Meet Marcel Marceau
At age 15 he fled from Strasbourg and joined the anti-nazi resistence forces; several years later he became one of the best known mimes in the world
Marceau was born in Strasbourg, France, and when at the age of 15 was forced to flee with his family, following France's defeat in World War II. In 1942 he and his brother joined the anti-Nazi resistance movement, where he helped fake documents and saving Jews from being sent to concentration camps. He later enlisted in the Free French Forces under Charles de Gaulle, where he served as a liaison officer. His father, a butcher, was arrested by the Gestapo and killed in Auschwitz
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Marceau was influenced by Charlie Chaplin's movies, which got him interested in acting. After the war, he enrolled in the School of Dramatic Art, where his unique talent was quickly noticed. Marceau was invited to join Jean-Louis Barrault's troupe, where he acted in "Batiste" his performance garnered much praise, and encouraged him to embark on his first mimodrama, "Praxitele and the Golden Fish".
In 1947 Marceau created "Bip the Clown", a symbol of the fragility of life in a striped pullover and a battered, beflowered silk opera hat. He was described as a genius, and an unmatched mime: "He accomplishes in less than two minutes what most novelists cannot do in volumes", said one of the critics reviewing his famous "Youth, Maturity, Old Age and Death".
Marceau received the Deburau Prize for the art of Mime, and shortly after established his own troupe: "Compagnie de Mime Marcel Marceau", the only company of pantomime in the world at the time. In 1978 he opened an international school in Paris, "Ecole Internationale de Mime", and in 1996 started a foundation to promote the art of Mime in the US.
Marceau received many awards and honors in both France and Germany, and honorary doctorates from several American universities. Since 1990, every March 18th is recognized as Marcel Marceau day in New York, and he has also agreed to serve as a Goodwill Ambassador for the UN Second World Assembly on Aging, which took place in Madrid, Spain, in April 2002.
During his many travels around the world, Marceau visited Israel in 1960. He died in 2007, at the age of 84.
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