Sylvia Kristel
Encyclopedia
Sylvia Kristel is a Dutch
actress, model
and singer. Her most famous role is in the French film Emmanuelle
.
, Netherlands
, as the daughter of Piet and Jean-Nicholas, who ran an inn in Utrecht. In her 2006 autobiography Nue she claims to have been sexually abused by an elderly guest at the hotel at the age of nine, an event which she has refused to discuss in detail. Her parents divorced when she was 14 years old after her father left home for another woman. "It was the saddest thing that ever happened to me", she says of the experience of her parents' separation. She has a younger sister, Marianne.
in 1973 and won. She speaks Dutch
, English
, French
, German
and Italian
. She gained international attention in 1974 for playing the title character in the softcore film Emmanuelle
which remains one of the most successful French
films ever produced.
Kristel found herself typecast
as Emmanuelle and often played roles that capitalised upon that image, most notably starring in an adaptation of Lady Chatterley's Lover
(1981) and a nudity filled biopic of World War I
spy Mata Hari
in which she played the title role. Her Emmanuelle image followed her to the United States
where she played Nicole Mallow, a maid who seduces a teenage boy, in the controversial 1981 sex comedy Private Lessons
. One of her only other mainstream American film appearances was a brief comic turn in the Get Smart
revival film The Nude Bomb
in 1980.
Although Private Lessons
was one of the highest grossing independent films of 1981 (ranking #28 in US Domestic Gross), Kristel saw none of the profits. She continues to appear in movies and last played Emmanuelle in the early 1990s. In May 2006, Kristel received an award at the Tribeca Film Festival
, New York for directing the animated short film "Topor and Me", written by Ruud Den Dryver. The award was presented by Gayle King
.
After not having filmed for eight years, Kristel played a part in the movie Two Sunny Days in 2010 and in the same year she played the mother of the Trio Lescano in the TV series The Swing Girls.
In September 2006 Sylvia Kristel's autobiography Nue (Nude) was published in France. It was translated into English as Undressing Emmanuelle: A Memoir, by Fourth Estate, 2 July 2007 (ISBN 978-0007256952). In it she tells of a turbulent personal life blighted by addictions to drugs, alcohol, and her quest for a father figure which resulted in some harmful relationships with older men. The book has received very good reviews.
Her first major relationship was with Hugo Claus
, a Belgian
author twenty-seven years her senior with whom she had a son, Arthur, born in 1975. She left him for Ian McShane
, ten years her senior, whom she met on the set of the 1979 film The Fifth Musketeer. They moved in together in Los Angeles where he had promised to help her launch her American career. However their five year affair would lead to no significant career break for Kristel but a relationship she describes in her autobiography as "awful - he was witty and charming but we were too much alike." About two years into the relationship she began using cocaine. This proved to be her downfall, though at the time she thought of it as a "supervitamin, a very fashionable substance, without danger, but expensive, far more exciting than drowning in alcohol - a fuel necessary to stay in the swing."
Interviewed in 2006 for the documentary Hunting Emmanuelle, she describes how, nurturing an expensive cocaine
habit, she made a number of poor decisions, including agreeing to sell her interest in Private Lessons
to her agent on a whim for $150,000. With a domestic gross of over $26 million, she laughs at how much of her agent's mansion her percentage probably paid for.
Since McShane, she has been married twice, first to an American businessman which ended after five months and then to film producer Phillippe Blot. She spent a decade with Belgian radio producer Fred De Vree before he died.
A heavy smoker of unfiltered cigarettes from the age of eleven, Kristel was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2001 and underwent three courses of chemotherapy
, and surgery after it spread to her lung.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
actress, model
Model (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
and singer. Her most famous role is in the French film Emmanuelle
Emmanuelle
Emmanuelle is the lead character in a series of French softcore erotic movies based on a character created by Emmanuelle Arsan in the novel Emmanuelle...
.
Early life
Kristel was born in UtrechtUtrecht (city)
Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, as the daughter of Piet and Jean-Nicholas, who ran an inn in Utrecht. In her 2006 autobiography Nue she claims to have been sexually abused by an elderly guest at the hotel at the age of nine, an event which she has refused to discuss in detail. Her parents divorced when she was 14 years old after her father left home for another woman. "It was the saddest thing that ever happened to me", she says of the experience of her parents' separation. She has a younger sister, Marianne.
Career
Kristel began modeling when she was 17. She entered the Miss TV Europe contestCompetition
Competition is a contest between individuals, groups, animals, etc. for territory, a niche, or a location of resources. It arises whenever two and only two strive for a goal which cannot be shared. Competition occurs naturally between living organisms which co-exist in the same environment. For...
in 1973 and won. She speaks Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
. She gained international attention in 1974 for playing the title character in the softcore film Emmanuelle
Emmanuelle (film)
Emmanuelle is a 1974 French softcore erotic film, directed by Just Jaeckin, and starring Sylvia Kristel. The screenplay was written by Jean-Louis Richard, based on the novel Emmanuelle: The Joys of a Woman by Emmanuelle Arsan. The music score is by Pierre Bachelet. The film was highly successful in...
which remains one of the most successful French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
films ever produced.
Kristel found herself typecast
Typecasting (acting)
In TV, film, and theatre, typecasting is the process by which a particular actor becomes strongly identified with a specific character; one or more particular roles; or, characters having the same traits or coming from the same social or ethnic groups...
as Emmanuelle and often played roles that capitalised upon that image, most notably starring in an adaptation of Lady Chatterley's Lover
Lady Chatterley's Lover (film)
Lady Chatterley's Lover is a 1981 film directed by Just Jaeckin, and starring Sylvia Kristel and Nicholas Clay.-Cast:*Sylvia Kristel as Lady Constance Chatterley*Shane Briant as Sir Clifford Chatterley*Nicholas Clay as Oliver Mellors...
(1981) and a nudity filled biopic of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
spy Mata Hari
Mata Hari (1985 film)
Mata Hari is a 1985 film produced by Golan-Globus featuring Sylvia Kristel in the title role of exotic dancer Mata Hari, executed for espionage during World War I...
in which she played the title role. Her Emmanuelle image followed her to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
where she played Nicole Mallow, a maid who seduces a teenage boy, in the controversial 1981 sex comedy Private Lessons
Private Lessons (1981 film)
Private Lessons is the title of an American comedy film released in 1980. The film starred Sylvia Kristel, Howard Hesseman, Eric Brown, and Ed Begley, Jr.The screenplay was written by Dan Greenburg, who wrote the original source novel, Philly...
. One of her only other mainstream American film appearances was a brief comic turn in the Get Smart
Get Smart
Get Smart is an American comedy television series that satirizes the secret agent genre. Created by Mel Brooks with Buck Henry, the show starred Don Adams , Barbara Feldon , and Edward Platt...
revival film The Nude Bomb
The Nude Bomb
The Nude Bomb is a 1980 comedy film based on the television series Get Smart. It starred Don Adams as Maxwell Smart, Agent 86, and was directed by Clive Donner...
in 1980.
Although Private Lessons
Private Lessons (1981 film)
Private Lessons is the title of an American comedy film released in 1980. The film starred Sylvia Kristel, Howard Hesseman, Eric Brown, and Ed Begley, Jr.The screenplay was written by Dan Greenburg, who wrote the original source novel, Philly...
was one of the highest grossing independent films of 1981 (ranking #28 in US Domestic Gross), Kristel saw none of the profits. She continues to appear in movies and last played Emmanuelle in the early 1990s. In May 2006, Kristel received an award at the Tribeca Film Festival
Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Film Festival is a film festival founded in 2002 by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Craig Hatkoff in a response to the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the consequent loss of vitality in the TriBeCa neighborhood in Lower Manhattan.The mission of the festival...
, New York for directing the animated short film "Topor and Me", written by Ruud Den Dryver. The award was presented by Gayle King
Gayle King
Gayle King is editor-at-large for O, The Oprah Magazine and the best friend of Oprah Winfrey. She has previously worked as a television news anchor and talk show host...
.
After not having filmed for eight years, Kristel played a part in the movie Two Sunny Days in 2010 and in the same year she played the mother of the Trio Lescano in the TV series The Swing Girls.
Personal life
Her first major relationship was with Hugo Claus
Hugo Claus
Hugo Maurice Julien Claus was a leading Belgian author who published under his own name as well as various pseudonyms. Claus' literary contributions spanned the genres of drama, the novel, and poetry; he also left a legacy as a painter and film director...
, a Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
author twenty-seven years her senior with whom she had a son, Arthur, born in 1975. She left him for Ian McShane
Ian McShane
Ian David McShane is an English actor, director, producer, voice artist, and comedian.Despite appearing in numerous films, McShane is best known for his television roles, particularly the BBC's Lovejoy and HBO's Western drama Deadwood...
, ten years her senior, whom she met on the set of the 1979 film The Fifth Musketeer. They moved in together in Los Angeles where he had promised to help her launch her American career. However their five year affair would lead to no significant career break for Kristel but a relationship she describes in her autobiography as "awful - he was witty and charming but we were too much alike." About two years into the relationship she began using cocaine. This proved to be her downfall, though at the time she thought of it as a "supervitamin, a very fashionable substance, without danger, but expensive, far more exciting than drowning in alcohol - a fuel necessary to stay in the swing."
Interviewed in 2006 for the documentary Hunting Emmanuelle, she describes how, nurturing an expensive cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
habit, she made a number of poor decisions, including agreeing to sell her interest in Private Lessons
Private Lessons (1981 film)
Private Lessons is the title of an American comedy film released in 1980. The film starred Sylvia Kristel, Howard Hesseman, Eric Brown, and Ed Begley, Jr.The screenplay was written by Dan Greenburg, who wrote the original source novel, Philly...
to her agent on a whim for $150,000. With a domestic gross of over $26 million, she laughs at how much of her agent's mansion her percentage probably paid for.
Since McShane, she has been married twice, first to an American businessman which ended after five months and then to film producer Phillippe Blot. She spent a decade with Belgian radio producer Fred De Vree before he died.
A heavy smoker of unfiltered cigarettes from the age of eleven, Kristel was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2001 and underwent three courses of chemotherapy
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....
, and surgery after it spread to her lung.
Filmography
- The Swing Girls (2010) (TV) .... Eva de Leeuw
- Two Sunny Days (2010) .... Angela
- Bank (2002) .... Wife
- Sexy Boys (2001) .... La sexologue
- De vriendschapDe VriendschapDe Vriendschap is a 2000 Dutch film directed by ....
(2001) .... Sylvia - Vergeef me (2001) .... Chiquita (on stage)
- Die Unbesiegbaren (2000) (TV)
- Lijmen/Het beenLijmen/Het BeenLijmen/Het Been is a Dutch movie adapted from short stories by Willem Elsschot and directed by Robbe De Hert, starring Mike Vedrengh and Koen De Bouw. The movie was coproduced by Belgian and Dutch filmcompanies....
(2000) .... Jeanne - An Amsterdam Tale (1999) .... Alma
- Film 1 (1999) .... Patron
- Harry Rents a Room (1999) .... Miss Pinky
- Gaston's WarGaston's WarGaston's War is a 1997 drama film directed by Robbe De Hert and starring Werner De Smedt, Mapi Galán and Peter Firth. Many decades after the Second World War, a Belgian resistance fighter, Gaston Vandermeerssche, tries to discover who betrayed them to the Nazis. It is based on a novel by Allan...
(1997) .... Miep Visser - Die Sexfalle (1997) (TV) .... Nicole Fuchs
- "Onderweg naar morgen" (1994) Serie TV .... Trix Odijk (1996)
- "De eenzame oorlog van Koos Tak" (1996) - Tante Heintje (1996) Episodio TV
- Emmanuelle au 7ème cielEmmanuelle 7Emmanuelle 7 is a 1992 French softcore erotic movie directed by Francis Leroi, and starring Sylvia Kristel. The screenplay was written by Francis Leroi and Jean-Marc Vasseur...
(1993) .... Emmanuelle - Le secret d'Emmanuelle (1993) (TV)
- Beauty School (1993) .... Sylvia
- Le parfum d'Emmanuelle (1993) (TV) .... Emmanuelle
- Magique Emmanuelle (1993) (TV) .... Emmanuelle
- L'amour d'Emmanuelle (1993) (TV) .... Old Emmanuelle
- Emmanuelle à Venise (1993) (TV) .... Old Emmanuelle
- La revanche d'Emmanuelle (1993) (TV) .... Old Emmanuelle
- Éternelle Emmanuelle (1993) (TV) .... Old Emmanuelle
- Seong-ae-ui chimmuk (1992)
- Hot Blood (1990) .... Sylvia
- In the Shadow of the Sandcastle (1990) .... Angel
- Dracula's Widow (1988) .... Vanessa
- The ArrogantThe ArrogantThe Arrogant is a 1987 action-thriller directed, written, and produced by Philippe Blot. This film stars Gary Graham and Sylvia Kristel, Giovanni and Julie, as two strangers who meet on a desert highway. As they travel together, they encounter many strange situations that are often religious...
(1988) .... Julie - Casanova (1987) (TV) .... Maddalena
- Red Heat (1985) .... Sofia
- Mata HariMata Hari (1985 film)Mata Hari is a 1985 film produced by Golan-Globus featuring Sylvia Kristel in the title role of exotic dancer Mata Hari, executed for espionage during World War I...
(1985) .... Mata Hari - The Big Bet (1985) .... Michelle
- Emmanuelle IVEmmanuelle 4Emmanuelle 4 is the fourth official theatrical feature film in the Emmanuelle franchise. Sylvia Kristel returns in this strange blend of sci-fi and erotic romance, playing herself, and handing over the role of Emmanuelle to Mia Nygren.- Plot :...
(1984) .... Sylvia / Emmanuelle - Private SchoolPrivate School (film)Private School is a 1983 teen oriented sex comedy film, directed by Noel Black.-Cast :* Phoebe Cates as Christine Ramsey* Betsy Russell as Jordan Leigh-Jenson* Matthew Modine as Jim Green...
(1983) .... Ms. Regina Copoletta - Private LessonsPrivate Lessons (1981 film)Private Lessons is the title of an American comedy film released in 1980. The film starred Sylvia Kristel, Howard Hesseman, Eric Brown, and Ed Begley, Jr.The screenplay was written by Dan Greenburg, who wrote the original source novel, Philly...
(1981) .... Nicole Mallow - Lady Chatterley's LoverLady Chatterley's LoverLady Chatterley's Lover is a novel by D. H. Lawrence, first published in 1928. The first edition was printed privately in Florence, Italy with assistance from Pino Orioli; it could not be published openly in the United Kingdom until 1960...
(1981) .... Lady Constance Chatterley - The Million Dollar Face (1981) (TV) .... Brett Devereaux
- Un amore in prima classe (1980) .... Beatrice
- The Nude BombThe Nude BombThe Nude Bomb is a 1980 comedy film based on the television series Get Smart. It starred Don Adams as Maxwell Smart, Agent 86, and was directed by Clive Donner...
(1980) .... Agent 34 - The Concorde ... Airport '79 (1979) .... Isabelle
- The Fifth MusketeerThe Fifth MusketeerThe Fifth Musketeer is a 1979 film adaptation of the last section of the novel The Vicomte de Bragelonne by Alexandre Dumas, père, which is itself based on the French legend of the Man in the Iron Mask....
(1979) .... Maria Theresa - Letti selvaggi (1979) .... The Lady on the Bed/The Unhappy Wife
- Mysteries (1978) .... Dany Kielland
- Pastorale 1943 (1978) .... Miep Algera
- Goodbye EmmanuelleGoodbye EmmanuelleGoodbye Emmanuelle is a 1977 French softcore erotica movie directed by François Leterrier, and starring Sylvia Kristel. The music score is by Serge Gainsbourg...
(1977) .... Emmanuelle - René la canne (1977) .... Krista
- Alice ou la dernière fugueAlice or the Last EscapadeAlice or the Last Escapade. is a 1977 film written and directed by Claude Chabrol. Its title in French is Alice ou la dernière fugue...
(1977) .... Alice Caroll - La margeLa MargeThe Margin is a novel by André Pieyre de Mandiargues published in 1967, which won the Prix Goncourt the same year. It was first published in the UK as The Margin in 1970, translated by R...
(1976) .... Diana - Une femme fidèle (1976) .... Mathilde Leroy
- Emmanuelle: L'antiviergeEmmanuelle 2Emmanuelle 2 is a 1975 French softcore erotica movie directed by Francis Giacobetti, and starring Sylvia Kristel. The screenplay was written by Bob Elia and Francis Giacobetti, based on novel Emmanuelle: The Joys of a Woman by Emmanuelle Arsan...
(1975) .... Emmanuelle - Le jeu avec le feu (1975) .... Diana Van Den Berg
- Un linceul n'a pas de pochesUn linceul n'a pas de pochesUn linceul n'a pas de poches is a French film directed by Jean-Pierre Mocky in 1974-Plot:A journalist, Michel Dolannes, decides to use his newspaper to denounce the corruption of the established system...
(1974) .... Avril - Der Liebesschüler (1974) .... Andrea
- EmmanuelleEmmanuelle (film)Emmanuelle is a 1974 French softcore erotic film, directed by Just Jaeckin, and starring Sylvia Kristel. The screenplay was written by Jean-Louis Richard, based on the novel Emmanuelle: The Joys of a Woman by Emmanuelle Arsan. The music score is by Pierre Bachelet. The film was highly successful in...
(1974) .... Emmanuelle - Naakt over de schutting (1973) .... Lilly Marischka
- Because of the CatsBecause of the CatsBecause of the Cats is a 1973 Dutch-Belgian drama film directed by Fons Rademakers and starring Bryan Marshall, Alexandra Stewart and Sebastian Graham Jones. In Amsterdam Inspector Van der Valk is on the trail of a group of wealthy young men who go round attacking woman for entertainment. Its Dutch...
(1973) .... Hannie Troost - Frank en Eva (1973) .... Sylvia
External links
- Interview in Dutch magazine
- Interview with Sylvia Kristel, The Daily TelegraphSunday TelegraphThe Sunday Telegraph is a British broadsheet newspaper, founded in February 1961. It is the sister paper of The Daily Telegraph, but is run separately with a different editorial staff, although there is some cross-usage of stories...
, June 16, 2007. - Interview: Sylvia Kristel, the world's most famous porn star (interview with The IndependentThe IndependentThe Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, July 2, 2007.