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Francis Blanche

Francis Blanche

Actor, also writer · Died July 6, 1974, aged 52 · Paris, France

François Jean Blanche, known as "Francis Blanche" (20 July 1921 – 6 July 1974) was a French actor, singer, humorist and author. He was a very popular figure on stage, radio and in films, during the 1950s and 1960s. His two daughters, Barbara & Dominique, are artists with their studios in Eze. Blanche was born in an artistic family, mainly of stage actors—including his father Louis Blanche and his uncle, Emmanuel Blanche, who was a painter—. He completed his secondary schooling at fourteen, the youngest in France to do so at the time. In the 1940s and 1950s, Blanche was part of Robert Dhéry's theatrical company Les Branquignols, with whom he played in the film Ah! Les belles bacchantes, starring Robert Dhéry, Colette Brosset (Dhéry's then-wife), and Louis de Funès; directed by Jean Loubignac in 1954. Blanche teamed up with Pierre Dac to form a comic duo best remembered for Le Sâr Rabindranath Duval, a sketch about a phony and nonsensical Indian clairvoyant and guru (1957). They also created a popular and equally nonsensical radiophonic series, loosely based on a highly improbable espionage and conspiration plot, Malheur aux barbus, which was broadcast on Paris Inter in 213 episodes from 1951 to 1952. The same plot and characters were revived on Europe 1 in a series called Signé Furax, enjoying no less than 1,034 daily episodes between 1956 and 1960. Both broadcasts were phenomenal audience successes in the pre-television era. Blanche was also renowned for broadcasting phone pranks, in which he entertained listeners by making the most improbable situations sound plausible. He wrote poems, and the lyrics of 673 songs. On stage, he acted in Tartuffe and Néron and, in 1955, Chevalier du Ciel, an operetta by Luis Mariano at the Gaîté-Lyrique theatre. Blanche also enjoyed a successful cinematographic career, both as an actor and scriptwriter. He appeared as a hard-headed German colonel ("Obersturmführer Schulz") opposite Brigitte Bardot in Babette s'en va-t-en guerre (1959). He was one of the favourite actors of French filmmaker Georges Lautner, and played Maître Folace (a shady solicitor counselling a colourful gangster mob) in Les Tontons flingueurs (1963). Blanche also appeared in Boris Vassilief's Les Barbouzes (1964). He delighted in parodying classical music, adapting famous works such as Schubert's "Die Forelle" (The Trout) into a crazy and slightly risqué piece about a 16-year-old romantic girl obsessed with Schubert's song to the point of giving birth to a live trout while performing it on her piano. Similarly, he turned Beethoven's 5th Symphony into a lengthy and quite repetitive musical glorification of the clothes peg and its fictitious inventor, Jérémie-Victor Opdebec. Blanche died at the age of 52, from a heart attack with a background of untreated Type 1 diabetes. He is buried in Èze cemetery. Source: Article "Francis Blanche" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
July 20, 1921
Died
July 6, 1974 (aged 52)
From
Paris, France
Works as
Actor, also writer
Titles
22 on MovieCove · 120 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 38 days to Oct 27Up 3% in 30 days

What are Francis Blanche's films like?

Across their 17 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Bonds.

Genres

Comedy11 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 21st percentile
: browse their Comedy movies
Action4 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 72nd percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Action movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Morality
38%
Bonds
21%
Power
20%
Survival
8%
Self
6%
Society
4%
Ideas
4%
Deception9 titles, browse their movies with this themeGreed4 titles, browse their movies with this themeRomantic love2 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice2 titles, browse their movies with this themeClass2 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival2 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity2 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 17 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Wry: How sincerely it treats its story and characters, from ironic to earnest. Browse their wry movies.
Tone · Sincerity
ironicearnest

A split, not a type: Ironic 6 · Wry 3 · Earnest 8

Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 15 · Serious 0 · Dark 2

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 5 · Stylized 6 · Heightened 6

Gentle: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their gentle movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 10 · Charged 6 · Intense 1

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 12 · Shifting 5 · Whiplash 0

Funny: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their funny movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 1 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 13

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 6 · Even-paced 9 · Relentless 2

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 12 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 15 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 0

Roles they play

8 analyzed roles

Usually the Trickster: 2 of 8 analyzed roles.

Trickster
2 of 8
Mentor
2 of 8
Shadow
2 of 8
Hero
1 of 8
Ally
1 of 8
Show the 8 roles

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Joyful
10
Absurd
10
Tense
3
Romantic
3
Warm
3
Other
5

How their films linger

Fun13 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good11 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 2 with a twist

  • Happy11
  • Bittersweet4
  • Tragic1
  • Ambiguous1

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Francis Blanche's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 3 of their 22 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Francis Blanche's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

120 credits, 22 with a MovieCove page; 8 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Pierre Dac et Francis Blanche : Le Meilleur du Parti d'en Rire (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    as Lui-même

  • Signé Furax(1981)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all films

  • A Whale That Had a Toothache (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)

    as Francis

  • No Pockets in a Shroud (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)

    as Nathaël Grissom

  • Say it with Flowers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)

    as Gérard Rollain

  • France, Incorporated (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)

    as Pierre, the perverted financier

  • OK Patron (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)

    as Victor Hutin, Sophie's father

  • By the Blood of Others (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)

    as Doctor

  • La Dernière Bourrée à Paris (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    as Gaston Payrac

  • Le Solitaire (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    as Norbert

  • The Edifying and Joyous Story of Colinot(1973)

    as Wanderer

    Midcredits score: 7th percentile of all films

  • Racconti romani di una ex-novizia (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    as Pietro l'Aretino

  • I. You. They. (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    as Darbon, le galeriste

  • The Big Feast(1973)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films

  • I've Had It (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    as Mr. de Chatiez

  • The Terror with Cross-Eyes (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    as Commissioner Pigna

  • The Eroticist(1972)

    as padre Scirer

    Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films

  • Scandal Man (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    as Paluche

  • La Grande Maffia (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    as Modeste Miette

  • Il furto è l'anima del commercio!?... (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    as Sigfrid

  • Qu'est-ce qui fait courir les crocodiles ? (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    as Hector Grogenol

  • Les Jambes en l'air (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    as Hugon

  • Are You Engaged to a Greek Sailor or an Airline Pilot? (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    as Maurice Gombaud

  • The Great Java (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    as Auguste Kougloff / Augustin Colombani

  • Alice au pays des merveilles (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)

    as King of hearts

  • Ces messieurs de la gâchette (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)

    as Marco Lombardi

  • Adieu Berthe (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)

    as Léo Bertold

  • The Stud (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)

    as Tax collector Dupuis

  • Poussez pas grand-père dans les cactus (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    as Alphonse Ramier / Al Gregor

  • Un merveilleux parfum d'oseille (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    as Loïc de Kerfuntel

  • Aux frais de la princesse (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    as Achille

  • Erotissimo (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    as Le polyvalent

  • Le bourgeois gentil mec (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    as Spinosa

  • Les gros malins (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    as Francis Bertolde aka 'Le book'

  • Faites donc plaisir aux amis (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    as Maximiliano

  • The Big Wash (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)

    as Doctor Loupioc

  • Salut Berthe ! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)

    as Passerby with the pipe (uncredited)

  • The Men in the Family (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)

    as Strumberger

  • Rita the Field Marshal (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    as Captain Hans Vogel

  • Loose in the Trigger (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    as La Prudence

  • The Great Gadget (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    as Copec

  • Belle de Jour(1967)

    as Mr. Adolphe

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films

  • Le canard en fer blanc (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    as Le docteur Grego

  • The Oldest Profession(1967)

    as The Doctor (segment "Aujourd'hui")

    Midcredits score: 25th percentile of all films

  • Deux Romains en Gaule (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    as Le druide inventeur de la potion d'invisibilité

  • Order of the Daisy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    as L'inspecteur Maurice Leloup

  • The Big Grasshopper (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    as Gédéon

  • Les enquiquineurs (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)

    as Monsieur Achille Eloy

  • Les malabars sont au parfum (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)

    as Ivanov

  • The Sleeping Sentinel (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)

    as Constant

  • La tête du client(1965)

    as Mario l'enchanteur

    Midcredits score: 12th percentile of all films

  • Pas de caviar pour tante Olga (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)

    as Dufour

  • Le Bonheur conjugal (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)

    Show 1 episode · as Le patron du restaurant

  • The Real Bargain (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)

    as Paul Souflé

  • Les baratineurs (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)

    as Louis Dujardin

  • Les gorilles(1964)

    as Félix

    Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • The Great Spy Chase(1964)

    as Boris Vassiliev

    Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films

  • Chance at Love (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    as Adjutant (segment "Chance du guerrier, La")

  • The Big Scare (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    Actor

  • Les Pieds nickelés (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    as Commissaire Lenoir

  • Male Hunt(1964)

    as Nino Papatakis

    Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films

  • Champagne for Savages (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    as Francis

  • The World's Most Beautiful Swindlers(1964)

    as Mr. Humlaupt (segment "L'Homme qui vendit la tour Eiffel")

    Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all films

  • Clémentine chérie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    as Nuisance at the Miss ceremony (uncredited)

  • Requiem pour un caïd (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    as Émile aka 'le Boxeur'

  • Jaloux comme un tigre (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    as Chauffeur

  • Dandelions by the Roots(1964)

    as Absalon

    Midcredits score: 30th percentile of all films

  • Actualités télérévisées (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    as Presenter

  • The Black Tulip(1964)

    as Plantin

    Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all films

  • L'échelle (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    as Breton

  • Les Gros Bras (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    as Mr. Pédro Andromèze

  • Crooks in Clover(1963)

    as Maître Folace

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • Sweet and Sour (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    as Franz

  • Un drôle de paroissien(1963)

    as Chief Insp. Cucherat

    Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films

  • The Virgins (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    as Mr. De Brétevielle

  • People in Luck (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    as M. Bricheton (segment "Le Repas gastronomique")

  • The Abominable Man of Customs (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    as Arnakos

  • Who Stole the Body?(1963)

    as Édouard

    Midcredits score: 6th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Tartarin de Tarascon (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    Director · as Antoine Tartarin

  • The Hideout (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    as Edouard

  • Snobs! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    as Morloch

  • Accroche-toi, y'a du vent! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    as Capitano Fornace

  • The Seventh Juror(1962)

    as Le procureur général

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films

  • The Vendetta (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    as Bartoli

  • Hitch-Hike (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    as le douanier belge

  • Operation Gold Ingot (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    as Fellous

  • Romulus and the Sabines(1961)

    as Mezio

    Midcredits score: 8th percentile of all films

  • The Girl of a Thousand Months (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    as Commendator Borgioli

  • House of Sin (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    as Blanchin

  • Les Livreurs (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    as Félix

  • Long Live Henry IV... Long Live Love! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    as Prior

  • The Bear (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    as Chappuis

  • Little Girls and High Finance (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    as Bank manager

  • Le Olimpiadi dei mariti (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    Actor

  • We Like It Cold (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    as von Krussendorf

  • Love and the Frenchwoman(1960)

    as Me Marcerou, avocat et ami du couple (segment "Le Divorce")

    Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films

  • Le pillole di Ercole (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    as Augusto

  • Easy Come Easy Go (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    as Félix

  • Long Live the Duke! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    Actor

  • Some Like It... Cold (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    as William Foster Valmorin, American

  • Match contre la mort (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)

    as Mr. Pascal

  • The Green Mare (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)

    as Ferdinand Haudouin

  • Babette Goes to War(1959)

    as Schulz

    Midcredits score: 44th percentile of all films

  • Too Late to Love (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)

    as Camille, le patron du bistrot

  • The Indestructible (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)

    as Francis Blanchard

  • The Motorcycle Cops (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)

    as His Excellency Curacagua

  • Toto in Paris (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1958)

    as Il maggiordomo (uncredited)

  • The Little Professor (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1958)

    as General overseer

  • A Dog, A Mouse and a Sputnik (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1958)

    as Chazot

  • Anyone Can Kill Me (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1957)

    as La Bonbonne

  • La Polka des menottes (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1957)

    as un voisin

  • Honoré de Marseille (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1956)

    as Pasquale Marchetti

  • Life is beautiful (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1956)

    as un voisin

  • Ah! The Beautiful Priestesses of Bacchus(1954)

    Lyricist · as Garibaldo Trouchet, le ténor / Un musicien

    Midcredits score: 18th percentile of all films

  • Trust Me! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1954)

    Writer · as Nicolas

  • Midnight... Quai de Bercy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1953)

    as M. Boulay, l'épicier libidineux

  • Une fille à croquer(1951)

    Writer · as Gilles

    Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Ils ont vingt ans (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1950)

    as Michel Barbarin

  • The Sad Sack (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1950)

    as Jean du Bois d'Ombelles

  • Frédérica (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1942)

    as Ami de Gilbert

Career shape

Star power in the 96th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 120 titles from 1942 to 2020; peak year 1963.

Highest rated

Crooks in Clover (1963)

Midcredits 96th

Most popular right now

The Black Tulip (1964)

Film career

19422020

Peak 1963 · fewer prominent film roles lately. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.

  • 1954Screen debut· Peek-a-boo
  • 1963Career best· Crooks in Clover

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting118 of 120: 115 only acting, 3 with another role · typical Midcredits score32ndDirecting1 of 120: 0 only directing, 1 with another roleWriting4 of 120: 2 only writing, 2 with another role

120 titles, 3 with more than one role — acting and writing overlap on 2 of them.

By decade

1940s1 · acting1950s19 · 19 acting · 2 crew1960s72 · 72 acting · 1 crew1970s26 · 25 acting · 1 crew1980s1 · crew2020s1 · acting

Billing

usually 6th · top billed in 0% of 19 roles
5464

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30; the columns are the share of top-billed roles in each era, 5-year spans from the year on the label, merged until each holds at least 5 roles.

How do Francis Blanche's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 32nd percentile, the median of all 22; across their 17 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 33rd percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

33rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 17

Approval · how many liked their films

20thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 17

Reach · how many have seen their films

43rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 17

Midcredits score across 22 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up6
  • 50th to 74th1
  • 25th to 49th6
  • Below 25th9

Shape of the crowd

11 of their 22 titles are Mixed.

  • Universally Loved2
  • Universally Panned1
  • Crowd Pleaser5
  • Broadly Agreed3
  • Mixed11

Most divisive · actor, writer

Une fille à croquer (1951)

86th percentile spread · 50% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor

Crooks in Clover (1963)

Midcredits 96th · 83% liked

Reviewers score the acting 72/100 in their films, across 12 reviewed titles; fans 80, detractors 53. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Francis Blanche work with?

People who share at least 2 of Francis Blanche's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Georges Lautner shares the most, 4.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers

Mixed roles