Joan has been portrayed in movies by actresses ranging from renee jeanne falconetti the passion of joan of arc, ingrid bergman, jean seberg, milla jovovich, and leelee sobieski. When jean seberg was in her late teens, she was offered the lead role in the 1957 film saint joan. November, 1938 august 30, 1979 was an american actress who lived half her life in france. The film was an adaptation of a play of the same name by the famous playwright george bernard shaw. Saint joan 57 jean seberg as joan of arc on a horse. In fact, it takes place almost entirely within the consciences of everyone involved. The circumstances of jean sebergs death 40 years ago in late august. Born in iowa, and educated at iowa university, she landed the lead role of joan of arc in otto premingers saint joan 1957, after a much publicized contest. Without sebergs knowledge, her high school drama teacher, carol houghton, entered her in an international contest to find an unknown actress to play the lead in premingers film. Watching saint joan today, one can understand why sebergs performance was judged so harshly at the time. American actress jean seberg as joan of arc in saint joan, directed by otto preminger, 1957. Get premium, high resolution news photos at getty images. Seen today, the film is a stylized, often uneven, but worthwhile experience. The real life jean seberg and the tragic tale behind.
Seberg would later earn a reputation in french new wave cinema as possibly the best actress in europe. Widmark here or jose ferrer in the ingrid bergman film about joan of arc, is not the noblest of monarchs. Jean seberg 1st film role saint joan 1957 vintage suit of. It is the 1960s and hot off her success in director otto premingers film saint joan actress jean seberg kristen stewart finds equal success in the jean luc godards film breathless. Actress jean seberg was born today in many know her best for her role opposite lee marvin and clint eastwood in paint your wagon. The secret lives of jean seberg national endowment for. Jean dorothy seberg was born in marshalltown, iowa, to dorothy arline benson, a substitute teacher, and edward waldemar seberg, a pharmacist. Over 18,000 young actresses had sent in their photos and of those 3000 were auditioned. Joan of arcthat simple peasant girl who stood up for what she believed in and was ultimately destroyed for it. The film stays faithful to history and focuses on joans rise from a maiden farm girl to an unyielding, saintly soldier. First scene, the sleepless and nutty king charles richard widmark is visited by the long dead joan jean seberg, in saint joan, 1957, otto preminger directing graham greenes script from george bernard shaws play view the tcmdb entry for saint joan 1957. It was the biggest talent search for a hollywood film in the 1950s. Jean seberg won an american idollike contest to become a movie star, only to have her philanthropy make her the target of an fbi smear campaign. Saint joan 57 jean seberg as joan of arc on a horse ebay.
Otto premingers stagy retelling of the joan of arc historylegend was pilloried on its release, and jean sebergs performance roasted no pun intended. The career of actress jean seberg began with seemingly unlimited promise. A reported 18,000 girls had sent in pictures and resumes. Columbia pictures diane ladd, who appeared in macho callahan, recalled that seberg and star david janssen tvs the. This is a vintage and original united artists production still photograph that features actress jean seberg in costume as joan of arc for her premiere film role in the 1957 historical drama film saint joan. The story of the actress known as seberg imperial beach. Both got roasted at the end of their first fame and both were later restored to the good graces of their particular environments. A young girl from a small town in rural iowa, seberg defied the fate of most girls of her background and became an immediate success in both america and france.
Her story is a testament to the manipulative and destructive power of media narrative. How hollywood star jean seberg was destroyed by the fbi. A smalltown girl from the heartland of america, she created an overnight sensation when she was selected from a pool of. As a young woman, jean was discovered by otto preminger selected from among 1,800 young novices in a competition, debuting in his 1957 film saint joan an adaptation of the story of joan of arc. Shapes, styles, and trends of decades past jean seberg nice jean seberg love her hair. An interview with jean seberg, by stephanie dickinson. The medium of movies is especially significant, as joan of arc is second only to jesus as a religious figure depicted within film. When jean landed her first acting role as the coveted joan of arc in director otto premingers saint joan, she seemed destined for stardom. There have been many films about jeanne darc starting as early as 1899 by pioneer film inventor george melies and including the silent film the passion of jeanne darc 1928 by the great danish film director carl theodor dreyer, and the ingrid bergman 1948 film joan of arc.
Other members of the cast not necessarily in the movie still. Clint eastwood, jean seberg and their affair to remember. Jean would often say later in life that she wished she really had been burnt at the stake and symbolically she was, by the fbi. At the age of 17 in 1957, jean seberg was cast to play joan of arc in otto premingers film saint joan. Jean seberg, joan of arc this is highly accurate saint joan of arc. Jean seberg in saint joan otto preminger, her first film role. She won the role in a worldwide talent search beating out 18,000 european and american actors who auditioned for the 1957 role of joan. Kristen stewart in seberg kristen stewarts subtle, enigmatic performance as the illfated starlet merits a thornier screenplay than. Unfortunately, seberg was miscast and both her acting and the 1957 film were panned. Seberg out friday in limited release begins with a reenactment of a scene from jean sebergs first movie, st. Jean seberg as joan of arc in saint joan, a 1957 britishamerican film adapted from the george bernard shaw play of the same title. She was chosen for the role after a nationwide talent search by preminger.
Pixie hairstyles 307370743319885956 jean seberg source by bettylda eyebrow evolution. Selected from a field of 18,000 contenders to play joan of arc in otto premingers 1957 film, jean seberg started her journey from marshalltown, iowa to international movie stardom. In 1456, charles vii richard widmark, experiences dreams in which he is visited by joan of arc jean seberg, the former commander of his army, burned at. Nadia margoliss 1990 book joan of arc in history, literature and film lists 53 films in which joan is the central character or an important motif, only a small percentage of more than 1500 listed works of art, as. In 1456, french king charles vii recalls the story of how he met the seventeenyearold peasant girl joan of arc, entrusted her with the command of the french army, and ultimately burned her at the stake as a heretic. This vintage original still shows a very rare photo of jean seberg on the horse as joan of arc. American actress jean seberg and husband francois moreuil arrive on. The tragic drama of sebergs life should make her a great biopic subject, particularly its amazingly symbolic early episode in which, playing joan of arc for otto preminger in 1957, she. The circumstances of jean sebergs death 40 years ago in late august 1979 were squalid and pathetic. Upon release of the film, jean seberg s performance as joan was soundly panned, and preminger was heavily criticized for casting an inexperienced unknown in a role which required her to act with veteran actors such as john gielgud, anton walbrook, felix aylmer, and others. Joan of arc on stage, in film, and in the catechism. Using the same actress lise leplat prudhomme, at least the sequel wasnt a musical.
Seberg won a talent search conducted by director otto preminger that reportedly tested more than 18,000 young women for the role. More than 18,000 unknown actresses from the united states and europe auditioned, but a pretty seventeenyearold girl from marshalltown, iowa, won the chance to play joan of arc in otto premingers 1957 film. Before jeanluc godards breathless immortalized her as an icon of the french new wave, jean seberg had literally been burned at the stake playing joan of arc in otto premingers 1957 film. Actress jean seberg began her acting career at the age of 18 with a starring role as joan of arc in 1957s saint joan director otto preminger selected her from over 18,000 entrants in a talent search for the role of the teenage martyrburned at the stake for fighting for her beliefs. Joan 1957, in which jean was accidentally injured by the flames while filming. The story of joan of arc labors under the misapprehension that joans life is a war story and takes place largely on battlefields. November, 1938 august 30, 1979 was an american actress who lived half her life in france she appeared in 34 films in hollywood and in europe, including saint joan, bonjour tristesse, breathless, lilith, the mouse that roared, moment to moment, a fine madness, paint your wagon, airport, macho callahan, and gang. Seberg has good intentions, but ultimately fails to tell her story with. Sebergs next film, also with preminger, was bonjour tristesse, from the novel originally published in 1954 and written by the eighteen year old francoise sagan and co. One month before her eighteenth birthday, jean landed the title role in otto premingers saint joan 1957 after a.
The american stars body lay decomposing in a car on a street in paris for 10 days before. Actress jean seberg, the subject of the film seberg. Compared to falconettis otherworldly torment in dreyers the passion of joan of arc or the pristine nobility of ingrid bergman in joan of arc, seberg is playful, overzealous, and crucially immature. Jean seberg biography facts, childhood, family life. Her performance in jean luc godards 1960 film breathless immortalized her as an icon of french new wave cinema she appeared in 34 films in hollywood and in europe, including saint joan, bonjour tristesse, lilith, the mouse. A true ingenue, the only acting seberg had done up to the point of saint joan had been one season of summer stock performances due in part to the highly publicized search for the star of saint joan, the film and seberg herself were subjected to heavy media scrutiny. Jean seberg is not merely a symbol of spritely exoticism. She was handpicked at age 17 by otto preminger in his nationwide search to find an actress to play joan of arc in his film adaptation of george bernard shaws saint joan. The movie does at least concede that a good part of joans legend involves her trial for heresy and her burning at the stake, and these scenes may. Actress jean seberg, fbis cointelpro, and the film kill. Jean seberg kristen stewart is a fiercely independent ingenue who came from the. Luminously beautiful but earnest and naive, she was perhaps badly equipped to withstand the cruelties of a business that often chews up actresses and then discards.
Her father was of swedish descent and her mother was of english and german ancestry. An allstar cast including jean seberg, richard widmark and john gielgud brings george bernard shaws play about joan of arc to life. Saint joan dvd theres a pleasing symmetry in the parallels to be perceived between joan of arc and jean seberg. Director otto preminger and jean seberg on the set of saint joan, 1957 quick interview with otto preminger but features an extract of sebergs first audition with him, 1956. How hollywood star jean seberg was destroyed by the fbi the.