Louis de Funès was undoubtedly an icon of his time. Who would not remember him in cult films such as Fantomas, The Gendarme from Saint Tropez, Underdog, Piti Piti Pa, Wing or Leg, Whims of the Mighty or One Hot and One Sniffs? With over 150 films to his credit, Louis was one of the greatest entertainers of his era and his comedies can still make audiences laugh today.
Although he strictly guarded his privacy, curious journalists always came up with the most interesting information. The actor had three sons from two marriages. The first-born Daniel, from his first marriage to Germaine Louise Élodie Carroyer, died in 2017. After a divorce in 1943, Louis married Jeanne Augustine Barthélemy, with whom he had two more sons. The youngest Olivier, who was born in 1949, appeared on the screen several times with his father during the 1960s and 1970s.
He nailed acting
Olivier appeared in several films such as Fantomas is angry, Piti Piti Pa or Mr. Septim’s Grand restaurant. However, it turned out that he did not inherit his father’s talentso he said goodbye to acting and instead fulfilled his childhood dream – becoming a pilot for Air France, while his brother Patrick became a renowned radiologist.
“I wasn’t talented enough as an actor and I could never live up to my father. However, I was excited by the acting and film atmosphere associated with my father and his work, well flying has always been my dream. I was delighted by the reaction of the passengers when they discovered that the plane they were sitting in was being piloted by a man named de Funès. They didn’t want to believe it,” recalls Olivier in a book about his father called Louis de Funès.
Today, Olivier is enjoying a peaceful retirement. Although he rarely appears in public, his charm and resemblance to his famous father remain unmistakable.
