Captain of your heart (Image via CCFC/Titanus)
Alain Delon, the French looker who became an international superstar via 1960's Purple Noon and went on to become one of the enduring greats of international cinema, died August 18, 2024, at 88.
Delon had been a controversial figure in his later years. In 2019, an honorary Palme d'Or at Cannes was protested for his demonstrably homophobic, racist and misogynistic words and actions. He accepted it — his final major public appearance — by saying it was more posthumous than anything.
He was referring to his rapidly deteriorating health. A 2019 stroke and 2022 cancer diagnosis had left him desiring assisted suicide, something he told one of his sons and that became a worldwide headline. His life was like that — drama, drama, drama.
@boyculturedotcom Alain Delon, problematic French film god, has died at 88. If you never saw his work, start with “Purple Noon” (1960). Based on “The Talented Mr. Ripley,” it is still so hot it saltburns. #alaindelon #shirtless #muscles #beefcake #physique #movies #boyculture #madonna #beautifulkiller #gr8erdays ♬ Beautiful Killer - Madonna
Amid the tabloid headlines — even as he was on his deathbed, his three surviving children (he never acknowledged the one who died in 2023) were squabbling publicly — he turned in many great and interesting performances and managed to remain an enigma.
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French President Macron summed him up as:
Wistful, popular, secretive, he was more than a star: a French monument.
