Paul Bonifas

Paul Bonifas (3 June 1902 – 9 November 1975) was a French actor born in Paris. In the 1920s, while employed by the French customs service, he studied acting at the Conservatoire de Paris in his spare time. He graduated with the first prize in comedy, which earned him a position at the Odéon Theatre in 1933, followed by a place at the Comédie-Française in 1938.

Bonifas made his film debut in 1935 in a version of Dostoyevsky's *Crime and Punishment*, directed by Pierre Chenal. During World War II, he served as a lieutenant in the artillery, was seriously wounded, and evacuated from Dunkirk with his unit. He later joined the Free French in London and worked for Radio Londres, broadcasting to occupied France.

In 1942, he appeared in the film *The Foreman Went to France*. In 1943, he founded "The Molière Players," a troupe that performed mainly Molière plays in London theatres, regional towns, and French army barracks. The group performed at the Comedy Theatre in London in 1943 and 1944, staging works such as *L'Anglais Tel Qu'on Le Parle*, *Le Malade Imaginaire*, *Gringoire*, *Le Misanthrope et L'Auvergnat*, *Les Femmes Savantes*, *Le Paquebot Tenacity*, *La Testament Du Pere Leleu*, and *L'Extra*. The company included actors André Frère, Georges Rex, Suzette Marquis, Elma Soiron, and Paul Clarus.

In 1944, "The Molière Players" appeared in the short film *Aventure malgache*, directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The film was written by and based on the experiences of Jules François Clermont, an actor in Bonifas' troupe who performed under the name Paul Clarus. Clermont had operated an illegal radio station, *Madagascar Libre*, on the island of Madagascar while it was under Vichy control.

Bonifas later appeared in several British films, including *Two Fathers* with Bernard Miles, directed by Anthony Asquith, and had minor roles in the musicals *Heaven Is Round the Corner* and *Champagne Charlie*, the action-adventure film *The Man from Morocco*, the comedy-drama *Johnny Frenchman*, and the horror film *Dead of Night*.

Returning to France in 1946, Bonifas resumed his theatrical career, focusing primarily on comedy but also taking on dramatic roles. His later film appearances included roles in *Trapeze* (1956), *The Hunchback of Notre Dame* (1956), *Fanny* (1961), *Charade* (1963), *Greed in the Sun* (1964), *The Train* (1964), *Is Paris Burning?* (1966), *Triple Cross* (1966), and *The Return of the Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe* (1974).

Paul Bonifas died on 9 November 1975 in Vernouillet, Yvelines, France.