Louis Jourdan was born Louis Robert Gendre in Marseille, France to Yvonne (née Jourdan) and hotel owner Henry Gendre. He was educated in France, Britain, and Turkey. He trained as an actor with
René Simon at the École Dramatique. He debuted on screen in 1939, going on to play cultivated, polished, dashing lead roles in a number of French romantic comedies and dramas.
After his father, the manager of the Cannes Grand Hôtel, was arrested by the Gestapo during World War II, Louis and his two brothers (
Pierre Jourdan and
Robert Gendre, both of whom became film directors) joined the French underground; his film career came to a halt when he refused to act in Nazi propaganda films.
In 1948,
David O. Selznick invited him to Hollywood to appear in
The Paradine Case (1947); he remained in the USA and went on to star in a number of Hollywood films. After 1953, he appeared in international productions and, in 1958, appeared in
Gigi (1958), his best-known film by American audiences. He also made numerous appearances on American television.
Jourdan died at his home in Beverly Hills, California in 2015, at age 93.
Year of the Comet(1992)as Philippe
The Return of Swamp Thing(1989)as Dr. Anton Arcane
Counterforce(1988)as Mohumar Kassar
Grand Larceny(1987)as Charles Grand
Beverly Hills Madam(1986)as Douglas Corbin
The Curtain Rises(1938)
Octopussy(1983)
Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical Treasure(2008)
That's Entertainment! III(1994)
Crônica de um Industrial(1978)
That's Entertainment!(1974)
The 3 Tenors in Concert 1994(1994)as Self - Audience
Àngel Casas Show(1984)as Self - Guest
Grace Kelly: The American Princess(1987)as Self (co-star)
Hollywood So French!(2023)as Self
La galerie France 5(2012)as Dracula
Nikita Khrushchev - The Red Tsar(2017)as Self
La Continental: Le mystère Greven(2017)as Pierre Rougemont
