The most astonishing thing about this young woman's career is that after reaching the highest peaks of Hollywood cinema, her name fell into oblivion. Who remembers her? Who remembers an actress called Capucine?
Germaine Hélène Irène Lefebvre was not born in Saumur, but in Saint-Raphaël in the Var, on January 6, 1928. We do not know precisely why we found her a few years later in Saumur. It was probably for professional reasons that the Lefebvre family settled on rue Gauthiot-Lamy in Saint-Lambert-des-Levées. Mr. Lefebvre is a workshop manager at the Dechosal factory which manufactures autoclaves for hospitals.
Little Germaine, nicknamed “Nénette”, first attended Saint-André college. She has a brother, Jean, who goes to industrial school, to the State High School. Living next to the Rouen road, she witnessed the arrival of the German army and the episode of the Cadets. During the Occupation, she continued her studies at the girls' high school, today the Yolande d'Anjou college. Then, upon the Liberation, she went to Paris to study Fine Arts because she drew very well. There, we guess that her great beauty makes her stand out. She became a model under the name “Capucine” for the fashion houses Givenchy, Dior, Fath and Balmain and the magazines Elle and Vogue. In 1947, she married French actor Pierre Trabaud, but their union lasted only three years. It was the time when she met another beginner: Audrey Hepburn.
It was in the United States that she began her career as a film actress. It is said that John Wayne gasped when he saw her in an elegant Manhattan restaurant. He invited him to test in Hollywood for his next film, Rio Bravo. Unfortunately, Capucine did not speak fluent enough English for the role which ultimately fell to Angie Dickinson.
In Hollywood, Capucine began an impressive career. She represents the archetype of the Frenchwoman for American cinema in the 1960s. She won the Golden Globes in 1961 as an actress in a musical film for the Farewell Ball by Charles Vidor and George Cukor.
-She plays in 36 films among which we will only mention a few titles:
– 1960 – The Great Samwith John Wayne and Stewart Granger
– 1962 – Walk on the Wild Sidewith Jane Fonda and Barbara Stanwyck
– 1963 – The Pink Pantherwith Peter Sellers
– 1965 – Jackpotwith Charlotte Rampling and Richard Burton
– 1966 – What’s New Pussycatwith Peter Sellers, Romy Schneider and Peter O'Toole
– 1967 – The Ogresseswith Claudia Cardinale, Raquel Welch and Monica Vitti
– 1969 – Fellini Satyriconwith Martin Potter and Hiram Keller
– 1971 – Red Sunwith Alain Delon, Charles Bronson and Ursula Andress
– 1975 – L’Incorrigiblewith Jean-Paul Belmondo
She returned to Europe at the end of the 1960s where she continued her career, filming in France, Germany and Italy, while making a few trips to the United States to participate in television series. The most notable film of this period is undoubtedly the Satyricon by Federico Fellini.
Depressed, on March 17, 1990, Capucine committed suicide by throwing herself from the eighth floor of the apartment she occupied in Lausanne, Switzerland. On the Internet, you can see several television interviews with Capucine: Capucine remembers Hollywood (1984)archives of the RTS ; Capucine-Interview for Antonella (6-9-1977) television interview with Philippe Bouvard.
Bibliography:
– HOFMANN Blaise, Capucine, Editions Zoé, 1225 Chêne-Bourg, Switzerland, 2015
– AUGEREAU Pierre-Louis, A thought for Capucine, article in Courrier de l’Ouest, December 31, 2011
– AUGEREAU Pierre-Louis, Capucine in black and white, article in Courrier de l’Ouest, January 22, 2012
