# Raymond Devos

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Belgian comedian

Raymond Devos Raymond Devos in 1980 Born (1922-11-09)9 November 1922 Mouscron, Belgium Died 15 June 2006(2006-06-15) (aged 83) Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse, France Education Étienne Ducroux School Occupation comic Years active 1948–1999 Awards Legion of Honor

**Raymond Devos** (French: [\[dəvɔs\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/French); 9 November 1922 – 15 June 2006) was a French [humorist](/source/Humorist), [stand-up comedian](/source/Stand-up_comedian) and [clown](/source/Clown). He is best known for his sophisticated [puns](/source/Pun) and [surreal humour](/source/Surreal_humour).

## Early life

Devos was born in [Mouscron](/source/Mouscron), [Belgium](/source/Belgium), close to the French border. Both his parents were French and he moved to [Tourcoing](/source/Tourcoing), [France](/source/France), at the age of two. Seven years later, his family moved to [Paris](/source/Paris). During the [Second World War](/source/Second_World_War) he was sent, like many young men of his generation, to [Germany](/source/Germany) to work. On his return to France, he took acting and [mime](/source/Mime_artist) lessons at the Étienne Ducroux school, where he met [Marcel Marceau](/source/Marcel_Marceau). In 1948, he was part of a [burlesque trio](/source/Burlesque) (in the older sense of the word *burlesque*).

## Career

Devos's career took off in the 1950s when he began writing his own [one man shows](/source/One_man_shows) and was the opening act for [Maurice Chevalier](/source/Maurice_Chevalier). Although his act still involved elements of his early years as a clown (such as [juggling](/source/Juggling)) he was mostly recognized because of his mastery of the French language. His unique brand of surreal humour and sophisticated puns garnered him much respect throughout the Francophone world. Devos is a leading character in [Alejandro Jodorowsky's](/source/Alejandro_Jodorowsky) [surrealist](/source/Surrealist) [1957](/source/1957_in_film) debut [short film](/source/Short_film) *[Les têtes interverties](/source/Les_t%C3%AAtes_interverties)* (a [mime](/source/Mime) adaptation of [Thomas Mann](/source/Thomas_Mann)'s 1940 play *The Transposed Heads*). Perhaps his best-known international appearance is a cameo in [Jean-Luc Godard](/source/Jean-Luc_Godard)'s *[Pierrot le Fou](/source/Pierrot_le_Fou)* [1965](/source/1965_in_film) as a man sitting on a harbourside who is obsessed with the memory of a mysterious love song.

He performed for the last time in 1999 in Paris's [Olympia Theater](/source/Paris_Olympia). He died in [Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse](/source/Saint-R%C3%A9my-l%C3%A8s-Chevreuse), [Yvelines](/source/Yvelines), [France](/source/France).[1]

## Nationality

Because he was born in Belgium, the nationality of Devos was often, and still is, a source of confusion. Some media reported his death by referring to "Belgian comic Devos"[2] or "French and Belgian comic Devos".[3] He also has a Dutch/Flemish family name. Devos was born of French parents and raised in France, but was always respectful of his country of birth and once quipped that he was still, after all, a "fake Belgian".[4]

## Filmography

Year Title Role Notes 1957 Ce joli monde L'abbé 1958 Le Sicilien Henri 1959 Vous n'avez rien à déclarer? Le peintre, prix de Rome 1959 Le travail c'est la liberté Émile Dumoulin 1962 Tartarin of Tarascon Un automobiliste 1965 Pierrot le Fou L'homme du port Uncredited 1973 La raison du plus fou Le surveillant de la maison de repos

## Awards and distinctions

- In 1986 he was awarded the [Grand Prix du Théâtre de l’Académie française](/source/Grand_prix_du_th%C3%A9%C3%A2tre_(Acad%C3%A9mie_fran%C3%A7aise)).

- He was awarded the [Legion of Honor](/source/Legion_of_Honor) and the [Académie française](/source/Acad%C3%A9mie_fran%C3%A7aise)'s *Grand Prix du Théâtre*.[2]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** AFP, [*Raymond Devos est mort*](http://www.afp.com/francais/news/stories/060615095849.5wyf9qae.html)[*[permanent dead link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Link_rot)*], June 15, 2006

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-BBCobituar_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-BBCobituar_2-1) [BBC News](/source/BBC_News), [*Belgian comic Raymond Devos dies*](https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/5084600.stm), June 15, 2006

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** "[*Raymond Devos a fini de jongler avec les mots*](http://www.tdg.ch/tghome/toute_l_info_test/l_evenement/devos1__16_06_.html?)[*[permanent dead link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Link_rot)*], *[Tribune de Genève](/source/Tribune_de_Gen%C3%A8ve) en ligne*, June 16, 2006, retrieved on June 19, 2006

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Louis-Bernard Robitaille, [*La France est émue par la disparition de Raymond Devos*](https://www.cyberpresse.ca/article/20060616/CPARTS04/606160700/5156/CPARTS), [La Presse](/source/La_Presse_(Canada)), June 16, 2006

## External links

- [RaymondDevos.com](http://www.raymonddevos.com) (in French)

- [Raymond Devos](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0222930/) at [IMDb](/source/IMDb_(identifier))

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Raymond Devos](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_Devos) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_Devos?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.