Roger Vadim
Encyclopedia
Roger Vadim was a French screenwriter
, director
, and producer
as well as a journalist
, author
and actor
, who launched Brigitte Bardot
's career in the film And God Created Woman
.
. His Russian
father, Igor Nikolaevich Plemiannikov , had immigrated from Ukraine
and became a naturalized
French citizen, and was a vice consul of France to Egypt
. His mother, Marie-Antoinette Ardilouze, was French actress. Although Vadim lived in luxury in his early youth, the death of his father, in front of Vadim when he was nine, caused the family to return to France, where his mother found work running a hostel in the French Alps
which served as a way-station for Jews and other fugitives fleeing Nazi Germany
.
Vadim became a stage actor at the age of sixteen, after studying journalism and writing at the University of Paris
, from which he did not graduate. In 1947, he became assistant to film director Marc Allégret
, whom he met while working at the Theatre Sarah Bernhardt, and for whom he worked on several screenplays. Vadim then raised the funds to produce and direct his first film, And God Created Woman
, starring Bardot, the profits from which made him wealthy. They went on to make two more films together, both of which featured Bardot as a sexpot.
In 1950, Vadim discovered Bardot when he was still an assistant director, and she was only 15 years old. Two years later they were married, but by 1957 they were divorced. Vadim had already begun an affair with Annette Stroyberg, an actress from Denmark
who was 21 years old, and who became his new leading lady for Les liaisons dangereuses
, and his wife in 1958. They divorced in 1960, after the birth of their daughter, Nathalie
, who would go on to become on actress.
In 1961, he began a two-year relaionship with actress Catherine Deneuve
, who at age 17 was nearly half his age. They had a son together – Christian
– a month before ending their relationship. Deneuve was followed in 1964 by Jane Fonda
; they married in 1965 and divorced in 1973.
Candy Darling
, of Andy Warhol
's entourage, wrote of an affair with Vadim in her diary, My Face for the World to See
.
Marriages
and is buried in the St. Tropez Cemetery, Saint Tropez, France. He was survived by his wife, French actress Marie-Christine Barrault
and his four children (Christian, Vanessa, Vania and Nathalie).
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
, director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
, and producer
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
as well as a journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
, author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, who launched Brigitte Bardot
Brigitte Bardot
Brigitte Anne-Marie Bardot is a French former fashion model, actress, singer and animal rights activist. She was one of the best-known sex-symbols of the 1960s.In her early life, Bardot was an aspiring ballet dancer...
's career in the film And God Created Woman
And God Created Woman (1956 film)
And God Created Woman is a French drama film directed by Roger Vadim and starring Brigitte Bardot. Though by no means her first film, it is widely recognized as the vehicle that launched Bardot into the public spotlight and immediately created her "sex kitten" persona, making her an overnight...
.
Early life
Vadim was born as Roger Vladimir Plemiannikov in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. His Russian
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
father, Igor Nikolaevich Plemiannikov , had immigrated from Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
and became a naturalized
Naturalization
Naturalization is the acquisition of citizenship and nationality by somebody who was not a citizen of that country at the time of birth....
French citizen, and was a vice consul of France to Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
. His mother, Marie-Antoinette Ardilouze, was French actress. Although Vadim lived in luxury in his early youth, the death of his father, in front of Vadim when he was nine, caused the family to return to France, where his mother found work running a hostel in the French Alps
French Alps
The French Alps are those portions of the Alps mountain range which stand within France, located in the Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions....
which served as a way-station for Jews and other fugitives fleeing Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
.
Vadim became a stage actor at the age of sixteen, after studying journalism and writing at the University of Paris
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
, from which he did not graduate. In 1947, he became assistant to film director Marc Allégret
Marc Allégret
Marc Allégret was a French screenwriter and film director.Born in Basel, Basel-Stadt, Switzerland, he was the elder brother of Yves Allégret. Marc was educated to be a lawyer. Allégret became André Gide's lover when he was fifteen and Gide was forty-seven...
, whom he met while working at the Theatre Sarah Bernhardt, and for whom he worked on several screenplays. Vadim then raised the funds to produce and direct his first film, And God Created Woman
And God Created Woman (1956 film)
And God Created Woman is a French drama film directed by Roger Vadim and starring Brigitte Bardot. Though by no means her first film, it is widely recognized as the vehicle that launched Bardot into the public spotlight and immediately created her "sex kitten" persona, making her an overnight...
, starring Bardot, the profits from which made him wealthy. They went on to make two more films together, both of which featured Bardot as a sexpot.
Romances
Vadim was celebrated for his romances – and marriages – to beautiful actresses, which he wrote about in his 1986 book Bardot, Deneuve & Fonda.In 1950, Vadim discovered Bardot when he was still an assistant director, and she was only 15 years old. Two years later they were married, but by 1957 they were divorced. Vadim had already begun an affair with Annette Stroyberg, an actress from Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
who was 21 years old, and who became his new leading lady for Les liaisons dangereuses
Les liaisons dangereuses (film)
Les liaisons dangereuses is a 1959 French-language film, based on the 1782 novel by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos. It was directed by Roger Vadim, and stars Jeanne Moreau, Gerard Phillipe, and Annette Vadim...
, and his wife in 1958. They divorced in 1960, after the birth of their daughter, Nathalie
Nathalie Vadim
Nathalie Vadim is the daughter of Roger Vadim and actress Annette Strøyberg.Like her father, she has been involved in directing many films.-External links:...
, who would go on to become on actress.
In 1961, he began a two-year relaionship with actress Catherine Deneuve
Catherine Deneuve
Catherine Deneuve is a French actress. She gained recognition for her portrayal of aloof and mysterious beauties in films such as Repulsion and Belle de jour . Deneuve was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress in 1993 for her performance in Indochine; she also won César Awards for that...
, who at age 17 was nearly half his age. They had a son together – Christian
Christian Vadim
Christian Vadim is a French actor. He is the son of actress Catherine Deneuve and director Roger Vadim. He has a son, Igor Divetain-Vadim and a daughter, Lou Vadim ....
– a month before ending their relationship. Deneuve was followed in 1964 by Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda is an American actress, writer, political activist, former fashion model, and fitness guru. She rose to fame in the 1960s with films such as Barbarella and Cat Ballou. She has won two Academy Awards and received several other movie awards and nominations during more than 50 years as an...
; they married in 1965 and divorced in 1973.
Candy Darling
Candy Darling
Candy Darling was an American actress, best known as a Warhol Superstar. A male-to-female transsexual, she starred in Andy Warhol's films Flesh and Women in Revolt , and was a muse of the protopunk band The Velvet Underground.-Early life:Candy Darling was born James Lawrence Slattery in Forest...
, of Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol
Andrew Warhola , known as Andy Warhol, was an American painter, printmaker, and filmmaker who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art...
's entourage, wrote of an affair with Vadim in her diary, My Face for the World to See
My Face for the World to See
"My Face for the World to See" is the published diaries of Warhol Superstar Candy Darling....
.
Marriages
- Brigitte BardotBrigitte BardotBrigitte Anne-Marie Bardot is a French former fashion model, actress, singer and animal rights activist. She was one of the best-known sex-symbols of the 1960s.In her early life, Bardot was an aspiring ballet dancer...
, 20 December 1952 – 6 December 1957 (divorced) - Annette Strøyberg, 1958–1960 (divorced); 1 child (NathalieNathalie VadimNathalie Vadim is the daughter of Roger Vadim and actress Annette Strøyberg.Like her father, she has been involved in directing many films.-External links:...
) - Jane FondaJane FondaJane Fonda is an American actress, writer, political activist, former fashion model, and fitness guru. She rose to fame in the 1960s with films such as Barbarella and Cat Ballou. She has won two Academy Awards and received several other movie awards and nominations during more than 50 years as an...
, 14 August 1965 – 16 January 1973 (divorced); 1 child (VanessaVanessa VadimVanessa Vadim is an independent producer and cinematographer. In the 1990s she co-founded MayDay media with Brown University classmate Rory Kennedy. It is a non-profit production and distribution group that uses video as the center force in campaigns that fight racism, sexism, classism and...
) - Catherine Schneider, 1975–1977 (divorced); 1 child (Vania)
- Marie-Christine BarraultMarie-Christine BarraultMarie-Christine Barrault is a French actress, who has appeared in 45 films and numerous television productions.Born in Paris, she got her start on television, in L'Œuvre, in 1967 and in the series Que ferait donc Faber? Her film debut was in 1969 in My Night at Maud's in 1969.In 1970 Barrault...
, 1990 - his death
Later career
In addition to Vadim's theater and film work, he also wrote several books, including his autobiography, D'une étoile à l'autre (From One Star to the Next).Death
Vadim died at age 72 of lymphomaLymphoma
Lymphoma is a cancer in the lymphatic cells of the immune system. Typically, lymphomas present as a solid tumor of lymphoid cells. Treatment might involve chemotherapy and in some cases radiotherapy and/or bone marrow transplantation, and can be curable depending on the histology, type, and stage...
and is buried in the St. Tropez Cemetery, Saint Tropez, France. He was survived by his wife, French actress Marie-Christine Barrault
Marie-Christine Barrault
Marie-Christine Barrault is a French actress, who has appeared in 45 films and numerous television productions.Born in Paris, she got her start on television, in L'Œuvre, in 1967 and in the series Que ferait donc Faber? Her film debut was in 1969 in My Night at Maud's in 1969.In 1970 Barrault...
and his four children (Christian, Vanessa, Vania and Nathalie).
Writing
- Vadim, Roger. Bardot, Deneuve, Fonda: My Life With The Three Most Beautiful Women In The World (1986), published by Simon & Schuster (ISBN 0671530070/ISBN 9780671530075)
External links
- Roger Vadim's biographic sketch at Find A GraveFind A GraveFind a Grave is a commercial website providing free access and input to an online database of cemetery records. It was founded in 1998 as a DBA and incorporated in 2000.-History:...