Corinne Calvet

Corinne Calvet
File:Corinne Calvet Epoca 1953.jpg Calvet on the August 1953 cover of Epoca
Born	Corinne Dibos (1925-04-30)April 30, 1925 Paris, France
Died	Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1945–82
Spouse(s)	John Bromfield (m. 1948–54)(divorced) Jeffrey Stone (m. 1955–60)(divorced) 1 child Robert J. Wirt (m. 1968–71)(filed for divorce)
Children	Robin Stone (b. 1956)

Corinne Calvet (April 30, 1925 – June 23, 2001), born Corinne Dibos, was a French actress who appeared mostly in American films.

Early life

Calvet was born in Paris. Her mother was a scientist who played a part in the development of Pyrex glass. She studied criminal law at the Sorbonne.

Acting career

Calvet made her debut in French radio, stage plays and cinema in the 1940s before being brought to Hollywood in the 1940s by producer Hal B. Wallis. He cast her in Rope of Sand (1949) opposite Burt Lancaster and Paul Henreid.

In the 1950s, Calvet appeared in a string of films, usually playing French characters, opposite such leading men as Danny Kaye (On the Riviera), Joseph Cotten (Peking Express), Dan Dailey (When Willie Comes Marching Home), James Cagney (What Price Glory?), James Stewart (The Far Country), Alan Ladd (Thunder in the East), Tony Curtis (So This Is Paris) and twice with Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis (My Friend Irma Goes West and Sailor Beware).

She made a rare television appearance on the Colgate Comedy Hour with Donald O'Connor on February 3, 1952, televised nationwide by NBC.

Upset with her treatment in Hollywood, in 1960 Calvet "decided to return to France to make her headquarters."

She continued to act in Italian and French productions as well as making appearances on American television series (Hart to Hart and General Hospital), with occasional roles in films. Her last film was The Sword and the Sorcerer in 1982.

In her memoir, entitled Has Corinne Been a Good Girl? (1983), she stated that the roles she played for Hollywood studios never challenged her acting ability. In 1958, referring to being cast as a French temptress, she told an interviewer, "If I had come to Hollywood as a dramatic actress, I never would have been Corinne Calvet, and you never would have been sitting here talking to me."

Personal life

Calvet was married three times. Her first marriage was to actor John Bromfield (1948–17 March 1954), who had co-starred with her in Rope of Sand and who, she claimed had been ordered to marry her by his studio. She then married Jeffrey Stone (1955–1960) and Robert J. Wirt (1968 – October 1971). All three marriages ended in divorce.

In 1952, Calvet sued actress Zsa Zsa Gabor for $1 million, accusing her of slander after Gabor was quoted as saying that Calvet was not really French, but was "a cockney English girl who coldn't even speak French a few years ago." An obituary noted: "Gabor countered that Calvet's suit was without merit. The court apparently agreed because the legal wrangle quickly disappeared from the media."

Death

Calvet died June 23, 2001, in Los Angeles of a cerebral hemorrhage. She was survived by a son, Michael.

Selected filmography

• La Part de l'ombre (1945)
• We Are Not Married (1946)
• Rope of Sand (1949)
• My Friend Irma Goes West (1950)
• When Willie Comes Marching Home (1950)
• On the Riviera (1951)
• Peking Express (1951)
• Quebec (1951)
• Sailor Beware (1952)
• What Price Glory? (1952)
• Thunder in the East (1952)
• Flight to Tangier (1953)
• The Far Country (1954)
• One Step to Eternity (1954)
• So This Is Paris (1955)
• Plunderers of Painted Flats (1959)
• Bluebeard's Ten Honeymoons (1960)
• Hemingway's Adventures of a Young Man (1962)
• Apache Uprising (1965)
• The Phantom of Hollywood (1974)
• Too Hot to Handle (1977)
• The French Atlantic Affair (1979)
• Dr. Heckyl and Mr. Hype (1980)
• The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982)

Radio appearances

Year	Program	Episode/source
1953	Broadway Playhouse	Candle Light

Tributes

In her collection "Ariege", fashion designer Marcela Calvet named one of her most sought-after handbags "Corinne", in her honor.

External links

• Corinne Calvet at the Internet Movie Database
• Corinne Calvet at AllMovie
• Corinne Calvet at the TCM Movie Database
• Publicity still, Le Petit Journal (Montreal), Sept., 1949.
• The Private Life and Times of Corinne Calvet
• Corinne Calvet Tribute Slide Show