Bernard Launois

French film director and actor

Bernard Launois (French pronunciation: [bɛʁ.naʁ lonwa], born 8 April 1930) is a French exploitation film director,^[1] screenwriter and actor. As an actor, he sometimes used the pseudonym Bob Gary.^[2]

He was born in Mézières, France.^[1] After studying pharmacology for two years in the university, he sought a career in the film industry instead. He worked as a trainee editor and then briefly as an assistant director. In 1953, he was employed by Paramount's programming department in Paris.^[2]

During the 1960s, he worked for several film distribution and production companies, such as Parafrance [fr] and Les Films Copernic [fr].^[2] In 1979, he founded his own company, Lancaster Film, to finance the films he wrote and directed. He also edited film trailers and played minor roles as an actor.^[2] His debut film as director, Lâchez les chiennes (lit. 'Unleash the Bitches'; 1972), was an improvised work that he wrote in three days.^[1] Devil Story, his seventh and last feature film, gained a cult following despite its reputation as one of the worst films in history.^[1]^[3]

He founded Delta Films and bought a four-theatre multiplex in 1987.^[2] He retired from the filmmaking business at the end of the 1980s.^[1]

Filmography

Director

1972: Lâchez les chiennes
1975: Les Dépravées du plaisir [fr] or Le Gibier
1976: Les Machines à sous
1976: La Grande Suédoise or Partouzes franco-suédoises
1980: Sacrés Gendarmes [fr]
1980: Touch' pas à mon biniou [fr] or Gueules de vacances
1985: Devil Story or Il était une fois... le diable

Producer

1976: Les Machines à sous
1980: Touch' pas à mon biniou or Gueules de vacances

Actor

1970: Le Voyageur by Daniel Daert [fr]
1971: Une Femme libre de Claude Pierson
1971: Chaleurs or La femme créa l'amant by Daniel Daert
1971: Caroline mannequin nu by Daniel Lesueur
1971: Deux mâles pour Alexa (Fieras sin jaula) by Juan Logar
1973: Pigalle carrefour des illusions by Pierre Chevalier
1973: Les Infidèles (1973 film) [fr] by Christian Lara
1980: Touch' pas à mon biniou or Gueules de vacances
1985: Devil Story or Il était une fois... le diable

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Mignard, Frédéric. "Bernard Launois". CinéDweller.com (in French). Archived from the original on 20 March 2021. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Rège, Philippe (2009). Encyclopedia of French Film Directors, Volume 1. Scarecrow Press. p. 600. ISBN 9780810869394. Retrieved 24 February 2023 – via Internet Archive.
^ "Devil Story". American Genre Film Archive. Archived from the original on 3 February 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2023.