On Thursday, October 10, 2024, Paris came to a standstill. It was the farewell to Michel Blanc, the final scene of an unforgettable actor. A silent crowd, mixing celebrities and ordinary people, gathered for the funeral of Michel Blanc, that so familiar face of French cinema. Sadness filled the air around the Saint-Eustache Church, a symbolic place chosen for this ceremony full of reflection. Michel Blanc, taken by a sudden death a week earlier, leaves behind much more than a film or a cult character; he leaves an indelible mark in the hearts of millions of viewers.
The last tribute from lifelong friends
Around Michel Blanc‘s coffin, a constellation of longtime friends. His companions from the Splendid, that legendary troupe, were all there. Christian Clavier, Gérard Jugnot, Thierry Lhermitte, Josiane Balasko, Marie-Anne Chazel, and Martin Lamotte had faces closed with pain. These lifelong friends, these brothers and sisters of cinema, had shared decades of laughter and success with him.
In the vast nave of Saint-Eustache, other cinema figures were present to say goodbye: Patrice Leconte, Dany Boon, Karine Viard, Jean-Paul Rouve. Alongside these public figures, a discreet but meaningful presence, that of Ramatoulaye Diop, Michel Blanc’s partner, supported by the arms of Jean-Paul Rouve. And then, as a sign of the respect held for the actor, the First Lady, Brigitte Macron, and the Minister of Culture, Rachida Dati, had come to honor this final tribute.
A ceremony in the image of Michel Blanc: simple and musical
Under the historic vaults of Saint-Eustache, it was music that accompanied Michel Blanc on his final journey. From Lully’s March for the Ceremony of the Turks to the sublime works of Bach, Chopin, and Mozart, each note seemed to resonate with the actor’s inner life. A cello pierced the silence, and the great organ of the church made the stones vibrate, like an echo of Blanc’s secret passions for classical music.
Father Yves Trocheris, the parish priest of Saint-Eustache, delivered words full of tenderness. He spoke of Michel Blanc in the intimacy of his faith, as a "funny parishioner" and discreet, almost invisible but always present. This man, who shunned the spotlight outside the sets, found in the silence of the church an intimate refuge.
Simple memories, farewells marked by modesty
The speeches were few, but each word carried immense weight. Josiane Balasko, her throat tight with emotion, tenderly spoke of this "city" man who couldn’t stand the countryside. An anecdote that made the audience smile, recalling this Michel Blanc fiercely attached to Paris. Jean-Paul Rouve, for his part, drew laughter through tears with a story about a Tyrolean jacket Blanc had just bought, only days before his passing. These moments of lightness echoed the irresistible humor that marked Blanc’s life and career.
Even the anonymous paid tribute in their own way. A young man, dressed in ski gear, crossed the nave in memory of Jean-Claude Dusse, that character who, generation after generation, embodied humor as tender as it was clumsy.
Michel Blanc: a death that leaves a void
The passing of Michel Blanc, at 72, due to a drug allergy, took the country by surprise. Gérard Jugnot could not hide his emotion while sharing the tragic details of his death, which occurred after a series of heart attacks caused by an anaphylactic shock. Blanc, hospitalized at Saint-Antoine Hospital, could not be saved.
While Michel Blanc may not have had the mythical stature of an Alain Delon or a Jean-Paul Belmondo, his departure caused a shockwave just as intense. For Blanc, with his humility, simplicity, and limitless talent, was one of those men you love without reservation. Under a light rain, a dense crowd gathered in front of the church, a final popular tribute to an artist whose passing leaves an immense void in French cinema.