his film career at the age of 24 in Les Amants De Demain by Marcel Blistène, then in Un témoin dans la ville by Édouard Molinaro. In 1962, Robert Castel left the newly independent Algeria and settled in Paris with Lucette Sahuquet (who died in 1987), whom he married. The couple inaugurated their sketches as a duo that year, notably at the Olympia where they opened for Frank Sinatra, Marlene Dietrich and Philippe Clay. In the 1970s, the comedian, lively and provocative, did a lot of television sketches with his favorite partner and Enrico Macias. For the big screen, this dark-haired comedian, with a clear forehead, who speaks with his hands, abandoned his favorite register. Having become the figure of "pied-noir humor" in France, he played alongside Edith Piaf in Les Amants de demain by Marcel Blistène, Pierre Richard in Le Grand Blond avec une chaussure noire by Yves Robert, and Isabelle Huppert in Dupont Lajoie by Yves Boisset. In 1982, he made a notable appearance in Algerian cinema by playing in Hassan taxi, directed by Mohamed Slim Riad, alongside Rouiched (Ahmed Ayad), Ouardia Hamitouche and Sidali Kouiret. He appeared in more than thirty films in total, until the early 2000s. Robert Castel kept a low profile for a few years before returning to the stage, this time in a musical, in 2007 thanks to the El-Gusto project. This project, which seeks to bring together Algerian, Jewish and Muslim musicians who were part of Hadj M'hamed El Anka's Algiers Chaâbi orchestra in the early 1950s, resulted in a documentary film that won international awards, the recording of an album and an international tour that took a troupe of 42 musicians to countries such as France, Morocco, Tunisia, Switzerland, Belgium, the United States and the Netherlands. In 2008, Robert Castel signed his autobiography, Je pose 75 [son âge], mais je retaîtres tout. He returned to the stage in 2013 to present his last one-man show, "Nostalgérie". He died on December 5, 2020 in Paris, at the age of 87.
The Common Man
as LoulouGeorges Lajoie is a Parisian café owner. As every summer, Georges, his wife Ginette and grown-up...
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Two Men in Town
as André VaultierA former bank robber is released after 10 years in prison. He gets help from a social-worker,...
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The Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe
as Georghiu, agent de MilanHapless orchestra player becomes an unwitting pawn of rival factions within the French secret...
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Teenagers
as PierreThe story of Lucas and how he helps others as an angel. This is an innovative, educational drama...
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The Jews
as M. BensoussanFour separate stories deal with stereotypical ideas about Jews: their alleged influence on...
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One Fine Day
as M. PlissonFrançois Berthier’s life is a series of unfortunate events. One day, however, a miracle occurs...
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Too Shy to Try
as Trinita, le joueur de pétanquePierre is a hotel cashier in Vichy, so shy that he answers an ad from the Psychology Institute...
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What Did I Ever Do to the Good Lord to Deserve a Wife Who Drinks in Cafes with Men?
as Gabriel CrémieuxGaby is happy. After eighteen years of work, he is a flourishing mechanist. But one day, the...
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There Once Was a Cop
as Rodriguez, Manoni's manCampana, a commissar at the drugs bureau of Paris police gets an undercover job in Nice to catch...
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The Suburbs Are Everywhere
as MarcelHe is a sales rep. She is a secretary. They live in the suburbs but she works in Paris. They...
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Bedmania
as Monsieur Albert, le directeur de l'hôtelA large bed recounts stories from its brief existence. Clumsy burglars, adulterated husbands and...
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The Conspiracy
as uncreditedParis 1960. DeGaulle determines to end a bitter war in Algeria by granting its independence. ...
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Let's Make a Dirty Movie
as ChouchouA bumbling film crew attempts to make a porno movie.
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C'est facile et ça peut rapporter... 20 ans
as L'agent Alfredo MorenoAlfredo Moreno is a police officer in Paris. Married but separated from his wife, he meets...
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Le Permis de conduire
as L'agent de policeMichel Martenot (Louis Velle) works in a bank consumption, is recommended and intended for...
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The Unvanquished
as AmerioIn this drama that alludes to the Algerian War with France of the 1960s, Thomas is a deserter...
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Les Grands Moyens
as Hubert LacagneThe sweet elderly aunt and her two nieces survive the vendetta killing of their whole family...
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It's Tough for Everybody
as Monsieur GillesAfter losing his job, an idealistic adman starts his own agency, putting himself in the...
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Les gros malins
as Un agent au commissariat (uncredited)Paul Blanc runs a butcher's shop with his Neapolitan wife, the vivacious Giulia. One night,...
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Shut Up, Gulli
as AntoineA TV channel organizes a super-8 competition, and Kenavec family decides to film their small...
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Le Braconnier de Dieu
as Le patron du bistrotA monk for thirty-seven years, Brother Gregory could not resist the temptation. Leaving the...
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Three Men on a Horse
as uncreditedA man has found a way to win any bet he places on a horse. However, he himself must never be the...
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Take It from the Top
as Le plombierTired of being a housewife, Annie wants to work. Between her professional life and her...
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The Elf Case
as André GuelfiIn 1988, after much cunning political maneuvering, Loïk Le Floch-Prigent and Alfred Sirven...
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La Décharge
as Le pied-noirA fake documentary on the life forms of the Paris Suburbs, viewed through the eyes of homeless,...
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Par le sang des autres
as PaulIn a little French town everything goes on as usual and people seem friendly and good-natured,...
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Stop Fooling Around... Soldier!
as RodriguezAt a French military outpost, a group of lackadaisical servicemen find plenty of time to make...
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El Gusto
as Le ComédienEl Gusto is the story of an orchestra of Jewish and Muslim musicians torn apart by war 50 years...
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The Sandmen
as DamienAlain runs Le Detour, a small cafe in Paris where Antoine works. Antoine is reunited with his...
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La Honte de la famille
as uncreditedOn the day of his marriage, the son of a Marseille king declares to his family that he wishes to...
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Par ici la monnaie
as RoméoAll the inhabitants of an old house are swindlers, dreaming only of the big score that will...
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À la recherche de... Pierre Richard
as Self - Comédien, humoriste (archive footage)Follow in the footsteps of burlesque actor Pierre Richard, a key figure in French cinema in the...
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Elf, Kings of Oil
as André GuelfiIn 1988, supported by François Mitterrand, Loïk Le Floch-Prigent ran for the presidency of Elf....
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The Lovers of Tomorrow
as uncreditedA man throws a revolver in the Seine and checks into a hotel run by an unhappy Turkish couple....
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Les p’tites têtes
as Mr. RogerHenri, Daniel and Xavier have just opened a travel agency in Paris. Henri runs the agency while...
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Midi Première
as SelfMidi Première is a French variety show presented by Danièle Gilbert, directed by Jacques Pierre...
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Les Rendez-vous du dimanche
as SelfA talk show presented by Michel Drucker
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