Sim

Sim (born Simon Jacques Eugène Berryer; 21 July 1926 – 6 September 2009) was a French comedian, actor and writer. He was part of the team on Les Grosses Têtes, a radio and TV programme. He also played the part of Geriatrix in the films Asterix and Obelix vs Caesar and Astérix at the Olympic Games.

Biography Simon Jacques Eugène was born on 21 July 1926 to engineer Henri Berryer and his wife Marie-Thérèse (née Bonnemazou). At the time of his birth, Henri was an electrician for the director Abel Gance and grip on the film Napoléon.

Childhood The family lived in a small flat in the Rue du Fer-à-Moulin, a cinema district in the 5th arrondissement of Paris, where Simon spent the most part of his earliest years at flats 26, then 28. Very early on, his Russian uncle working at Synchro-Standard took Berryer to see the first talking pictures, which he would remember all his life. (later L'Olympic, then La Fabrique).

Adolescence At the age of eleven, Barryer founded a comedy group called "Sim-Art". (age fourteen, according to other sources The family moved from Nantes to Ancenis en 1942 and reopened the cinema. Sim continued his studies at the Joubert d'Ancenis lycée and worked as projectionist in the family business.

Theatre In 1946, the Berryer family stopped working at the Ancenis The Berryer parents returned to Ancenis but Sim – now married – stayed in Rennes as a projectionist at Le Royal. This venue also staged musical performances, so Sim saw performances from Edith Piaf, Yves Montand, Henri Salvador, Maurice Chevalier, among others. He practiced his comedy, alone, after the performances. He won a contract as a humorous singer in a ballroom. He was spotted by Étienne Perrin, with whom he performed a comic clown act Etty et Balta. in a Guy Lux production.

In the 1970s he was part of many televised sketch shows. He also performed comic sketches and songs with humourist Édouard Caillau on RTBF's Chansons à la carte. In France, he was a regular performer in short comic sketches, often in costume, on Guy Lux's programmes.

The 1970s saw his best cinema work. Sim also took part in the radio (and later television) programme Les Grosses Têtes, from its start in 1977, and was a regular panellist on the television game show L'Académie des neuf.

He took part in directing the television series Louis la Brocante, in which he played the role of Théodore in many episodes, as well as other roles.

Death Sim died of a pulmonary embolism on 6 September 2009, aged 83, at the Bonnet community hospital in Fréjus, Var His wife Marie-Claude and daughter Laurence were accompanied by many famous performers, including Victor Lanoux, Jacques Balutin, Évelyne Buyle, Philippe Bouvard and Pierre Sisser. The celebrant was Father Jérôme Renard. He was cremated at Vidauban (Var) and his ashes scattered in the crematorium's garden of remembrance.

Filmography Year Title Role Notes1958 Les gaités de l'escadrille 1969 A Golden Widow Il Vecchio - un tueur sur le retour 1970 Elle boit pas, elle fume pas, elle drague pas, mais... elle cause ! Phalempin 1971 The Married Couple of the Year Two Lucas - le compatible de Gosselin 1971 La grande maffia... Balempier, le chef de service 1973 La brigade en folie Commissaire Grospèze 1974 La grande nouba Alexandre Ladislas Ladretsky, le pianiste / Le poissonnier 1976 Andréa Mehmet 1977 Le roi des bricoleurs Malju 1977 Drôles de zèbres Napoléon Simfrid / La baronne de la Tronchembiais 1980 Sacrés gendarmes Le gendarme légionnaire 1980 Touch' pas à mon biniou Gaëtan 1984 Pinot simple flic Vénus, le photographe 1990 The Voice of the Moon Flute player 1999 Asterix & Obelix Take On Caesar Geriatrix 2008 Asterix at the Olympic Games