As the release of the book “Le Splendid par le Splendid” approaches for the 50th anniversary of the collective, Thierry Lhermitte spoke to “Parisien” about their silence after the disappearance of Michel Blanc.
“We didn’t want to. We are not forced to share our pain. I don’t feel any obligation of any kind, especially in the heat of the moment,” explained the actor. A frank and modest testimony from a founding member of the legendary troupe of French cinema and theater.
Thierry Lhermitte also spoke about the book, a collection of photos and texts tracing the history of the troupe. “At first I only read what I had written to check the bullshit. The day Michel died, I didn’t sleep, I read everything he had written, it shocked me,” he confided with emotion. This moment of reading allowed him to rediscover his friend’s writings and to draw a form of comfort from them.
“And then I read what everyone had done and it was so cool. (…) I found the texts so warm,” continued Thierry Lhermitte, who is preparing to celebrate his 72nd birthday on November 24. For him, this book is above all “love letters that we write to each other”, a poignant testimony to the affection that unites the members of Splendid.
However, the actor expresses a regret: that Michel Blanc perhaps did not have the time to discover all these marks of affection. “What I said to Michel in it was recorded a month before his death, I was happy at the idea of him discovering it, but he must not have had the time to read it. The confirmation was three days before his disappearance. Has he read everything? I don’t know,” added Thierry Lhermitte, visibly touched by the loss of his lifelong friend.
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