Amidou

Moroccan actor

Amidou

Born	Hamidou Benmessaoud (1935-08-02)2 August 1935 Rabat, Morocco
Died	19 September 2013(2013-09-19) (aged 78) Paris, France
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1935–2013
Awards	Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival, Cairo Film Festival

Hamidou Benmessaoud (Arabic: حميدو بنمسعود; 2 August 1935 – 19 September 2013), best known as Amidou, was a Moroccan-French film, television, and stage actor.^{[citation needed]}

Born in Rabat, at 17 Amidou moved to Paris to attend the CNSAD. In 1968 he made his debut on stage, in Jean Genet's Les paravents.^[1]

Amidou was best known for his association with director Claude Lelouch, with whom he shot eleven films, including Lelouch's film debut Le propre de l'homme (1960).^[2] He made his debut in a Moroccan film in 1969, starring in Soleil de printemps directed by Latif Lahlou.^[1] His career included roles in Spaghetti Westerns like Buddy Goes West and several American productions, including William Friedkin's Sorcerer, John Frankenheimer's Ronin and John Huston's Escape to Victory.^[2]

In 1969, Amidou was awarded best actor at the Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival for his role in Life Love Death by Claude Lelouch,^[3] and later won best actor awards at the Cairo Film Festival (for Pursuit by Leila Triquie) and at the Tangier Film Festival (for Rachid Boutounes's Here and There).^[2] In 2005 he received, from the hands of Martin Scorsese, a Lifetime Career Award at the International Film Festival of Marrakech.^[3] He was also the first Moroccan actor to have won an acting award at the National Conservatory of Dramatic Art.^[2]

Amidou died on 19 September 2013 in Paris, France, from an undisclosed illness.^[2]

Filmography

Le propre de l'homme (1961)
Une fille et des fusils (1965) – Amidou
The Grand Moments (1966) – Roger Amy
Brigade antigangs (1966) – Broken Nose
Live for Life (1967) – Photographer
Fleur d'oseille (1967) – Francis
La Fille d'en face (1968) – The seducer
La Chamade (1968) – Etienne
Life Love Death (1969) – François Toledo
Soleil de printemps (1969)
Le Voyou (1970) – Bill
Comptes à rebours (1971) – Macyas
Smic Smac Smoc (1971) – Smoc
La Poudre d'escampette (1971) – Ali
Trois milliards sans ascenseur (1972) – José
What a Flash! (1972)
La Punition (1973) – Raymond
La Valise (1973) – Lieutenant Abdul Fouad
Rosebud (1975) – Kirkbane
Sorcerer (1977) – Kassem / Martinez
Buddy Goes West (1981) – Girolamo / Eagle Eye
Escape to Victory (1981) – André
Les P'tites Têtes (1982) – Prince Douzami
Afghanistan pourquoi ? (1983)
La Nuit porte-jarretelles (1985)
Adieu Blaireau (1985) – Poupée
Catherine (1986) – Abou-al-Khayr (TV Series)
Champagne amer (1989) – Slim
L'union sacrée (1989) – Le Kabyle
There Were Days... and Moons (1990) – The incredulous policeman
La Belle Histoire (1992) – The shepherd
Day of Atonement (1992) – Si Ali
Unveiled (1994) – Det. Brahms
Lalla Hobby (1996) – Haj Moussa
Soleil (1997) – Mokzar
Ronin (1998) – Man at Exchange
Hideous Kinky (1998) – Sufi Sheikh
Rules of Engagement (2000) – Dr. Ahmar
Spy Game (2001) – Dr. Ahmed
And Now... Ladies and Gentlemen... (2002) – Police Inspector
Heaven's Doors (2006) – Mansour
Moussem lamchaoucha (2009) – Haj Lamfadel
Comme les cinq doigts de la main (2010) – Lakdar

Theater

Year	Title	Author	Director
1961	Ross	Terence Rattigan	Michel Vitold
1965	The Siege of Numantia	Miguel de Cervantes	Jean-Louis Barrault
1966	Henry VI	William Shakespeare	Jean-Louis Barrault
1966	The Screens	Jean Genet	Roger Blin

References

^ ^a ^b "Décès de Hamidou Benmassoud :Amidou, premier acteur marocain à s'être fait un nom à l'international". Aufait Moroc (in French). 20 September 2013. Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved 22 September 2013.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "Amidou, comédien fétiche de Lelouch, est décédé". Le Figaro (in French). 20 September 2013. Retrieved 22 September 2013.
^ ^a ^b Rebecca Chaouch (21 September 2013). "Décès de l'acteur marocain Hamidou Benmessaoud". Huffington Post (in French). Retrieved 22 September 2013.