Here is the biography of Jean-Pierre Aumont:
Jean-Pierre Aumont was a French actor born on January 5, 1911, in Paris, France. He was the son of Suzanne Cahen, an actress, and Alexandre Salomons, a well-to-do department store executive. His brother, François Villiers, was a film writer/director. Aumont's father was a Dutch Jew and his mother was from a French Jewish family, making him of both Ashkenazi and Sephardi ancestry.
Aumont was transferred to various prep schools before enrolling at the Paris Conservatory of Dramatic Art at the age of 16. He made his film debut in 1931 in the films "Jean de la Lune" and "Échec et mat." He then appeared in a number of Gallic films and made his theater debut playing the role of Oedipus in Jean Cocteau's "La Machine Infernale" at the Comedie Champs-Elysees in 1934.
Aumont served with the French Third Mechanized Division for nearly a year (1939-1940) and earned a medal of distinction for his valor (Croix de Guerre). He then arrived in America in 1942, barely speaking English, and made his American debut in Katharine Cornell's production of "Rose Burke." He was signed by MGM for films and made his debut as Captain Pierre Matard in the espionage war picture "Assignment in Brittany" (1943) co-starring Susan Peters.
Aumont's second American film was "The Cross of Lorraine" (1943),a dramatic Stalag 17-like story of French POWs held in a German war camp. He married Maria Montez in 1943 after only a three-month courtship. Aumont interrupted his acting career by serving with the Free French forces in North Africa and was again awarded a medal (Legion of Honor) for his bravery. He was twice wounded during his active years of service.
After the war, Aumont returned to Hollywood films, co-starring with Ginger Rogers in the comedy "Heartbeat" (1946) and appearing as composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov in Universal's "Song of Scheherazade" (1947). He decided to return to France with his wife and daughter, who was born in 1946 and grew up to become the actress Tina Aumont.
Aumont continued to act in European films and the theater, appearing in such productions as "Figure of a Girl" (1949) and "Wicked City" (1949). He was married to Maria Montez until her death in 1951. Aumont continued to act, appearing in films such as "Charge of the Lancers" (1954),"Napoleon" (1955),and "The Seventh Sin" (1957).
Aumont married Italian actress Marisa Pavan in 1956 and had two sons, Jean-Claude and Patrick. He refocused on the theater and his playwriting skills, appearing in productions such as "The Heavenly Twins" and "A Second String" (both on Broadway). He also went on to form a warmly-received nightclub act in New York with his wife.
For the remainder of his career, Aumont remained the ever-charming and worldly continental, vacillating between the stage, international films, and classy TV fare. He received an honorary César Award in 1992 and died in his native country of a heart attack a few weeks after his 90th birthday in 2001.
