Nathalie Delon

Nathalie Delon (born Francine Canovas, also known as Nathalie Barthélémy; 1 August 194121 January 2021) was a French actress, model, film director and writer. In the 1960s, Nathalie was regarded as one of the most beautiful women in the world and in the 1970s, she was considered a French sex symbol. She is well known for her first acting role, appearing opposite her husband, actor Alain Delon, in the neo-noir film Le Samouraï directed by Jean-Pierre Melville. She appeared in 30 films and directed two others.

Early life Francine Canovas was born on 1 August 1941 in Oujda, then under the French Protectorate in Morocco, to a French family of Spanish origin. She was the daughter of Louis Canovas (1915–2003), pied-noir of Oran (Algeria), manager of a transport company in Morocco, who abandoned the family when she was 8 months old in 1942 and Antoinette Rodriguez, who was from Melilla. Nathalie had a sister, Louisette, and a brother.

Personal life In 1957, Nathalie married a conscript from the north of France, Guy Barthélémy, who later became the signing officer for Omnium Marocain d'Assurance. They lived in Morocco and had a daughter named Nathalie Barthélémy. The marriage ended in 1960 and the following year she moved to Paris. Their divorce was granted in July 1964.

In August 1962, Nathalie met French actor Alain Delon at New Jimmy's, a Paris nightclub, and they began a secret relationship that night that lasted one year. In May 1963, Nathalie accompanied Delon to the shoot of his new film La Tulipe Noire. The couple became engaged in April 1964 and on 13 August 1964, they married in Loir-et-Cher. Their son, Anthony Delon, was born on 30 September 1964, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. They were one of the most glamorous and talked-about couples of the 1960s. In June 1968, Nathalie and Delon separated. The couple later divorced on 14 February 1969. They worked together on two films: Le Samouraï, whilst they were married, and Doucement les Basses after their divorce.

During the 1960s and 1970s she dated Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Bobby Keys, Marc Porel, Eddie Fisher, Renaud Verley, Louis Malle, and Franco Nero, among others. Her greatest love was Chris Blackwell, whom she was with for 15 years (1978–1993).

Career During the 1960s, Nathalie Delon was a model. She was photographed by top French and foreign photographers for famous magazines such as Vogue.

In 1967, Nathalie became a film actress, starring opposite her husband in the film Le Samouraï by Jean-Pierre Melville, which became a hit.

In addition to acting in 30 films during her career, she directed two: one was the story—also written by Delon—of a mother whose son dies in surgery, in 1982, and the other was Sweet Lies in 1988.

Later life In 2006, Delon published a memoir, Pleure pas, c'est pas grave (Don't cry, it isn't serious). Le Figaro described it as an account of "her darker period, her marriage to Delon, her descent into hell with drugs. But still full of life, she also recounts the exceptional encounters she has had with people who made her laugh and who make us laugh too. Delightful and entertaining anecdotes".

Nathalie Delon died at the age of 79 in Paris on 21 January 2021 from pancreatic cancer.

Filmography

Television

Publications Novel

Memoir