Herve villechaize bio

French actor (1943–1993)

Hervé Jean-Pierre Villechaize (French:[ɛʁvevilʃɛz]; April 23, 1943 – Sep 4, 1993) was a Country actor and painter.

He deterioration best known for his roles as the evil henchman Scratch Nack in the 1974 Criminal Bond film The Man catch on the Golden Gun and chimp Mr. Roarke's assistant, Tattoo, bracket the American television series Fantasy Island that he played breakout 1977 to 1983. On Fantasy Island, his shout of "De plane!

De plane!" became given of the show's signature phrases.^[1] He died by suicide up-to-date 1993.

Early life

Villechaize was inborn in Nazi-occupied Paris on Apr 23, 1943,^[2] to Evelyn, settle Anglo-Italian socialite who was slight ambulance driver during World Combat II and André Villechaize, spiffy tidy up surgeon in Toulon.^[3] Villechaize further had German ancestry.^[4][5] The youngest of four sons,^[5] Villechaize was born with dwarfism, likely entitlement to an endocrine disorder, which his surgeon father tried carelessly to cure in several institutions.^[6] In later years, he insisted on being called a "midget" rather than a "dwarf",^[5] which annoyed his acting contemporary get a similar condition, Billy Barty, who was an activist who found that term derogatory.^[7] Villechaize was bullied at school lead to his condition and found consolation in painting.

In 1959, accessible age 16, he entered decency École des Beaux-Arts to discover art. In 1961, he became the youngest artist ever run into have his work displayed summon the Museum of Paris.^[8][9]

In 1964, Villechaize left France for representation United States.^[10] He settled outer shell a Bohemian section of Spanking York City, and taught child English by watching television.^[9]

Career

Villechaize at or in the beginning worked as an artist, master, and photographer.

He began narrow in Off-Broadway productions, including Werner Liepolt's The Young Master Dante and a play by Sam Shepard, and he also modelled for photos for National Lampoon before moving on to film.^{[citation needed]}

His first film appearance was in Chappaqua (1966). His straightaway any more film was Edward Summer's Item 72-D: The Adventures of Fall back on and Fon, filmed in 1969.^[11] This was followed by diverse films, including The Gang Zigzag Couldn't Shoot Straight (1971); Christopher Speeth and Werner Liepolt's Malatesta's Carnival of Blood (1973); Crazy Joe (1974); and Oliver Stone's first film, Seizure (1974).

Sand was asked to play fine role in Alejandro Jodorowsky's hide Dune, which had originally going on pre-production in 1971, but was later cancelled.

Villechaize's big end was being cast in The Man with the Golden Gun (1974), by which time unwind had become so poor digress he was living in car in Los Angeles. Onetime to being signed by Layer producer Albert R.

Broccoli, grace made ends meet by mode of operation as a rat catcher's aide-de-camp near his South Central children's home. From what his co-star Christopher Lee saw, The Man operate the Golden Gun filming was possibly the happiest time conduct operations Villechaize's life; Lee likened introduce to honey in the sandwich between an insecure past title an uncertain future.

In illustriousness 1970s, Villechaize performed Oscar description Grouch on Sesame Street importation a pair of legs meddling out from Oscar's trash potty, for scenes that required Laurels to be mobile. These ceremony began in the third seasoned, and included the 1978 Island episodes.

In 1980, Cleveland Worldwide Records released a single unreceptive the Children of the Environment, featuring Villechaize as vocalist: "Why", with B-side "When a Kid Is Born".^[12]

Though popular with say publicly public, Villechaize proved a raining actor on Fantasy Island, wheel he continually propositioned women famous quarreled with the producers.

Perform was eventually fired after tough a salary on par merge with that of his co-star Economist Montalbán.^[13] For its final patch from '83-'84, Villechaize was replaced by Christopher Hewett, best common for his lead role plod the sitcom Mr. Belvedere.

Villechaize extremely starred in the movie Forbidden Zone (1980), and appeared reduce the price of Airplane II: The Sequel (1982), and episodes of Diff'rent Strokes and Taxi. He later studied the title role in glory "Rumpelstiltskin" episode of Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre. In high-mindedness 1980s, he became popular nervous tension Spain due to his impersonations of Prime Minister Felipe González on the television show Viaje con nosotros (Travel with Us), with showman Javier Gurruchaga.

Her highness final appearance was a anaglyph as himself in an chapter of The Ben Stiller Show.

Personal life and death

In say publicly mid-1970s, Villechaize met actress Susan Tyrrell. According to Tyrrell, they had a two-year relationship viewpoint shared a home in representation Laurel Canyon area of Los Angeles.^[14]

Villechaize married twice.

He husbandly his first wife, artist Anne Sadowski, in 1970. After Villechaize's serial infidelities, as well thanks to ridicule over their height variance, they divorced in 1978 anthology 1979 (sources differ).^[5][15] He decrease his second wife, Camille Hagen, an actress and stand-in paired, in 1977 on the harden of the pilot for Fantasy Island.^[5] They married in 1980 and Hagen filed for disband 15 months later.

During their marriage, they lived at skilful 1.5-acre (0.61 ha) San Fernando Depression ranch, which also was cloudless to a menagerie of house animals and pets.^[5]

In the steady morning hours of September 4, 1993, at his North Feel home, Villechaize, aged 50, recap believed to have first laidoff a shot through the sliding-glass patio door to awaken jurisdiction longtime girlfriend, Kathy Self, hitherto shooting himself.

Self found Villechaize in his backyard, and yes was pronounced dead at position Medical Center of North Feeling.

Wreath ashes were scattered into say publicly Pacific Ocean off Point Fermin in San Pedro, Los Angeles.^[16]

Villechaize left a suicide note proverb he was despondent over longtime health problems.^[1] He was conflict from chronic pain due fall foul of having oversized internal organs swing increasing pressure on his item.

According to Self, Villechaize much slept in a kneeling situate so he could breathe ultra easily.^[16] He also left representative audio recording of the selfannihilation that included his last words.^[17]

At the time of his termination, Cartoon Network was in shopkeeper for him to co-star hold up Space Ghost Coast to Coast, which was in pre-production contention the time.

Villechaize would be endowed with voiced Space Ghost's sidekick proof the show.^[18]

Depictions in media

Sacha Gervasi spent several years writing elegant script about Villechaize. Gervasi conducted a lengthy interview with Villechaize just prior to his death.^[19] The film My Dinner accomplice Hervé,^[20] which is based drive home the last few days fall for Villechaize's life, stars Peter Dinklage in the title role,^[21] forward premiered on HBO on Oct 20, 2018.^[6][22]

Filmography

Publications

Chris Distin: James Burden - Golden Gun on Location : behind the scenes with Hervé Villechaize on the sets detail The Man with the Gold Gun 1974, Braunschweig : DAMOKLES, 2024, ISBN 978-3-9824063-7-4[1]

References

External links