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Capucine
from the trailer for The Pink Panther (1963)
Born	Germaine Lefebvre 6 January 1931(1931-01-06) Toulon, France
Died	17 March 1990 (aged 59) Lausanne, Switzerland
Years active	1948–1990
Spouse(s)	Pierre Trabaud (1950, divorced)

Capucine (6 January 1931^[1] – 17 March 1990)^[2] was a French actress and fashion model best known for her comedic roles in The Pink Panther (1963) and What's New Pussycat? (1965). She appeared in 36 films and 17 television productions between 1948 and 1990. Her death was a result of suicide.

Early life

Born Germaine Lefebvre in Toulon, France,^[2][3] she attended school in France and received a B.A. in foreign languages. At 17, riding in a carriage in Paris, a commercial photographer noticed her. She became a fashion model, working for fashion houses Givenchy and Christian Dior. She adopted the name, "Capucine" (French for nasturtium). Capucine met Audrey Hepburn modeling in Paris. The two would remain friends for the rest of Capucine's life.

Career

In 1949, Capucine made her film debut in the French film Rendez-vous de Juillet. On the set of Rendez-vous, she met Pierre Trabaud; they married the next year. The marriage lasted only six months, and Capucine never married again. In 1957, film producer Charles K. Feldman spotted Capucine while she was modeling in New York City. Feldman brought her to Hollywood to learn English and study acting under Gregory Ratoff.^[4] She was signed to a contract with Columbia Pictures in 1958 and landed her first English-speaking role in the film Song Without End (1960) for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award. For the next few years, Capucine made six more major motion pictures, including North to Alaska (1960) and Walk on the Wild Side (1962), in the latter she portrayed a lesbian hooker,^[5] before moving to Switzerland in 1962. She continued making films in Europe until her death.^[3] She also played a nude scene in softcore movie Aphrodite (1982).

Personal life

Capucine met actor William Holden in the early 1960s. They starred in the films The Lion (1962) and The 7th Dawn (1964). Holden was married to Brenda Marshall, but the two began a two-year affair. After it ended, she and Holden remained friends until Holden's death in 1981.^[6]

On 17 March 1990, at the age of 59, Capucine died by suicide by jumping from her eighth-floor apartment in Lausanne, Switzerland.^[2]

Selected filmography

See also

• Mononymous persons

References

External links

• Capucine at the Internet Movie Database
• Capucine at Allmovie
• Capucine at Yahoo! Movies
• Capucine at Find a Grave
• Obituary: "Capucine, 57, Dies; French-Born Actress In Films of the 60's". The New York Times. March 21, 1990. http://www.nytimes.com/1990/03/21/arts/capucine-57-dies-french-born-actress-in-films-of-the-60-s.html?pagewanted=1. 
• brief biography