Michael Lonsdale
Michael Edward Lonsdale-Crouch[1] (24 May 1931 – 21 September 2020), commonly known as Michael Lonsdale and sometimes named as Michel Lonsdale, was a French actor and author who appeared in over 180 films and television shows.[4] He is best known in the English-speaking world for his roles as the villain Hugo Drax in the 1979 James Bond film Moonraker,[5] the detective Claude Lebel in The Day of the Jackal, The Abbot in The Name of the Rose and Dupont d'Ivry in The Remains of the Day.
Michael Lonsdale  | |
|---|---|
![]() Michael Lonsdale, 2013  | |
| Born | 24 May 1931 Paris, France  | 
| Died | 21 September 2020 (aged 89) Paris, France  | 
| Other names | Michel Lonsdale | 
| Occupation | Actor | 
| Years active | 1955–2016[3] | 
Early life and education
    
Lonsdale was born in Paris, the son of British Army officer Edward Lonsdale-Crouch and his half-French, half-Irish wife Simone Béraud.[6][1] He was brought up initially on the island of Guernsey,[7] then in London from 1935, and later, during the Second World War, in Casablanca, Morocco.[8]
Career
    
He returned to Paris to study painting in 1947, but was drawn into the world of acting instead, first appearing on stage at the age of 24.[8][9] Lonsdale was bilingual, and appeared in both English-language and French-language productions. He appeared in a starring role with Roger Moore in the 1979 James Bond film Moonraker.[10] and with Sean Connery, in the 1984 film The Name of the Rose. As it happens, he would later appear in Munich, a film that also starred another Bond, Daniel Craig.
In February 2011, he won a César Award for Best Supporting Actor for his work in Of Gods and Men.[4]
Lonsdale was also the author of ten books.[4]
Filmography
    
    Film
    
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref(s) | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | It Happened in Aden | Sinclair | ||
| 1960 | La main chaude | Nobert | [12] | |
| Les portes claquent | Georges Hortegrenave | |||
| 1962 | Adorable Liar | Albert | [12] | |
| Le Crime ne paie pas | L'employé de la morgue | (segment "L'homme de l'avenue"), Uncredited | ||
| La dénonciation | Mercier | [12] | ||
| Snobs! | Charles Dufaut | [12] | ||
| The Trial | Priest | [13] | ||
| 1964 | Behold a Pale Horse | Reporter | [12] | |
| Jealous as a Tiger | L'automobiliste qui grimace | [12] | ||
| 1965 | Les copains | Lamenbin | [12] | |
| Je vous salue, mafia! | Hyman | [12] | ||
| 1966 | Your Money or Your Life | Le conférencier au club des timides | [12] | |
| Is Paris Burning? | Debu-Bridel | Uncredited | [14] | |
| Judoka-Secret Agent | Thomas Perkins | |||
| Le fer à repasser | ||||
| 1967 | Les compagnons de la marguerite | Lastac / Lataque, expert en écritures / La voix du juge d'instruction | [12] | |
| L'authentique procès de Carl-Emmanuel Jung | Un avocat | [12] | ||
| 1968 | L'homme à la Buick | L'inspecteur / The inspector | [12] | |
| The Bride Wore Black | René Morane | [13] | ||
| Stolen Kisses | Georges Tabard | [13] | ||
| La grande lessive! | Delaroche | [12] | ||
| 1969 | Hibernatus | Professor Edouard Lauriebat | [12] | |
| Détruire, dit-elle | Stein | [13] | ||
| L'hiver | Julien & Marc | [12] | ||
| 1970 | L'étalon | Both | [12] | |
| Le revolver et la rose | Philippe de la Tour / Dimitri Korkesky | |||
| 1971 | Le printemps | L'homme qui fuit | [12] | |
| Le Souffle au cœur | Father Henri | [13] | ||
| Les assassins de l'ordre | Inspector Bertrand | [12] | ||
| Out 1 | Thomas | [13] | ||
| Papa les petits bateaux... | Hippolyte | [12] | ||
| Jaune le soleil | Un juif | [12] | ||
| 1972 | The Old Maid | Monod | [12] | |
| Il était une fois un flic... | Le commissaire Lucas | [12] | ||
| Chut! | Sergel | [12] | ||
| L'automne | Julien, le réalisateur | [12] | ||
| Out 1: Spectre | Thomas | [12] | ||
| 1973 | The Day of the Jackal | Deputy Commissioner Claude Lebel | [13] | |
| La fille au violoncelle | Philippe Lariel | [12] | ||
| Les grands sentiments font les bons gueuletons | Stéphane | [12] | ||
| 1974 | Successive Slidings of Pleasure | The Judge | [13] | |
| La grande Paulette | Paul | |||
| Stavisky | Docteur Mézy | By Alain Resnais | [13] | |
| La vérité sur l'imaginaire passion d'un inconnu | Le reporter TV / Ponce Pilate | [12] | ||
| Une baleine qui avait mal aux dents | Le peintre | [12] | ||
| Caravan to Vaccares | Duc de Croyter | [12] | ||
| The Phantom of Liberty | Le chapelier / Hatter | [13] | ||
| Un linceul n'a pas de poches | Raymond | [12] | ||
| The Suspects | Le juge Souftries | [12] | ||
| 1975 | Serious as Pleasure | L'inspecteur Fournier / Inspector Fournier | [12] | |
| Galileo | Cardinal Barberini, later Pope Urban VIII | [13] | ||
| Aloïse | The second doctor | [12] | ||
| Section spéciale | Le ministre de l'intérieur Pierre Pucheu | [12] | ||
| La traque | David Sutter | [12] | ||
| The Romantic Englishwoman | Swan | [13] | ||
| India Song | Le vice-consul de Lahore | [13] | ||
| Folle à tuer | Stéphane Mostri | [12] | ||
| Le téléphone rose | Morrison | [12] | ||
| Ne | ||||
| 1976 | Scrambled Eggs | Le Président de la République | [12] | |
| Mr. Klein | Pierre | [13] | ||
| Son nom de Venise dans Calcutta désert | Récitant | Voice | [12] | |
| Bartleby | L'huissier | [12] | ||
| L'Eden Palace | Raoul | |||
| 1977 | Le diable dans la boîte | Georges Aubert | [12] | |
| L'adieu nu | Boris / The visitor | |||
| The Accuser | Abéraud | [12] | ||
| The Left-Handed Woman | Kellner | [12] | ||
| Aurais dû faire gaffe... le choc est terrible | ||||
| Une sale histoire | Documentray | [13] | ||
| Jacques Prévert | Himself | |||
| 1979 | The Passage | Alain Renoudot | [12] | |
| Moonraker | Hugo Drax | [13] | ||
| Ève avait l'éclat métallique de l'été | ||||
| 1980 | Seuls | Le peintre | [12] | |
| Ella, une vraie famille | Le comédien studio d'enregistrement | |||
| 1981 | The Bunker | Martin Bormann | TV movie | [12] | 
| Chariots of Fire | [12] | |||
| Les jeux de la Comtesse Dolingen de Gratz | Bertrand Haines-Pearson | [12] | ||
| Seuls | Ludovic | |||
| 1982 | Le rose et le blanc | Léon | ||
| Sweet Inquest on Violence | Ash, le financier | [12] | ||
| Chronopolis | Narrator | Voice | ||
| Mora | As writer | |||
| Enigma | Bodley | |||
| 1983 | Eréndira | Senator Onésimo Sanchez | [15] | |
| Une jeunesse | Bejardy | [12] | ||
| 1984 | The Judge | Le Docteur | [12] | |
| Le Bon Roi Dagobert | Saint Eloi | [12] | ||
| Les Boulugres | Le Roi | Voice | ||
| 1985 | The Holcroft Covenant | Ernst Manfredi | [13] | |
| L'éveillé du Pont de l'Alma | Antoine | [12] | ||
| Billy Ze Kick | Commissaire Bellanger | [12] | ||
| 1986 | Canevas la ville | Voice | ||
| The Name of the Rose | The Abbot | [13] | ||
| 1987 | Der Madonna-Mann | Tanzmann | [12] | |
| L'enfant et le président | Le président | |||
| 1988 | Niezwykla podróz Baltazara Kobera | Le maître | [13] | |
| 1989 | Souvenir | Xavier Lorion | ||
| L'homme de terre | Narrator | Voice | ||
| Cela s'appelle l'amour | Himself | |||
| 1991 | My Life Is Hell | Gabriel | By Josiane Balasko | [12] | 
| 1993 | Woyzeck | Le capitaine | ||
| L'ordre du jour | Stark | [12] | ||
| The Remains of the Day | Dupont D'Ivry | [13] | ||
| 1995 | Jefferson in Paris | Louis XVI | [13] | |
| Nelly & Monsieur Arnaud | Dolabella | [12] | ||
| 1996 | The Human Plant (La Plante humaine) | Michel | ||
| 1997 | Mauvais genre | Honoré de Balzac | ||
| 1998 | Don Juan | Don Luis | [12] | |
| Let There Be Light / Que la lumière soit | Monseigneur Loublié | By Arthur Joffé | [12] | |
| Ronin | Jean-Pierre | [16] | ||
| 1999 | A Monkey's Tale | Master Martin | Voice | |
| 2000 | Les Acteurs | Man in the street | By Bertrand Blier | |
| Ceux d'en face | Mikaël | [12] | ||
| 2003 | The Mystery of the Yellow Room | Stangerson | [12] | |
| Kaena: The Prophecy | Opaz | Voice, French version | ||
| Adieu | Serge | [12] | ||
| Le Furet | Don Salvadore | [12] | ||
| 2004 | L'empreinte | Romain Dessouches | ||
| Strange Crime | David | [12] | ||
| 5x2 | Bernard | By François Ozon | [12] | |
| 2005 | Les invisibles | Le gardien | [12] | |
| Bye Bye Blackbird | Robert | |||
| The Perfume of the Lady in Black | Le professeur Stangerson | [12] | ||
| Good Girl | Jean | [12] | ||
| Selon Rachel | ||||
| Munich | Papa | [16] | ||
| 2006 | Il sera une fois... | Le vieux monsieur | [12] | |
| Goya's Ghosts | Father Gregorio | [13] | ||
| 2007 | Heartbeat Detector (La Question Humaine)  | 
Mathias Jüst | [13] | |
| To Each His Own Cinema | The old blind man | (segment "Le Don") | [12] | |
| The Last Mistress | Le vicomte de Prony | [15] | ||
| Go West! A Lucky Luke Adventure | Bartleby | Voice | ||
| 2009 | Agora | Theon | [13] | |
| Je vais te manquer | Max | |||
| Park Benches | The Client doormat | [12] | ||
| 2010 | Of Gods and Men | Luc | César Award for Best Supporting Actor Globes de Cristal Award for Best Actor  | 
[13] | 
| Hitler à Hollywood | Himself | [12] | ||
| 2011 | Titeuf | Le psy | Voice | |
| Les hommes libres | Le recteur Si Kaddour Ben Ghabrit | [13] | ||
| The Cardboard Village | Il vecchio prete | [12] | ||
| 2012 | Gebo et l'Ombre | Gebo | By Manoel de Oliveira | [13] | 
| 2013 | Le renard jaune | Jean Virno | [12] | |
| 2014 | Rosenn | Voice | ||
| Maestro | Cédric Rovère | [12] | ||
| 2015 | Les filles au Moyen Âge | Daniel | [12] | |
| 2016 | The First, the Last | Jean-Berchmans | [12] | |
| Sculpt | (final film role) | [17] | 
Television
    
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref(s) | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Smiley's People | Anton Grigoriev | TV miniseries | [14] | 
| 1986 | Le Tiroir secret | TV miniseries | ||
| 1991 | Maigret et la Grande Perche | Monsieur Serre | TV series | |
| 2001 | Maigret et la Croqueuse de Diamants | Sir Lampson | TV series | |
| 2013 | Marguerite Yourcenar, alchimie du paysage | The Narrator | TV documentary | |
| Le tourbillon de Jeanne | L'homme | TV series | 
Video games
    
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref(s) | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Destroy All Humans! Path of the Furon | Henri Crousteau | Voice-over | |
| 2012 | 007 Legends | Hugo Drax | Voice-over | [18] | 
References
    
- Mes Étoiles: les rencontres qui ont éclairé mon chemin, Michael Lonsdale and Patrick Scheyder, Bayard, 2018
 - "Michael Lonsdale et Jeanne-Marie Conquer". Maison internationale des Poètes et des Écrivains de Saint-Malo. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
 - Rédaction, La; le 21/09/20 17:00, Mis à jour. "Mort de Michael Lonsdale : retour sur ses plus grands rôles". www.linternaute.com (in French). Retrieved 2020-09-21.
 - "Michael Lonsdale, icône du cinéma et du théâtre, est mort". L'Obs (in French). Retrieved 2020-09-21.
 - Canby, Vincent (June 29, 1979). "Moonraker (1979) MOONRAKER". The New York Times.
 - Qui est qui en France, Jacques Lafitte, 2008, p. 1433
 - "Michael Lonsdale – Bond villain in Moonraker – dies, aged 89". Radio Times. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
 - Goodman, Lanie (December 3, 2010). "A gentle screen giant subtly shines". The Wall Street Journal.
 - "Les Inrocks - Michael Lonsdale" (in French). Retrieved September 28, 2013.
 - Allen Kim. "Michael Lonsdale, actor who played Bond villain in 'Moonraker,' dies at 87". CNN. Retrieved 2020-09-23.
 - "Michael Lonsdale, Bond Villain in 'Moonraker,' Dies at 89 | Hollywood Reporter". www.hollywoodreporter.com.
 - "Michael Lonsdale – Actor". mubi.com. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
 - "Michael Lonsdale obituary". the Guardian. 2020-09-22. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
 - Pulver, Andrew (2020-09-21). "Michael Lonsdale, Bond villain Hugo Drax in Moonraker, dies aged 89". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
 - "Michael Lonsdale movie reviews & film summaries | Roger Ebert". rogerebert.com. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
 - "Bond villain actor Michael Lonsdale dies aged 89". BBC News. 2020-09-21. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
 - Allen Kim. "Michael Lonsdale, actor who played Bond villain in 'Moonraker,' dies at 87". CNN. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
 - "Michael Lonsdale obituary: French actor dies at 89". Legacy.com. 2020-09-22. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
 
