Marcel Louis Henry Joseph Léon Courmes (13 June 1885 – 5 May 1950) was a French military officer and aviator during the First World War, and subsequently one of the first French sound cinematographers.
Biography
Family and background
The son of Euphémie Segond and Captain Arthur Louis Courmes (1849-1921) who was the Knight of Legion of Honour. Courmes was born on June 13, 1885, to Euphémie Segond[2] and Captain Arthur Louis Courmes (1849–1921), a Knight of the Legion of Honour.[3] His paternal lineage traces back to Luc Courmes, a Huguenot captain born in 1580 in Grasse.[4][5][6] He was also the great-grandnephew of Claude-Marie Courmes, who served as deputy of Var, mayor of Grasse, and was a Knight of the Legion of Honour.[7]
Captain Marcel Courmes as a pilot of the French 2nd Bombardment, Group GB 2, August 1915
He was a classmate of Colonel de La Rocque and demonstrated his military loyalty to him by testifying as a character witness at La Rocque's trial.[14] He was also close to the first Chinese Saint-Cyrien, General Prince Pao-Tchao Dan (1884-1958).[15]
He served as a second lieutenant in the 5th African Hunter Regiment (1907), then as lieutenant in the 2nd African Hunter Regiment (1907–1908). He served during the Moroccan Campaign in the 28th Dragoon Regiment (1910–1911) and in the 7th Dragoon Regiment (1913). He was described as a "brilliant but dreamy, excessively artistic cavalry officer who has a tendency towards too much benevolence in his command, which can have serious disadvantages in times of war."[13][by whom?]
In 1914, he was a special staff officer in the 4th Dragoon Regiment. He joined the French Air Force on August 1, 1915 in the French 2nd Bombardment Group, and then served in the Escadrille F 63. He was described as "an officer of perfect education, of an independent character who has great qualities of composure, courage and willpower, which make him an excellent pilot."[13][by whom?]
Career in film
Marcel Courmes as an actor and artistic director for La chienne at Jean Renoir 1931
Courmes was one of the first French sound cinematographers, along with Joseph de Bretagne, both of whom participated in many French films of the 1930s.[clarification needed] In 1931, the pair featured in film La Chienne directed by Jean Renoir, for which Courmes was the artistic director and played the role of "The Colonel". They were supported by technical advisors from Western Electric, Bell and Hotchckiss whom assisted in direct capture of outdoor sound.[17] The pair's contribution is most apparent in the film's final sequence, a tracking shot with dialogue between Michel Simon and Alexis Godart on a busy street.[according to whom?] The "sound trucks" necessary for this sequence were used by the novice technicians, with the help of experts from Western Electric.[17]
Courmes' is also credited in Braunberger and Richebé films such as Fantômas (with Bell in 1932) and The Agony of the Eagles (1933, with Bell). Courmes also recorded the street sounds of La Tête d'un homme for Julien Duvivier (1932, production Vandal et Delac) and those of Hôtel du Nord for Marcel Carné in 1938. He worked again with Bretagne for the Renoir film Madame Bovary (1933) and Le Voyage de M. Perrichon (1934).[17]
Citation to the Order of the Army, number 32489 (July 13, 1916) with mention: "Bold and skillful pilot carried out 10 bombings, including 9 at night; this is particularly distinguished by carrying out successfully on the night of the 17th on May 18, 1916 a particularly perilous expedition to an important station."[citation needed]
Filmography
Marcel Courmes was one of the first French sound cinematographers and was also the artistic director of Jean Renoir's film La Chienne. He participated in the following films[19]
^Extract from the Civil Status Registers of Marseille deposited at the registry of the Court of First Instance of the said city, 1889, volume 6, number 19.
^Service record of Captain Arthur Courmes : SHD - GR 5YE 86783
^Christelle Accary and 16 other authors, "Entre terre, mer et ciel. Les cimetières des Alpes-Maritim (XIIe - XXIe siècles" editing Département des Alpes-Maritime snook. 2020, page 28.
^Christian Gabert "Histoire des familles" available at the Historical Library of Grasse
^« Cote LH/611/53 [archive] », base Léonore, ministère français de la Culture
^État de services du lieutenant Christian Courmes : SHD - GR 2000-2-202-02818
^Leonce Petitcolin (1985). Les fortes têtes, 1940-1944, La forteresse de Colditz (in French). France-Empire. p. 20-.
^Civil status, extract from the register of birth certificates for the year 1906. "Maurice Delage married in second marriage Douala, Cameroon, on August 7, 1946, to Gilberte Louise Courmes."
^Extracts from the service records of Squadron Leader Marcel Courmes : SHD - GR 8YE 3139. : Citation to the Order of the Army num. 3428D of 13 July 1916 and list of decorations.
