Patrick Topaloff

Patrick Topaloff

Born: December 30, 1944
Died: March 7, 2010
in Paris, France
Patrick Topaloff (30 December 1944 – 7 March 2010) was a French comedian, singer, and actor.

The son of a Georgian father and a Corsican mother which, according to him, made him "a delicate Franco-Russian dessert", Topaloff began his career on Europe 1, where his comic antics drew a wide audience, especially among children who delighted in his many silly catch phrases. Popular singer Claude François encouraged him to try his hand at singing, and his recording of "Il Vaut Bien Mieux Etre Jeune, Riche et Beau" ("It's Much Better to Be Young, Rich, and Beautiful") became a major hit and the first of several gold records.

In the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s, writer/director Philippe Clair cast Topaloff in a number of slapstick comedy films similar to the Carry On series in the UK or those made by Jerry Lewis in the US after splitting with Dean Martin. His last feature film was Drôles de Zèbres for writer/director Guy Lux in 1977.

In his later years, problems in Topaloff's private life overshadowed his professional successes. Deeply in debt, he frequently worked without billing in an effort to avoid liens being placed on his salary. In 1995, he was sentenced to a year in prison for non-payment of alimony and taxes. Paroled after four months, he undertook a new and successful stage career.

He died, aged 65, from a heart attack. His autobiography, Les Pleurs du Rire (Tears of Laughter), was a major bestseller.

Source: Article "Patrick Topaloff" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.

Movies for Patrick Topaloff...

La TV des 70's : Quand Giscard était président
Title: La TV des 70's : Quand Giscard était président
Character: Self (archive footage)
Released: January 7, 2022
Type: Movie
In May 1974, Valéry Giscard d'Estaing became President of the Republic and wanted to bring about a new era of modernity. One of his first decisions was to break up the ORTF with the creation of three new television channels: TF1, Antenne 2 and FR3. Three new public channels but autonomous and competing. It is a race for the audience which is engaged then, and from now on the channels will make the war! This competition will give birth to a real golden age for television programs, with variety shows in the forefront. The stars of the song are going to invade the living rooms of the French for their biggest pleasure. This unedited documentary tells the story of the metamorphosis of this television of the early 1970s, between freedom of tone, scandals, political intrigues and programs that have become mythical.
bee
Title: Champs-Elysées
Character: Self
Released: January 16, 1982
Type: TV
bee
Drôles de zèbres
Title: Drôles de zèbres
Character: Anatole Fridum
Released: March 22, 1977
Type: Movie
Two unemployed men, heavily in debt due to losses at the racetrack, are hired by a criminal mastermind to harass the guests of a hotel he hopes to purchase at a below-market price in order to access a tunnel below the building that leads directly to a nearby bank.
bee
Title: Les Jeux de 20 heures
Character: Self
Released: March 22, 1976
Type: TV
bee
Title: Système 2
Character: Self
Released: January 19, 1975
Type: TV
bee
Title: Les Rendez-vous du dimanche
Character: Self
Released: January 12, 1975
Type: TV
A talk show presented by Michel Drucker
bee
Title: Midi Première
Character: Self
Released: January 6, 1975
Type: TV
Midi Première is a French variety show presented by Danièle Gilbert, directed by Jacques Pierre and broadcast from January 6, 1975 until January 1, 1982 on TF1. The program was generally broadcast between 12:15 p.m. and 12:55 p.m., then giving way to the 1:00 p.m. TV news. However, the broadcast schedule could change, depending on the guests, and the setting where the recording of the program was shot. Certain performances by artists who have become cult like the one where Ringo jostles with a demonstrator in interpretation (1977), that of Dalida with the title There is always a song with the soundtrack that does not start, twice, at the right speed (1978), Claude François and his Clodettes, who, in the provinces, are unable to join "the set" in order to interpret his song, the latter being taken by the crowd of delirious fans (summer 1977) . The group Supertramp performed there with the title "Dreamer" on March 8, 1975.
bee
The Fuhrer Runs Amok
Title: The Fuhrer Runs Amok
Character: Toto
Released: April 12, 1974
Type: Movie
France and Germany are at war. Adolf Hitler challenges the Allies to seal the fate of the war by playing a football match.
bee
Par ici la monnaie
Title: Par ici la monnaie
Character: Wolfgang Amadeus Bozard
Released: April 3, 1974
Type: Movie
All the inhabitants of an old house are swindlers, dreaming only of the big score that will enable them to survive an announced eviction. They end up pulling it off together, by building a fake tollgate.
bee
Bedmania
Title: Bedmania
Character: Monsieur Loyal
Released: April 2, 1974
Type: Movie
A large bed recounts stories from its brief existence. Clumsy burglars, adulterated husbands and wives, homosexuals, lesbians, a lady, and her gigolo, a doctor who tries an erotic measurement machine on his assistant.
bee
La brigade en folie
Title: La brigade en folie
Character: Toto
Released: February 7, 1973
Type: Movie
A police brigade and a financial brigade are sent to Switzerland to dismantle a banking sector.
bee
Title: Cadet Rousselle
Character: Self
Released: November 4, 1971
Type: TV
bee
Title: Samedi soir
Character: Self
Released: January 9, 1971
Type: TV
bee
Erotissimo
Title: Erotissimo
Character: le 2e speaker à RT2
Released: June 7, 1969
Type: Movie
Annie is a middle-age wife, still sexy and pampered by her husband, Phillippe, who is the owner and general manager of a dynamic company. Under the deluge of sexy Swedish movies, sexy advertising on the streets, sexy intimate clothing in ladies' shops, and even talks about sex and marital infidelity with her mother and female friends, Annie starts feeling left aside by her husband, and trying to attract in a number of ways - and failing. It's not the all-purpose secretary at the office that is keeping him late, it's a tax expert that, asking the most innocent questions, is finding out how Philippe can manage a company without profits, and still manage a home, may be two... with high quality levels.
bee
The Ponies
Title: The Ponies
Character: Le présentateur Poney-Shop
Released: June 12, 1967
Type: Movie
The rise and fall of a journalist, named Max Torp, who runs a youth magazine, a private club, a tour agency and a pirate radio.