Legendary actor Alain Delon passed away on August 18 local time, prompting an outpouring of condolences from all sectors of French society. As for his final resting place, the government of the Loire province, where the small town of Doué-la-Fontaine is located, has in principle agreed to break the French regulation that prohibits individuals from being buried on their own property. This decision comes after Delon expressed multiple times during his life his wish to be buried in the garden of his home in Doué, alongside the more than 50 dogs he had cared for over half a century. Furthermore, various anecdotes from his life have recently resurfaced, with the French newspaper *Libération* specifically recalling five lesser-known stories about him.
Alain Delon cared for over 50 dogs, which were buried in the garden of his home in Doué after they passed away.
Driving the French President Out in Jealous Rage
In May 1974, France held a presidential election, with former Minister of Economy Valéry Giscard d'Estaing successfully winning. Yet just a few months later, this newly elected president found himself turned away at the door by Alain Delon.
This incident involved Mireille Darc, a French actress known for her role in Godard's classic *Weekend*. She fell in love with Delon while working together on the film *Jeff* in 1968. The couple lived together for 15 years, but one day in 1974, when Delon returned home, he found the new French president enjoying tea with his girlfriend uninvited.
Mireille Darc and Alain Delon in the film *Jeff*
“He was madly in love with Mireille. One day when I returned home, as soon as I opened the door, he walked out and passed right by me...” Delon recalled on a television program in 2021. Furthermore, in the memoir published by his eldest son, Anthony Delon, in 2022, he recounts how Mireille herself told his father about the moment: “When he caught them, his heart was pierced. He said, ‘Mr. President, hello, I only host those who are invited to my home, so I'll ask you to leave immediately.’”
Anthony Delon jokingly noted in his book, “I don’t think any sitting president has ever been sent away like that.” He also believed that this “president known for his charm” must have quickly exited his father's apartment, filled with jealousy. “My father wouldn’t care about your status. Whether you’re the president or a baker, it’s all the same to him.” However, Anthony added that his father later told him that if a similar situation occurred, it would perhaps only be an exception if the other party was President de Gaulle. “Of course, such a thing wouldn’t happen to General de Gaulle in the first place,” Alain Delon told his son, who had always admired de Gaulle.
Alain Delon and Comics
Since the release of *Rocco and His Brothers* in Japan in 1960, Alain Delon has been beloved by Japanese audiences to the extent that he openly acknowledged on a television program: for the Japanese, he is “like a deity descending from heaven.”
The character inspiration for Ryōichi Ikegami's manga *Crying Killer* comes from Alain Delon.
In 1986, Japanese manga artist Ryōichi Ikegami began creating the manga *Crying Killer*, with character inspiration drawn from Alain Delon. During the activities for the 50th Angoulême International Comics Festival in France in 2023, Ikegami expressed his immense pride to visit the land that nurtured Alain Delon, having watched numerous French films in his youth.
Alain Delon in *The Samurai*.
Moreover, Japanese manga artist Takemiya Keiko has stated that he greatly admires Alain Delon’s role in *The Samurai*, which led him to hesitate for a long time on whether to model the protagonist “Cobra” in his classic manga *Cobra* after Delon’s image. However, Takemiya ultimately changed his mind and instead took inspiration from another French star, Jean-Paul Belmondo.
Alain Delon's Highest-Grossing Film in France
Alain Delon left behind a number of world-famous films, including *Rocco and His Brothers*, *The Sicilian Clan*, *Borsalino*, *The Leopard*, *The Samurai*, and *Our Story*, among others. Notably, *Our Story* earned him the Best Actor award at the 1985 César Awards, his only win in this category.
Alain Delon in *Asterix & Obelix: Mission Cleopatra*.
However, when it comes to Alain Delon's highest-grossing film in France, it is actually the comedy *Asterix & Obelix: Mission Cleopatra* released in 2008. He plays Julius Caesar, portraying a self-important and ludicrous version of the character, wearing a long robe and a laurel wreath. Despite the film’s poor reviews, box office data shows that it attracted 6.7 million viewers in 2008, placing it at the top of all films he has appeared in. The second-highest is *The Sicilian Clan*, which drew 4.7 million viewers and was released in 1970.
A Road Named After Alain Delon
This small road, located in the new district of Cholet in the Maine-et-Loire department, was named after him four years ago. The Alain Delon Street stretches 220 meters and is adjacent to streets named after Romy Schneider, Jean Gabin, Lino Ventura, and Jean-Pierre Melville. In 2020, the Cholet city council decided to name some streets after “filmmakers who fought against Nazism through art,” but the choice to name one after Alain Delon sparked some controversy. Unlike other honorees, Alain Delon was still alive at the time.
Nonetheless, Cholet Mayor Gilles Bourdouleix ultimately dismissed the objections, stating, “There’s nothing wrong with naming a street after a living person.” He emphasized that choosing Alain Delon’s name was a tribute to his role in the WWII film *Paris brûle-t-il?*.
Alain Delon in *Paris brûle-t-il?*.
Alain Delon Chose the Title for His Own Obituary
In 2009, Alain Delon revealed in an interview with *Le Parisien* that he had already decided what the headline of his obituary should say on the day he passed away.
“On that day, I can imagine the front page of the newspaper featuring a large photo of me, and the headline reading: ‘The Samurai is Dead.’” He was clearly not just speaking off the cuff, for in 2020, during another magazine interview, he revisited the topic. Previously, at a press conference with over 50 journalists present, Delon posed a question: “If I were to die tomorrow, what headline would you use?” The reporters unanimously replied: “The Samurai is Dead.” “Then I told them, ‘Great, we'll keep it that way.’”
In the tribute section commemorating Alain Delon, *Le Parisien* did not use *The Samurai* (Le samouraï), but rather wrote “Farewell to the Legend” in one article’s title, paying homage to the “last samurai” (dernier samouraï). The term "samouraï" in French translates to the same as it does in Japanese: 侍 (samurai).