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{{short description|French actor-singer}}
{{Sources|date=February 2024}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Jules Auguste Muraire
| image              = Raimu - photo Henri Manuel.jpg
| caption            = Studio Henri Manuel, 1920
| othername          = Raimu
| birth_name         = Jules Auguste Muraire
| birth_date         = {{birth date|1883|12|18|df=y}}
| birth_place        = [[Toulon]], France
| death_date         = {{death date and age|1946|09|20|1883|12|18|df=y}}
| death_place        = [[Neuilly-sur-Seine]], Paris, France
| resting_place      = [[Toulon]], France
| occupation         = {{hlist|Actor|Singer}}
| notable_works      = 
| awards             = [[Honorary César]] 1983
| years_active       = 1916–1943
| known_for          = 
| height             = 
| spouse             = {{marriage|Esther Metayer|1936}}
| children           = 1
| alma_mater         = 
}}
'''Jules Auguste Muraire''' (18 December 1883 – 20 September 1946), whose [[stage name]] was '''Raimu''', was a French actor.{{cn|date=February 2024}} He is most famous for playing César in the 'Marseilles trilogy' (''[[Marius (1931 film)|Marius]]'', ''[[Fanny (1932 film)|Fanny]]'' and ''[[César (film)|César]]'').<ref name="nyt" />

==Life and career==
Born in [[Toulon]] in the [[Var (département)|Var]] department, Muraire made his stage debut there in 1899. After coming to the attention of the great [[music hall]] star [[Félix Mayol]] who was also from Toulon, in 1908 he was given a chance to work as a secondary act in the Paris theatre scene. He worked primarily in comedy. In 1916, writer/director [[Sacha Guitry]] gave him significant parts in productions at the [[Folies Bergère]] and other major venues.{{cn|date=February 2024}} In addition to his appearances on stage, Raimu also developed a successful career in films, sometimes under the name ''Jules Raimu''.<ref name="nyt" />

He starred in the premiere of [[André Messager]]'s operetta ''[[Coups de roulis]]'' in 1928. The following year, already a leading actor, he gained wide acclaim for his starring role in the stage production of the [[Marcel Pagnol]] play ''Marius''. Reluctantly, owing to his disappointment with his first film role many years earlier, he agreed to act in Guitry's film ''Le Blanc et le Noir'' and then reprised his ''[[Marius (1931 film)|Marius]]'' role on film a year later. By his late forties Raimu had become one of his country's most respected actors, and was considered the ultimate actor by [[Alec Guinness]], [[Marlene Dietrich]], [[Rod Steiger]] and [[Orson Welles]].

[[Image:Cimetière central de Toulon - Tombe Raimu.jpg|thumb|right|Grave in Toulon]]

==Family==
He married Esther Metayer (1905-1977) in 1936. He had a daughter, Paulette Brun (1925-1992).

==Death==
Raimu died of a heart attack on 20 September 1946,<ref name="nyt">{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/1946/09/21/archives/jules-raimu-star-of-french-theatre-comic-actor-of-stage-films-is.html | work=[[The New York Times]] | title=JULES RAIMU, STAR OF FRENCH THEATRE; Comic Actor of Stage, Films is Dead--Won Praise Here for Role in 'Baker's Wife' | page=12 |url-access=subscription | date=21 September 1946 | access-date=20 February 2024}}</ref> brought on by complications with anesthesia after a relatively minor leg operation, in the [[American Hospital of Paris]] in [[Neuilly-sur-Seine]], while he was asleep.

==Legacy==
He was interred in the cemetery of Toulon, where the Cinéma Raimu Toulon has been named in his honor.

In 1961, the government of France honored him with his image on a postage stamp. A small museum created by his granddaughter Isabelle Nohain exists in the town of [[Cogolin]] in the [[Var (department)|Var]] department in France.

==Partial filmography==
{{Div col}}
*''[[Black and White (1931 film)|Black and White]]'' (1931) - Marcel Desnoyers
*''[[Marius (1931 film)|Marius]]'' (1931) - César Olivier
*''[[Mam'zelle Nitouche]]'' (1931) - Célestin / Floridor
*''[[The Chocolate Girl (1932 film)|The Chocolate Girl]]'' (1932) - Félicien Bédarride
*''[[Fun in the Barracks]]'' (1932) - Le capitaine Hurluret
*''[[Fanny (1932 film)|Fanny]]'' (1932) - César
* ''[[Theodore and Company (film)|Theodore and Company]]'' (1933) - Clodomir
*''[[Charlemagne (film)|Charlemagne]]'' (1933) - Charlemagne
*''Ces messieurs de la Santé'' (1934) - Gédéon Tafard
*''Minuit... place Pigalle'' (1934) - Monsieur Prosper
* ''[[Tartarin of Tarascon (1934 film)|Tartarin of Tarascon]]'' (1934) - Tartarin
* ''[[I Have an Idea]]'' (1934) - Aubrey
*''[[School for Coquettes (1935 film)|School for Coquettes]]'' (1935) - Labaume
* ''[[Gaspard de Besse]]'' (1935) - Samplan
*''[[The Secret of Polichinelle (1936 film)|The Secret of Polichinelle]]'' (1936) - M. Jouvenel
*''[[The Brighton Twins]]'' (1936) - Alfred Beaugérard et les deux fils Achille
*''[[The King (1936 film)|The King]]'' (1936) - M. Bourdier - un riche industriel et sénateur qui reçoit le Roi
*''[[César (film)|César]]'' (1936) - César Ollivier
*''[[Let's Make a Dream]]'' (1936) - Le mari
*''Vous n'avez rien à déclarer?'' (1937) - Jules Papillot
*''[[The Pearls of the Crown]]'' (1937) - L'industriel du midi
* ''[[Chaste Susanne (1937 film)|Chaste Susanne]]'' (1937) - Monsieur des Aubrays
*''[[Life Dances On]]'' (1937) - Francois Patusset
*''[[Gribouille (film)|Gribouille]]'' (1937) - Camille Morestan
*''[[The Kings of Sport]]'' (1937) - Jules de l'Estaque
*''Le fauteuil 47'' (1937) - Juste Auguste Theillard
*''[[The Strange Monsieur Victor]]'' (1938) - Victor Agardanne
* ''[[The New Rich]]'' (1938) - Legendre
*''[[The Baker's Wife (film)|The Baker's Wife]]'' (1938) - Aimable Castanier
* ''[[Heroes of the Marne]]'' (1938) - Bernard Lefrançois
*''[[Cocoanut (film)|Cocoanut]]'' (1939) - Loulou Barbentane
*''[[Monsieur Brotonneau]]'' (1939) - M. Brotonneau
*''Ultima giovinezza'' (1939) - Cesare
*''Second Childhood'' (1939) - Georges
*''[[The Man Who Seeks the Truth]]'' (1940) - Jean Vernet
*''[[The Well-Digger's Daughter (1940 film)|La Fille du puisatier]]'' (1940) - Pascal Amoretti
*''Le duel'' (1941) - le Père Bolène
*''[[Parade en sept nuits]]'' (1941) - Le curé Maffre - curé des Baux
*''[[The Strangers in the House (film)|Les Inconnus dans la maison]]'' (1942) - Maître Hector Loursat
*''[[L'Arlésienne (1942 film)|L'Arlésienne]]'' (1942) - Marc
*''[[Monsieur La Souris]]'' (1942) - Monsieur La Souris
*''[[The Benefactor (1942 film)|The Benefactor]]'' (1942) - Monsieur Moulinet
*''Les petits riens'' (1942) - Charpillon
*''[[The Heart of a Nation|Untel père et fils]]'' (1943) - L'oncle Jules Froment
*''[[Le Colonel Chabert (1943 film)|Le Colonel Chabert]]'' (1943) - Le colonel Hyacinthe Chabert
*''Les gueux au paradis'' (1946) - Boule
* ''[[The Eternal Husband (film)|The Eternal Husband]]'' (1946) - Nicolas Trousotsky (final film role)
*''[[Chantons sous l'Occupation]]'' (1976) - (archive footage)
{{div col end}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|0706926|Raimu}}
* [http://www.musee-raimu.com Raimu Museum]

{{Honorary César}}

{{Authority control}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2016}}

[[Category:1883 births]]
[[Category:1946 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century French male actors]]
[[Category:Actors from Toulon]]
[[Category:French male stage actors]]
[[Category:French male film actors]]
[[Category:French male silent film actors]]
[[Category:Sociétaires of the Comédie-Française]]
[[Category:César Honorary Award recipients]]
[[Category:Pseudonymous actors]]