- Gad Elmaleh
Gad Elmaleh (born
April 19 1971 ,Casablanca ,Morocco ) is a Moroccan-Frenchone man show humorist andactor . His latest show is called "Papa est en haut" ("Papa is upstairs).Biography
Gad Elmaleh was born in
Casablanca ,Morocco . Of Moroccan-Jewish descent, he was brought up in a mixed cultural background, speakingMoroccan Arabic , French, and Hebrew. Just 17 years old, Gad--a name adopted by his fans--left Morocco forQuebec ,Canada . He spent four years in Montreal where he studiedpolitical science and was invited intotheatre .In 1992, at 22 years old, he decided to go to
Paris . He studied withIsabelle Nanty with whom he did his firstone-man show "Décalages" in 1995. Performed in the famous "Palais des glaces", the show is an autobiography of Gad.Elmaleh then devoted himself to cinema and acted in his first full-length film, "Salut cousin !" by Merzak Allouache, as well as "
L'homme est une femme comme les autres " and "Train de Vie."In 2001, Elmaleh married Anne Brochet, but subsequently got a divorce.They have a son Noe David Juda. Since then, he has lived with the dancer Aurélie Dupont.
His fame further increased with the success of his second one-man show, "La Vie Normale," and the film "
La Vérité si je mens ! 2 " (2000) in which he played the role of Dov, the seducer. The character of "Chouchou" in "La Vie Normale" was reproduced in thecomedy "Chouchou" (2002), directed by Merzak Allouache and also starringAlain Chabat ; the film drew large audiences.In contrast to his first two one-man shows, his "L’autre c’est moi"(2005) contains more improvisation and interaction with the public. In an interview, Gad Elmaleh said that this one-man show is more in the tradition of stand up.Fact|date=February 2007
In 2004, he starred in
Olé! withGérard Depardieu .In 2005, he starred François Pignon in "
La Doublure " (English title "The Valet"), byFrancis Veber .In 2006, he starred with
Audrey Tautou in "Hors de prix " (English title "Priceless"), by Pierre Salvadori.Elmaleh was awarded the "Chevalier des Arts et des lettres" medal by French culture minister Renaud DonneDieu de Vabres, in March 2006.
He was elected as "la personnalité la plus drôle de France" (The Funniest Person in France), beating out 49 other humorists, in January 2007.
He came back to the stage with "L'autre, c'est moi" in September 2006 in Canada (Montreal) and in the U.S. (for example, on Broadway, at the Beacon Theater in front of 3000 spectators); it was performed also in Morocco. Between April and August 2007 he is playing his successful show in France, Belgium, and Switzerland.
On July 15th 2007, Elmaleh premiered his latest show, "Papa est en haut", in
Montreal ,Canada as part of theJust for Laughs festival.Filmography
* "Hors de prix " with
Audrey Tautou - (2006) (English title: "Priceless")
* "La Doublure " with Alice Taglioni,Daniel Auteuil , Dany Boon,Virginie Ledoyen ,Kristin Scott Thomas - (2005) (English title: "The Valet")
* "Ole! " withGérard Depardieu - (2005)
* La Verite si Je Mens 2
* Chouchou with Alain ChabatExternal links
* [http://gad-elmaleh.info/ Gad Elmaleh]
* [http://www.gadelmaleh.com/ Official website]
* [http://membres.lycos.fr/gadelmalehwebsite/ Gad Elmaleh Website]
*imdb name|id=0255362
* [http://beurgeoisie.fr La Beurgeoisie] (in French)
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